Presentation Type
Exhibit
Abstract
In her poetry collection “Message in a Bottle”, Ellie Harwood explores the relationships we maintain with each other, animals, and nature. Through the poems in this collection, Harwood examines how we as humans simultaneously harm one another and our fragile ecosystem while seeking love and belonging in those very relationships and spaces. By contrasting the evolutionary journey of whales with the rampant development of technology in the poem “Whale Song”, or through portraying the desire to flee from somebody you love deeply in “Bedhead”, Harwood highlights the many contradictions and conflicts that come with being alive (and the numerous ways we either reconcile or disregard them), as well as the obstacles we face in embodying our human compassion.
Faculty Mentor
Dr. Jan Harris
Recommended Citation
Harwood, Ellie, "Message in a Bottle" (2025). Student Scholar Symposium. 60.
https://digitalcollections.lipscomb.edu/student_scholars_symposium/2025/Full_schedule/60
Included in
Message in a Bottle
In her poetry collection “Message in a Bottle”, Ellie Harwood explores the relationships we maintain with each other, animals, and nature. Through the poems in this collection, Harwood examines how we as humans simultaneously harm one another and our fragile ecosystem while seeking love and belonging in those very relationships and spaces. By contrasting the evolutionary journey of whales with the rampant development of technology in the poem “Whale Song”, or through portraying the desire to flee from somebody you love deeply in “Bedhead”, Harwood highlights the many contradictions and conflicts that come with being alive (and the numerous ways we either reconcile or disregard them), as well as the obstacles we face in embodying our human compassion.