Reaction to First Thanksgiving Poem:
Mark up this poem clarifying vocabulary, allusions, images, as necessary. Explain the passage in bold type. Use the “tracking changes” and “comments” features of Word (or Pages) to embed your markup in this file. Write your reaction below the poem. Each person should submit to the web page after you have discussed the poem with your partner(s).
First Thanksgiving (from Blood, Tin, Straw, 1999)
When she comes back from college, I will see
the skin of her upper arms, cool,
matte, glossy. She will hug me, my old
soupy chest against her breasts,
I will smell her hair! She will sleep in this apartment,
her sleep like an untamed, good object, like a
soul in a body. She came into my life the
second great arrival, fresh
from the other world–which lay, from within him,
within me. Those nights, I fed her to sleep,
week after week, the moon rising,
and setting, and waxing–whirling over the months,
in a steady blur, around our planet.
Now she doesn’t need love like that, she has
had it. She will walk in glowing, we will talk,
and then, when she’s fast asleep, I’ll exult
to have her in that room again,
behind that door! As a child, I caught
bees, by the wings, and held them, some seconds,
looked into their wild faces,
listened to them sing, then tossed them back
into the air–I remember the moment the
arc of my toss swerved, and they entered
the corrected curve of their departure.
Grading Rubric for Reaction to First Thanksgiving Poem
Excellent (4) | Good (3) | Needs Improvement (2) | Poor (1) | |
Language/Spelling/
Grammar |
Reaction has no spelling or punctuation errors and very few grammatical errors. Very well written and excellent use of business language. | Reaction has a few punctuation or spelling errors. Few grammatical errors that don’t affect meaning. Well written and use of business language is acceptable. | Reaction has some punctuation or spelling errors. Some grammatical errors but generally don’t affect meaning. Language is satisfactory overall but use of more appropriate business language is required. | Reaction has numerous punctuation or spelling errors. Numerous grammatical errors that affect meaning. Language used is unprofessional and not appropriate for business use. |
Reaction Organization and Formatting | Relevant sections are included, and each is organized effectively. Formatting is professional and consistent and includes all required elements. | Relevant sections are included but could be a little better organized. Formatting is acceptable and/or one or two required elements are missing. | Relevant sections are included but organization could be improved. Formatting is inconsistent and/or many elements are missing or not formatted appropriately. | Sections are missing and/or poorly organized. Formatting is messy and unprofessional. |
Analysis/Thinking | Analysis is comprehensive and detailed. Thinking and ideas are presented clearly, are engaging and thorough. | Analysis is sufficient. Thinking and ideas are clear but could be expanded to be more thorough. | Analysis is fairly basic and/or thinking and ideas lack some clarity and depth. | Analysis is very basic and thinking and ideas are superficial and lack clarity. |
TOTAL |
Reaction to First Thanksgiving Poem