Poetry #1

1.  This commercial uses the poem "The Laughing Heart" by Charles Bukowski.
2.  It's ironic that a corporation used this poem because it goes against what corporations are and what they stand for.  The first line of the poem, "your life is your life," promotes individuality.  However, corporations aim to crush individuality; the unity of the corporation becomes more important than the individual worker in the eyes of corporate executives.  The corporate attitude is "your life is our life," rather taking the position that your life is your own.
3.  This poem is not consistent with Bukowski's reputation.  In fact, Bukowski was typically known for writing about the darker side of humanity and the cruelty of people.  In general his personality was perceived as being very negative, which is a direct opposite to the uplifting theme of the poem.
4.  I started off my research by Google searching the first phrase spoken in the commercial,  "your life is your life," and added the word "poem."  After that I ended up on a blog on which I could read the full poem.
-Source 1:
"The Laughing Heart (Charles Bukowski)."
Uploaded by Emelobi [username] on Thursday, March 15, 2007
http://milan-poetry.blogspot.com/2007/03/laughing-heart-charles-bukowski.html?m=1
     I then searched "Bukowski" in order to learn more about his work and personality for #3.  I found that information from Poetry Foundation.
-Source 2:
"Charles Bukowski."
No author listed.
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/charles-bukowski