Details/ Interpretive Inference Chart for Short Stories and Poems (Per. 3)
Story or Poem
“Song”- Adrienne
Rich
“The Stones” Richard Shelton
Details (Evidence)
Repeats “lonely”
“Lonely as a plane…, a woman driving across
country leaving behind little towns she might
have stopped and lived and died in lonely.”
“loneliness of waking first and breathing
“dawn’s first cold breath.”
Old stones want to restrict the lives of the
younger stones. The younger stones want to
“travel and see something of the world.”
Interpretive Inferences (Analysis)
She is an independent person.
Challenges the idea of being lonely and she enjoys the solitude of time
spent doing what she wants and going different places.
She notices how the world is full of changes in the natural world.
She feels comfortable being by herself.
Meaning of song - she might appear sad and lonely but she’s actually
independent and content of her life.
The (elder stones) don’t like the moon because it moves across the sky
and urges them to follow.
Older people sometimes fear change & look down upon adventure.
“They want to go to the river. But the old
stones disapprove. They call it downright
sinful.” “Old stones are conservative.”
“It (the moon urging them to follow) is a stone
gone mad.”
“I Know Why the
Caged Bird
Sings”- Maya
Angelou
Mentions that the bird is trying to get out of
its cage by singing about freedom.
“narrow cage” and “bars of rage.”
The bird is trapped and “stands on the grave
of dreams.”
“Wings are clipped” & “feet are tied.”
“The caged bird sings of things unknown but
longed for still.”
“Diverging Paths
and All That” –
Maryanne
O’Hara
Two kids are tempted to steal –
One chooses to steal and other does not
Takes place during the time that Nixon is
about to resign - “Impeach the crook”
Water represents movement and the ability to have fun and be
independent and have freedom.
The young stones want to live their own life and not be restricted by the
elder stones.
They want to create their own meaning and follow their own paths.
The bird represents a woman who is trying find freedom from
oppression, Segregation, slavery.
The bars represent the laws and barriers/ boundaries that prevent
people from escaping captivity.
The grave represents what she can’t do, but she still has hope and
perseverance.
The “orange sky” represents the possibilities for the free bird and how
she dares to fight against boundaries and laws.
Billy is headed in the wrong direction
Narrator realizes that crooks get caught – feels anxious, fearful, guilty,
and thus makes a different choice
“A Lesson Not
Learned” – Carol
Sherman-Jones
Billy is headed someplace else (where?)
Narrator says that “even the president is a
crook” and notices that the adult’s faces are
“solemn as gravestones”
A girl who loses things, punished by father,
doesn’t learn lesson, learned different lesson.
Choosing different paths will affect one’s future (theme  thesis)
She doesn’t want to be treated in an aggressive or poor way.
“I learned not to trust his laughter.”
She is closer to her mother. Shocked or startled at father’s violent
reaction.
“His rage gored both my mother and me.”
Not careful of her toys or possessions.
Her toys were “mangled beyond recognition.”
She is physically and emotionally hurt.
“Not a lesson of responsibility.”
“Because even his laughter hurt.”
“I just stood there holding my hand to my
burning cheek.”
She may not learn from this, and she will always distrust her dad and
maybe other authority figures in her life.
Connections: Individuality, Choices, Freedom, Limits/Captivity
“A Lesson Not Learned” and “The Stones”
Thematic Subject: Disapproving adults vs. children
Thesis: When disapproving adults limit the freedom of their children, the children act in rebellious and independent ways.
Evidence (Detail) 1:
Evidence (Detail) 2:
Thematic Subject: Individuality/Making Personal Choices:
Thesis: Personal Choices will determine a person’s future in positive or negative ways.
Adults who are poor role models can teach children to make poor decisions in life.
Thematic Subject: Freedom vs. Captivity (Contrast freedom with imprisonment)
Thesis:
Independence is necessary for a fulfilling life.
People, who fear change, don’t get to experience adventures.
Evidence (Detail) 1: “Caged Bird” The wings are clipped and the feet are tied and are not allowed to travel
Evidence (Detail) 2: “The Stones” The young stones want to travel…
Thematic Subject:
Thesis:
Fear of Change
People who fear change don’t get to experience adventures.
People who fear change limit the possibilities for their life.
People who have limited possibilities in life remained trapped and lonely
Evidence (Detail) 1:
Evidence (Detail) 2: