Favourite poet -- Shel silverstein

“I never read reviews because if you believe the good ones you have to believe the bad ones too. I was always prepared for success but that means that I have to be prepared for failure too.” This is a quote from an interview with Shel silverstein, the well-known poet in the world.

Shel silverstein was born in Chicago in 1930, 25th September. He became a cartoonist for the U.S. Army publication Stars and Stripes during his army service and attracted notice since then. After his service, he began to draw cartoons for magazines such as Look, Sports Illustrated, and This Week. However, it was only when he joined Playboy magazine that his fame shot up and he was known world wide. From then on, he embarked on his journey to become a composer, singer, cartoonist, illustrator and an author.

I think I like him because of many reasons. One of them is that he is humble. He does not brag and does not “think about his image”. In fact, he wanted people to be inspired by him. The most important thing is to be humble. Being overly proud will blind you from reality and lead you to failure eventually. Being humble is the key to success as you are continuously learning from others.

Secondly, I like the way Shel silverstein writes his poem. He has a unique style in writing and his poems are brimmed with feelings. For example, in the poem “Where the sidewalk ends”, he strongly convey to us to get away from the “place where the smoke blows black and the dark street winds and bends.” This poem tells us to free ourselves from the world full of pollution and go to the beautiful place where the sidewalk ends. He feels that we should not be corrupted and instead has the innocence of a child.

The poems he wrote are filled by emotions and feelings and by reading the words, I can even picture the scenario in the poem. Shel Silverstein is indeed a talented and inspirational writer and I hope to come across more of his poems.

Three poems by Shel silverstein

Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein

There is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.

Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
And the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And watch where the chalk-white arrows go
To the place where the sidewalk ends.

Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends.

The explanation of this poem is above. Nevertheless, here is a short recap. This poem tells us that we are corrupted and to step out of this polluted world into a beautiful world where the sidewalk ends.


Messy Room by Shel Silverstein

Whosever room this is should be ashamed!
His underwear is hanging on the lamp.
His raincoat is there in the overstuffed chair,
And the chair is becoming quite mucky and damp.
His workbook is wedged in the window,
His sweater's been thrown on the floor.
His scarf and one ski are beneath the TV,
And his pants have been carelessly hung on the door.
His books are all jammed in the closet,
His vest has been left in the hall.
A lizard named Ed is asleep in his bed,
And his smelly old sock has been stuck to the wall.
Whosever room this is should be ashamed!
Donald or Robert or Willie or--
Huh? You say it's mine? Oh, dear,
I knew it looked familiar!

This poem is humorous and relatively easy to understand. However, it can also be viewed as a critique of modern society, saying that people often blame people for what we have done or hate about ourselves.

Hug O'War

I will not play at tug o' war.
I'd rather play at hug o' war,
Where everyone hugs
Instead of tugs,
Where everyone giggles
And rolls on the rug,
Where everyone kisses,
And everyone grins,
And everyone cuddles,
And everyone wins.

This poem shows Shel silverstein optimistic and gentle character. He makes people think of a world where everybody co-operates and live together happily, where there are no fighting and quarrelling.

Reference:
1)http://www.answers.com/topic/shel-silverstein
2)http://kyleysenglishblog.blogspot.com/2007/12/where-sidewalk-ends.html
3)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shel_Silverstein
4)http://faculty.weber.edu/chansen/humanweb/projects/MeghanUng/poems.htm