"Casey at the Bat"

In the poem, "Casey at the Bat," the audience has ultimate faith in Casey. The poet decides to have Casey strike out. Why do you suppose the poet chooses this ending? What might be the theme of the poem? Why?

Poets to Come!

We have just begun our study of poetry. Figurative language is an essential part of poetry. Walt Whitman claims that YOU are the the future poets of the world. YOU will change the world with your thoughts and wisdom. I challenge YOU! Create an example of imagery, personfication, simile, metaphor, or alliteration as it relates to an event in your life. Provide the example, identify the example, and explain your thinking of how you labeled your example.

Rights and Consequences

Does a person's right to freedom of speech shield him/her from consequences based on their opinions? For example, should I be able to say offensive things without having to pay the consequences regardless of who it may or may not hurt? Should people be able to express their freedom of speech but realize in doing so that there are consequences, sometimes negative ones? For example, a famous movie director tweeted the name and address of a person he felt was guilty of a crime. The person's name and address tweeted was not the intended person; he was a middle school child, not a criminal. This person received death threats and their home was vandalized. Should the movie director be held responsible for instigating such violence, or is he shielded under the First Amendment?

Banning the First Amendment

The First Amendment states all citizens have the freedom of speech. Why do you think our country's founding fathers felt freedom of speech was so important it had to be included in the first ten amendments of the Constitution? Think about history and the establishment of our country.

Does Truth Exist?

After exploring the novel, Nothing But the Truth,we questioned the significance of the Constitution's First Amendment. Many of you made some insightful comments in your essays. I began to wonder why some believed the first amendment should be limited and banned, while others of you did not believe speech should ever be limited or banned. It starting me thinking...does truth even exist? Think about that for a moment. If each person has their own definition of truth, does truth really exist? Does it connect with our class discussions about there are three sides to every story...yours, mine, and the truth. What do you think, does truth exist? Explain your response.