Visual Explication of "I Am a Finn" by James Tate
My dad introduced this poem to me, and while it's not particularly complicated, there is some nuance. I think it's funny and enjoyable, so I decided I would be happy to spend some time with it. You can read it here. (It also has a companion poem.) And here's my visual interpretation:
-Bridget Rubins
The poem you chose is really quite funny, and I like how I could tell what the poem was about by just looking at your drawing. You manage to capture the idea that he goes around and is glad that he is Finnish and that no one around him knows. This is an abstract idea, but you illustrated it very well. I also really appreciate the image in the middle of the guy pointing his chin into the air as a proud Finn. It covers the overarching method that this guy is overly obsessed with his heritage. Good work!
ReplyDeleteThis is an incredible drawing! I love how you emphasized the man's proud profile and stance by putting a border around him as he stood in the middle. Incorporating the flag throughout, and in color, was also a good choice. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI love this illustration and visual explication of this interesting James Tate poem, Bridget! The layout of the illustration––the scenes from the poems mapped out in four panels, and the overall theme and spirit of the poem occupying that central image of the upright, self-affirming Finn––is effective and resonates well with the humor but also the complexity of the poem. I find the poem very funny, but also a little tragic. And the companion poem gets a bit disturbing toward the end, as the Finnish pride seems to spill over into some possible xenophobia toward other Americans of different origins. You captured "the punk lovers afraid / to show their quivery emotions" particularly well.
ReplyDeleteI really like your visual illustration! It really captured the essence of the poem and is also really good! I also really enjoyed the poem and actually thought that your visual representation of it made it more clear to me. I also really liked the scenes that you chose to highlight and the colors that you chose to use. I thought they were all very fitting.
ReplyDeleteThe poem you've chosen is entertaining to read - it's odd but it's also funny. First of all, the drawing you've done is really impressive on it's own. But it also highlights some of the parts of the poem, like the post office and the classe cafe. My favorite part of this illustration is the narrator in the middle pointing to himself, like the proud Finn he is (as if that's something inherently rare and important).
ReplyDeleteThe poem you chose was definitely one of the more interesting I've read. The drawing that you have made is quite impressive and I feel it embodies the poem very well. I also like the fact that the only color in the poem is blue and it is always in the pattern of the Finnish flag. Nice Post!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed both the poems and your interpretation. They were slightly strange but very humorous and I think you really capture that in your drawings. I like that everything is in grey-scale except for the Finnish flag and the blue of the man's shirt as it makes those details really pop out. I think my favorite cartoon is probably the upper right with the punk people just because it's particularly humorous and I like the interaction with other characters.
ReplyDeleteI really like your drawing, and I enjoyed reading the proud "I am Finn" and slightly less enthusiastic "I am still a Finn." The way you chose to organize your drawing - with comic book panels and the Finnish flag filling in the outline of the speaker - really elegantly represents the action in the poem and the stereotypical personality the speaker assigns himself. Make more of these! Pls.
ReplyDelete