Po’ Boy Blues

1. Po’ Boy Blues • Oldest song known in blues origin • Rhyme scheme- ABABAC • ABAB (first four lines express positive feelings) • AC (last two lines express negative feelings) • Uses elision (Po’ An’ I’s, I’d) • Elision = omission of a sound • “morn” (short for morning) “mourn” (to grieve) • Homonym - words identical in spelling or pronunciation.

2. The Weary Blues • Swaying rhythm of poem • “He did a lazy sway/He did a lazy sway” • Evokes tone and tempo of blues music • Ebony/Ivory • Lustrous black/white imagery • Onomatopoeia (Thump, thump, thump) • A word that imitates the sound

3. Lonesome Place • The lonesome place is the _______ • Uses the river for comfort • Repetition of the word _______ at the end suggests that he is tired • Po’ s, ‘bout are words that use the example of __________ town weary elision

4. Bound No’th Blues • Bound Knowing the Blues • Trying to break away from the depression and misery that is captured in blues music • Most of the words are one syllable • Speeds up the pace of the poem • Uses elision • Goin’, “An’

5. Notes on Commercial Theater • Allusions – references to people, places, or events • Hollywood Bowl- name of an orchestra • Macbeth- a Shakesperean play • Carmen Jones- Broadway musical • Swing Mikados- an opera