EXPLAINING YOUR EMBEDDED QUOTES First of all STOP

EXPLAINING YOUR EMBEDDED QUOTES

First of all… ◦ STOP DOING THIS!!!! ◦ In the poem by Julia Alvarez, uses the imagery of a swan and the fascinating yet obscure book to showcase the speaker’s transformation. ◦ The poem by Julia Alvarez is about a woman who… ◦ The speaker/poem gives off a feel…

Instead… ◦ The poem “On Not Shoplifting Louise Bogan’s The Blue Estuaries” by Julia Alvarez reveals the inner conflict faced by the speaker who becomes transformed by the obscure, yet fascinating book at her school. The once-innocent speaker faces the dreaded temptation of stealing the enthralling book, the book covered with “swans…on a placid lake” as she contemplates then talks herself out of committing the crime. As the speaker becomes absorbed in the tome, she finds herself in a world much like the one she sees on the cover of the object causing her so much inspiration.

Topic Sentences… ◦ Your paragraphs NEED and REQUIRE topic sentences!! What will you analyze? ? ? The speaker in the poem shows familiarity with the more prominent poets such as “Chaucer-Milton. Shakespeare-Yeats, ” yet she falls into a trance as she becomes engrossed in the less-familiar text when she visits her college library. The speaker’s eyes fall upon the book, where upon the “swans [glide] on a blueblack lake. ” The imagery of the peaceful lake with the graceful and elegant swans transport her to a world not yet discovered. The book, undiscovered by other mentors, stays hidden behind the typical poets and their critically-acclaimed fame. The obscure poet’s name “[sinks] to the bottom” of the lake on the cover of the collection of poems as it sits atop a bookshelf surrounded by famous author and well-known names. The obscurity of the author leads the intrigued speaker to take it off of the shelf and open it as she dives into the peaceful and enlightening world of words and images created by the writer. The speaker immediately feels a connection to the unfamiliar author, who “[breaks] the surface” and [shatters] the old silence” of a familiar world of literature in which she lived prior to opening this album. The use of second person pronouns in the first stanza reveal the immediate connection and justifies the speaker’s temptation to take the book with her so she can continue living in the world of awe into which she finds herself.

More examples… ◦ Now that she becomes one with the author and the poems included in this book, the speaker faces a new obstacle: temptation. The temptation the speaker feels as she becomes pulled into this world of swans with the “darkening sky” nearly takes her breath away as she contemplates the worst possible scenario; the sky darkening mirrors the speaker as she faces the sin that calls to her to do the unthinkable because she “had no money” to purchase this beloved souvenir. The imagery of the incoming storm mimics the torment within her as she realizes she cannot pay for the book she so desperately desires. ◦ **Note how much analysis I create from ONE ELEMENT of the poem!! You must do the same in order to receive a score of 7 or higher on the essays.