Name: __________
Mr. Lehmann
English 9

                            Copy Change - Poetry

So far, we've written poems by using our memories as subject matter to start
us writing. This is another way to find poems in ourselves that we might not
have written otherwise. Copy Change is a way to use the structure of other
poets who have writte n before us to create new meaning, new poems for
ourselves. The way copy change works is that you use the structure of a
previous poem to make your own poem.

You will be given an example of one of my attempts at copy change using a
Wallace Stevens poem. As you can see, just because the structure and the
"feel" of the poem are the same, the subject matter can be totally
different. You will be given several poems to copy change, but first, I'd
like you to try, step by step, copy changing a Robert Frost poem. Read it
first on the other sheet, in its entirety, and then begin the process of
changing it on this worksheet. Again, what you want to do is copy the 
syllabic structure of the original poem, substituting words of your own 
for the poet's words.

"Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost

     Whose woods these are I think I know.
     His house is in the village though;

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     He will not see me stopping here
     To watch his woods fill up with snow.

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     My little horse must think it queer
     To stop without a farmhouse near

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     Between the woods and frozen lake
     The darkest evening of the year.

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     He gives his harness bells a shake
     To ask if there is some mistake

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     The only other sound's the sweep
     Of easy wind and downy flake.

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     The woods are lovely, dark, and deep.
     But I have promises to keep,

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     And miles to go before I sleep,
     And miles to go before I sleep.

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Now, copy your copy changed poem onto another sheet of paper, beginning the
process of revision as you copy.

Next, take another poem from the list of poems I've given you and pick
another poem to copy change. Really try to copy that structure exactly. I've
included my own copy change poem at the end so you can see an example of
what a copy change poem can be like.

Teacher's note:I've included only one of the poems that I hand out here, the
one that is the original for my example. Any group of poems will do. I like
to choose ones with interesting structures to them; it gets the students to
play with constructions they might not have explored otherwise.

     Bantam in Pine-Woods
     by Wallace Stevens (Palm at the End of the Mind, pg. 75)

     Chieftan Iffucan of Azcan in caftan
     Of tan with henna hackles, halt!

     Damned universal cock, as if the sun
     Was blackamoor to bear your blazing tail.

     Fat! Fat! Fat! Fat! I am the personal.
     Your world is you. I am my world.

     You ten-foot poet among inchlings. Fat!
     Begone! An inchling bristles in these pines,

     Bristles, and points their Appalachian tangs,
     And fears not portly Azcan nor his hoos.

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     Showdown on the West Side
     by Chris Lehmann with thanks to Wallace Stevens

     Policeman Sheen of Queens in uniform, preens,
     his badge clean with polish, go!

     Damned eternal cop, as if my actions
     Were reason to draw your flashlight's attention.

     Pig! Pig! Pig! Pig! I am youth.
     Your world has ended. I am the new.

     You cardboard costume among the living. Pig!
     Begone! The living thrive on these streets,

     Thrive, and flash their Manhattan style
     And fear not porcine Sheen nor his badge.

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