1a. What is the poet constantly risking? Where does the poet perform?
2a. On what does the poet balance? Where does he "pace"?
3a. What must the poet perceive? What is waiting for him on "that still higher perch"? What does Beauty do? What is the poet uncertain of catching?
4a. Analyze the tone of the last six lines of the poem, in which the poet is compared to a "little charleychaplin man."
5a. The speaker implies that the role of the poet is to capture Beauty in words for his or her audience. What subjects and themes might the speaker consider worth writing about?
1b. Why do you think the speaker believes that the poet's job is risky? What kinds of risks does a poet face? How does the poet perform "above the heads / of his audience"?
2b. Why might it be difficult for the poet to perform these acts?
3b. What does the speaker believe the goal of the poet should be? Why may the poet be unable to catch Beauty? What will happen if the poet fails to catch her?
4b. Why is the life of the poet sad and tragic?
5b. If you were a poet and your audience did not understand your translation of Beauty, for what reasons might you continue writing poetry?
Free Verse. What does the line structure of the poem imitate? How is this achieved?
Simile and Metaphor. Review the cluster chart you made in Literary Tools. In this poem, what is being compared? How does Ferlinghetti make it clear that he is comparing a poet to a tightrope acrobat? How are these two things similar? How are they dissimilar?
1. Imagine that you are the publisher of a poetry magazine. Write a help wanted ad for a poet, describing the qualities needed and the risks involved in the position. Use your own paper as necessary.
2. Write a paragraph for your teacher defining Beauty as seen by the poet.
3. Imagine that you are employed in your chosen profession. Write a poem or short essay that uses a metaphor to describe the work that you do.
Correcting Run-ons. Read each of the following sentences. If it is a run-on, rewrite it correctly.
1. Beat Generation authors were popular during the 1950s they rejected traditional social and artistic forms.
2. After moving to San Francisco, Ferlinghetti published many Beat writers' works.
3. Jack Kerouac wrote On the Road it was considered to be the testament of the Beat movement.
4. Howl, a long poem by Allen Ginsberg, attacks American values materialism is the most significant.
5. During the 1960s "beat" ideas and attitudes were absorbed by other cultural movements, and those who practiced the "beat" lifestyle were called "hippies."
Researching the Beat Generation. Research a beat poet or novelist. See page 873 in your text for a list of possible choices. Prepare a short biography for one of the writers and describe the subjects and themes in his writing.
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