"Along the East River and in the Bronx Young Men Were Singing," by Ariel Francisco
Author: Ariel Francisco
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I heard them and I still hear them
above the threatening shrieks of police sirens
above the honking horns of morning traffic,
above the home-crowd cheers of Yankee Stadium
above the school bells and laughter
lighting up the afternoon
above the clamoring trudge of the 1 train
and the 2 and 4, 5, 6, the B and the D
above the ice-cream trucks’ warm jingle
above the stampede of children
playing in the street,
above the rush of a popped fire hydrant
above the racket of eviction notices
above the whisper of moss and mold moving in
above the High Bridge and the 145th Street Bridge
above mothers calling those children
to come in for dinner, to come in
before it gets dark, to get your ass inside
above them calling a child who may never come home
above the creaking plunge of nightfall
and darkness settling in the deepest corners
above the Goodyear blimp circling the Stadium
above the seagulls circling the coastal trash
along the East River and in the Bronx
young men are singing and I hear them,
eastbound into eternity even
as morning destars the sky.
In the first 4 to 5 stanzas they story teller is remembering what she heard through out the whole theme she heard police sirens
It causes a reader’s body experience the text phisically.
Is the speaker talking about someone who had recently past or are they talking about someone who actually might live in the apartment above them?
It isn’t all that clear who the poet is referring to? Who do they hear? Did a tragic event happen and are they trying to express they’re haunted by it?
I personally feel like I can relate because I think that anyone, no matter who you are, deals with things like this. I think that anyone who lives in New York long enough, gets used to these type of things.
I can also relate to this because walking down from my apartment almost everyday I can hear and or see police cars or hear sirens.
What kind of poetry is this? I heard from Kiran that this repetition of the beginning word in line after line is called anaphora.
i could relate to this because back then when i use to take the school bus there will be a lot of traffic
im guess he lives in the east bronx since i know where the yankee stadium
the building i lived in you could hear and see the train go bye it was very loud but also calming in a way.
Were these things that he had to deal with? Maybe this poem is based off of his personal experience.
many go through this experience particularly living in the south and the neighborhoods due to the economy and how rent bills gets higher and higher as the months goes by ,leading parents even kids to take desperate measures
due to many incidents that happens everyday mothers need to make sure their kids come back home
my mother was also worried for me coming home late while living in the bronx.
many can relate by loosing a family member or a friend to the streets who may never come back home due to many reasons especially living in a neighborhood
around my block, all you use to hear is moms telling the kids to go home in the summer cause its to late
is he talking like he s experienced or has in while he walks home he hears people say that..
Some kids never come home because they might’ve gotten into an incident. So this line may be referring to missing kids
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The Bronx are known for where poor people live and where there is a lot of crime.Even though I don’t live in the Bronx, I can relate to this poems because it reminds me of when I live in Louisiana.
I think that the poetry idea of the poem is describing what the Bronx really is. The poet keeps on stating things that he hears outside such as children playing, the ice cream truck and the school bells and laughter. This helps to show that the Bronx can be a nice place but the poet is also realistic and knows that it is not a utopia as shown by him saying that he can also hear sirens and the voices of children that may never come home. And while the Bronx is all of that he makes sure to use the word “above” before mentioning all those things he hears in the poem to show that above all that it is really the young men singing by the river that comes to mind when he thinks of the Bronx. Which I think represents that the Bronx is always heading for change but Im not sure.
The poem talks about what it like living in the Bronx. But also saying how even though bad things have happened in the Bronx, the Bronx is changing is still is people homes/ community.
The author use repetition she uses the word “above” before talking about what happens in the Bronx. Kinda showing how even though this has happened the Bronx is above this and changing
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