Thomas And Beulah (Carnegie Mellon Poetry Series) Book Pdf 'LINK'

Thomas and Beulah: A Poetic Tribute to a Grandparents' Love

Thomas and Beulah is a collection of poems by Rita Dove, published by Carnegie Mellon University Press in 1986. The book won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1987. The poems are based on the lives of Dove's maternal grandparents, Thomas and Beulah, who migrated from the South to Akron, Ohio in the early 20th century. The book is divided into two sections: \"Mandolin\" and \"Canary in Bloom\". The first section tells the story of Thomas, from his childhood in Tennessee to his death in Ohio. The second section tells the story of Beulah, from her youth in Georgia to her old age in Ohio. The poems explore themes such as love, marriage, family, racism, work, music, and memory.

The book is a tribute to the resilience and dignity of Thomas and Beulah, who faced many hardships and challenges in their lives. Dove uses vivid imagery and lyrical language to portray their emotions and experiences. She also uses different forms and styles of poetry, such as sonnets, free verse, haiku, and blues. The book is a testament to the power of poetry to honor and celebrate the lives of ordinary people.Thomas and Beulah is not only a personal memoir, but also a historical and cultural document. The poems reflect the social and political realities of black Americans in the 20th century, such as segregation, discrimination, migration, urbanization, industrialization, and war. Dove also explores the influences of music, especially jazz and blues, on the black community and on her grandfather's artistic expression. The poems are rich with metaphors and symbols that connect the personal and the universal, such as the mandolin, the canary, the straw hat, and the dusting cloth.

The book is also a celebration of love and marriage, as well as a meditation on death and loss. Dove portrays Thomas and Beulah as complex and flawed human beings who have their own dreams, desires, fears, and regrets. She shows how they cope with their individual traumas and how they support each other through their shared joys and sorrows. She also reveals how they pass on their legacy to their children and grandchildren, who inherit their stories and memories. The book ends with Beulah's deathbed scene, where she reassures Thomas that they have lived good lives together.Thomas and Beulah also examines the contrast and complementarity between the two protagonists, as well as their individual and shared perspectives. The book is structured as a double sequence of poems, each one offering a glimpse into a moment or an aspect of Thomas or Beulah's life. The poems are not arranged chronologically, but rather thematically and emotionally, creating a mosaic of memories and impressions. The book also shifts between different points of view, sometimes using the first person, sometimes the third person, sometimes the omniscient narrator. The reader is invited to piece together the fragments of Thomas and Beulah's story, and to appreciate their differences and similarities.

One of the most striking differences between Thomas and Beulah is their relationship to music. Thomas is a musician who plays the mandolin, a gift from his deceased friend Lem. Music is his way of expressing his feelings, his creativity, and his connection to his roots. He plays jazz and blues, genres that reflect his African American identity and culture. Beulah, on the other hand, is not musical at all. She does not understand or appreciate Thomas's music, and she prefers silence or classical music. Music is a source of tension and misunderstanding between them, as well as a symbol of their divergent personalities and backgrounds. 061ffe29dd