Rukeyser seems to be making a political statement about "devices"people use and how wars in distant lands lead to indifference. What do you think she would say about technology in the 21st century? Do you think modern devices bring people closer together, or do they increase the distance in finding each other? Answer both question in an essay of at least 200-300 words and support your opinion with ideas from "Poem,"personal experience, or your studies.

In Muriel Rukeyser's "Poem" she talks about the media coverage of the wars that occured in her lifetime, and how it affects her and those around her. When we apply it to what we experience today only emphasizes the poem's theme. Today, "devices" and sources of information has only increased, and while technology has tried harder to bring people together, it has pushed people apart.

The poem expresses the effect of global communication on civilian lives. The author is expressing the need for communication and interactions outside of devices. When she states "most mornings I would be more or less insane," it also applies to us and how we reach for our phones instead of newspapers and take in information first thing in the morning. We're overwhlemed by bad news from all over the world, but there is not much we can do about it. While we do it to stay up-to-date with anything important, the bad news we wake up to can have negative effects on our overall mood for the rest of the day. That is how I interpret being "more or less insane."

While technology allowed us to be heard from all over the world, and keep contact with those who are far away, I feel that it has increased distance between people. Instead of focusing on our direct issues, we are more aware of what is happening somewhere else, and we have become more emotionally involved in conditions that do not directly affect us. She refers to this in lines 8 - 9, "Slowly I would get to pen and paper / Make my poems for others unseen and unborn." We have decreased face-to-face human interaction, and instead, we focus on people we don't know, events we are not experiencing, and conditions we can't control.

Answer: The poem expresses the effect of global communication on civilian lives. The author is expressing the need for communication and interactions outside of devices. When she states "most mornings I would be more or less insane," it also applies to us and how we reach for our phones instead of newspapers and take in information first thing in the morning. We're overwhlemed by bad news from all over the world, but there is not much we can do about it. While we do it to stay up-to-date with anything important, the bad news we wake up to can have negative effects on our overall mood for the rest of the day. That is how I interpret being "more or less insane."