User:NickBlaze/Ephemeral Fantasies - A Book of Poetry

Ephemeral Fantasies - A Book of Poetry is a book written by the poet Nick Blaze. The author's name is debatable and is assumed to be a pen name. In general, the poems in the book are fantasy, but most of them contemplate philosophy and love. There are many uses of metaphor, as well as othre literary devices such as alliteration, assonance, and some rhyme schemes. However, the poems are almost all free verse.

About Nick Blaze:

With a vast history in science fiction and fantasy, as well as historical fiction and war-history, Nick Blaze has been writing since his youngest years (since he was able to hold a pencil, of course). He has been penning poetry for only a few years, yet has thoroughly enjoyed delving into a new realm of abstract. And though his poetic years are few, his talent still shines through to fascinate and surprise (as well as enlightening some to new dictionary entries) the readers. Continually, he has said that he wishes little more than to open people's minds; and that in reading his work, they do nothing but enjoy it.

About the book:

The book is separated into three sections: Love, Fantasy, and Philosophy. While many of them have multiple genres, they were best classified to cover the original meaning and thoughts of the poem. For instance, the poem Ephemeral Leaf (in the philosophy section) relates a tale of a leaf in its final life, falling to the ground. However, the heavy use of metaphor mean this simple action to be how war itself can be as short of a leaf falling to the ground, and joining with others in death.

The poems in the love section are as follows, in this order: Frozen Flame, Eternally Glass, Delicate Image, ...Of Petrified Love, Hail Horror Hail, The Perpetual Oak, Seven Deadly Poems, The Paths of the Weald, and The Devil's Arms. The fantasy section features longer poems, in general. The poems, in order are: Tear Earth Asunder!, Crepuscular Night, Shangri-la, Untitled, Claps of Thunder, and Melted Clay. Lastly, the philosophy poems are ordered: What is Death?, To Circumvent Shadows, Ephemeral Leaf, Lusterless Paragon, The Pearl, A Stone of Hope, Burning the Clouds, When a Phoenix Falls from Flight..., The Wrestched Verse, Munebushi, Tepid Sword-song, Jagged Teeth of Ice, How Would I Describe a God?.

''It is 94 pages long in a 6 in by 9 in format. The cover was created by Nick Blaze himself.''

Uses of alliteration:

In general, most of the poems are linked together with alliteration. It melds together a certain meaning, or helps create a flow that better represents the meaning of the line/s. For example, in the peom The Wretched Verse, a line reads: "Aeons ago across an aegis of air". The alliteration implies not only all the words are connected to each other, but help provide a mystical atmosphere that helps set the mood for the rest of the poem. However, it also hints that aeons are also like an aegis, or that aeons of of air. It can also mean an aegis is like air, or air an aegis. In any of these thoughts, the overall meaning of the poem can be changed and give different readers different interpretations beyond the mere translation "Long ago in lighter times".

Uses of rhyme:

Rhyme schemes have been mostly abandoned in the book, though some follow a specific set. In the free verse poems, the rhyming was intended to link together two different lines. These rhymes may be end rhymes (masculine or feminine), initial rhymes, half-rhymes, visual rhymes, and others. In What is Death? there are two lines: "Like the waves of the sea, that ebb and flow,/Leaving little for the mind's dimming glow,/" that emphasize a certain link. The poem is free verse, yet there are many rhymes meticulously placed within it. The two lines refer to each other, intending that the mind is like a sea that ebbs and flows (forgets and learns). It also intends that a sea is like a mind, in that a sea passes by and leaves part of itself, and that it also takes something of the Earth back with it.

Other rhymes were not inteded for oration. Untitle's rhyme scheme is aabbccdd, etc, and thus rather simplistic. The poem itself outlines a certain man who is dying, and is telling his life's story of sin and debauchery. 'Normal' rhymes, such as "atone/loan" are common, but others like "now/stow" and "heritage/rage" as well as some homophones such as "raised/razed". It could be implied that the sentences with such rhymes are connected to each other loosely, or strongly.

Use of old modern English and other languages:

The majority of the peoms use archaic words and are set in an old modern English style. Though not all follow this pattern, it is often used to represent how old and antique the meaning of the poem is, or to represent a certain person's speech. The other languages used are of spacious varieties: French, Japanese, and Old Norse. Nick Blaze had learned French in high school, and studied many other languages for leisure.

Use of mythology:

Due to the nature of his poems being in an old modern English style, many times there are references to gods and goddesses, books and figures in books, in a similiar fashion. Odin, Tyr, and Freyja are common gods referenced from Norse Mythology. Odin, being a god of poetry and wisdom is often refered to to represent those thoughts. Tyr was a god of loyalty and devoten, so he too represents those virtues. Freyja was a goddess of fertility, but also known as a leader of the valkyrie (warrior-maidens) who guided einherjar (souls of brave warriors) to Valhalla.

Greek gods, such as Zeus and Hermes are also explored much in the same way as the Norse gods. Other religions and cultures explored are Aztec ones, such as Quetzalcoatl.

Literary references include the Volsungasaga and Egil's Saga, as well as others, and generally refer to the overall theme or characteristic of those works. The Volsungasaga primarily focuses on Sigurd (Seigfried in German) and his journeys in life until death at the hands of a trusted friend. His most common attribrutes were immortality and bravery. Egil, however, was a vile man who was a murderer as a child and was very selfish. Not only did he have blood on his hands (which were terribly calloused), he was also a farmer a well. The poem relates emotions and inanimate objects to these literary figures.

The book is currently available for sale at https://www.createspace.com/3382063.