Before Reading
Preview the Selection
Read the About the Selection section carefully to understand what a ball turret gunner is. Examine the picture on page 772. Begin to visualize what the death of a ball turret gunner might be like.
During Reading
Make Mind Pictures
1. Listen as your teacher reads through the poem. Try to create a mind picture of what is happening.
2. Read through the poem on your own. Make sketches or notes that show what you pictured in your mind.
Fix-Up Idea: Refocus on Purpose
What idea do you think Randall Jarrell was trying to express about war? As you read this poem, make notes about what happens to the speaker and the poet's attitude toward the speaker and what happens to him.
After Reading
Share Your Mind Pictures
With a partner, share your sketches and notes and describe more thoroughly what you visualized. If there were parts that were hard for you to visualize, talk about these sections with your partner to see if you can get a clearer sense of them.