Part 1: In Mary Jo Salter’s “Welcome to Hiroshima,” what arrests the speaker’s attention to see beyond the “bad taste” (l. 29) of the museum’s displays? What is it that “worked its filthy way out like a tongue” (l. 48)? What is it that the museum misses? Why does she think the museum doesn’t do the job it should do? (3 points).
Part 2:
“London” by William Blake
1. What is this poem about—what is the SUBJECT of the poem?
2. What do you think is the THEME of the poem—the meaning and how the poem reflects that meaning?
3. What is the tone—the quality of the language a speaker uses?
4. What words and phrases create that tone?
You need to interpret specific words and lines from the poem in order to offer your own interpretation; please do not just make a list of the words and lines. Do not just summarize the overall content of the poem. (8 pts).
“Ozymandias” by Percy Bysshe Shelley
1. What is this poem saying about death and how it affects everyone? (2 pts)
“Titanic” by David Slavitt
1. Discuss the comparison of cold water to anesthetic. What is the speaker saying? (2 pts)
What is the metaphorical meaning of cold water and anesthetic? Be specific about this meaning.
Be sure to always use specific details and examples, including lines from the text, to back up your responses whenever you can. But you use them to make your own interpretation shine, not just to make a list.
For all the parts, you need to quote specific words and lines of the poems and interpret these words and lines specifically. Do not just summarize the overall content of the poems. In poetry, the most important thing is to interpret the specific nuances of the specific words and lines.