TPCASTT: “On Reading Poems to a Senior Class at South High”
Title
of poem means
Paraphrase
parts of the Poem
Connotation
of some of the
words – changing
literal meaning to
implied or
associated values
Attitude
What is the attitude
of the author,
characters or
yourself?
The title suggests that the poem will be about a teacher and his
experiences with teaching poetry to Seniors in high school.
Because of the subject, it seems to indicate that the poem will be
humorous because high school seniors are not known for their
attentiveness, and diligence with schoolwork, and are really known
for the contrary.
Before I start class I see them sitting in front of me as neatly as a
package of frozen fish. Water starts to fill the room, but I don’t
realize it until it is level with my ears. The I hear fish sounds, like
the sounds at an aquarium, and I knew that even if I tried to drown
them out with my talking they open up their gills to let me in. We
swam around the room together with our tails hitting words, until
the bell rings and punches a hole in the door, through which
everyone leaks out. The kids go on to another class and I go home
where my cat meets me and licks my fins until they turn back into
hands.
The poem carries a metaphor that connects the students of a class
and fish; at first the students seem to lifeless and frozen, neat and
orderly, with no real interest and little understanding of what the
teacher is doing, but slowly the classroom fills with water and the
fish come to life, though the teacher does not realize this until the
water has reached his ears, meaning he hasn’t notices their
progressive animation and engagement. The class comes to life and
welcome his lessons, and they enjoy the poetry together, as one
large class swimming as one. Though the teacher, the speaker,
initially feels as if he is forcing these lifeless fish to pay him mind,
he realizes that he hasn’t been drowning them at all; they have
been welcoming their life source, the water which is their learning.
The poem encompasses a progression of many emotions; first he
is indifferent and somewhat exasperated; he is prepared for
resistance and apathy from his class and is pleasantly surprised
when he finds them receptive to his lessons. There is a sense of
elation that the speaker experiences because he is able to share his
joy of poetry with his class. This elation soon turns to reminiscence
and wistfulness when his class leaves. He sees that they carry on
with their day, and their lives, and he seems to wonder whether the
that hour together meant as much to them as it did to him; he hopes
that they retain what they have learned and that the class is more
than a class. He hopes that the beauty of what is discovered within
poetry isn’t swept away by reality.
Shift
I feel that there are two shifts in tone within this poem, the first
At first we think or being when the speaker is surprised with the level of reception
feel one way – then from his seniors who seemed so lifeless and apathetic before, and
there is a shift:
the second shift is when he goes home and he happily remembers
identify the shifts his class. The second shift is the more significant of the two
and explain them because the first one doesn’t carry as much emotional gravity as
the second one does. The first is simply surprise and remains with
the reader for an instant, while the second shift is a sense of
reminiscing. This reminiscing indicates how much the connection
he had with his students meant to him, and how much he enjoyed
the lesson. When the cat licks away his fins, this indicates that he
sense of imagination and connection had remained with him all
day, and was very real to him. But this same caring reminiscing
also indicates a somewhat sad feeling because he realizes that that
was not reality, and he cannot always remain in that state of mind,
regardless of how much he wants it.
Title
revisited
Any new insights
on meaning or
significance of
title?
Theme
The title is not actually indicative of humor, but of surprise. The
speaker too realizes what is associated with a senior class and
wants the reader to experience the same pleasant surprise he did; he
wants to share his feelings and connect with the reader as much as
he connected with his students.
I feel as if the reader wants to share an experience that has meant
very much to him; his goal seems to have been to connect with his
students, have them realize the beauty and thoughtfulness that goes
into what he teaches, and since he has obtained this goal with
surprising ease he wish to share his satisfaction. This poem is an
expression of his satisfaction, and a statement of how much
teaching his students means to him, whether these students that see
him merely once a day realize it or not.