Mr. Z

Mr. Z written by M. Carl Holman poured on diction that helped give very descriptive pictures. He went through an entire lifespan and adequately depicted a misunderstood person. He portrayed someone that was told right from wrong from the opening line with, "Sign of error"(Line 1). Question one does not really ask a question but states several words that are a part of the diction that stands out so much in the poem. The list begins with profane which is used in line ten to indicate a sort of reverence that this character might have for God and the religious life. I thought this was important in the span of the poem because of the reference to the Jewish religion and other dining points. The second vocabulary word pointed out was kosher. This word deemed itself important because of the connection that I saw in the fact that this person seemed to have to have their life approved by someone else. Control had to play an important role in this personas life. The use of exotic in this poem related to the remainder of the skin color points that occurred. Because of the color of this persons skin, they seemed to be treated differently their entire life. I would be extremely bothered by this if it occurred in my own life. I liked the use of exotic so much because it went directly with skin. Instead of cueing in directly on what exact tone it was, exotic leaves an air of mystery as to wether we are completely sure of what it is or not. Genius. The last word pointed out was obit. I had to look it up the first time I read through the poem so I only found it appropriate that it was including in the first question about diction that I came across. As vague about the writers that he is, I thought about why the author would use obit here a lot. Is it because of the vagueness of the diction that did not directly involve the person? Was it because of the recent death? I am not entirely sure, but I would like to think it was utilized because of how it gives the last line of the poem such a substantial sound.