Of the whirring wheel And never a stroke gone wrong. There's a song that the sails are singing, The ravening waves, Of storms outsailed, And of ports safe hailed And never the helm gone wrong. There's a song that the world is singing, A resonant, splendid song, Of its work, work, work, Of its battles won, Of its labors done And of Right that masters Wrong! CLASS ACTIVITIES 1. Let a committee collect and report the votes of the class on these poems, scoring them as follows: I. First place.. 2. Second place. 3. Third place · 5 points -3 points I point Let members of the class give reasons for their preferences. 2. What thought is common to all these poems ? 3. Poets frequently produce a desired effect by repetition. Notice, for example, Sandburg's repetition of the word "long" in the second line of the next to the last stanza. Point out other instances of repetition in these poems and tell the effect which the poet is trying to produce in each case. Compare with Poe's method in "The Bells." (See Book One, p. 232.) 4. Name the "varied carols" which Whitman heard. Compare his poem in this respect with Sandburg's and with Finley's. 5. What is the chief difference between Finley's poem and the other three? 6. Does Sandburg like the people about whom he writes? Read the sentence which shows his attitude. Did the other three poets like the workers? Read lines which answer this question. 7. Explain: a. "Each singing what belongs to him or her and to no one else." b. "How the hands of the work gangs smelled of hope." c. "The night watchmen stuff their pipes with dreams." d. "Something attempted, something done, Has earned a night's repose." e. "And never one blow gone wrong." 8. How does debt interfere with a person's looking the whole world in the face? 9. What lesson did the village blacksmith teach? Read the lines in Dresbach's "The Builder," below, which express much the same thought. 10. Point out figures of speech which you like in these poems; read the lines you like best in each of them. II. Do these four authors look on work in the same way? Read the lines which support your opinion. 12. POEMS ON WORK (add others to the list and bring to class the one you like best). — 1. "The Blacksmith," J. Masefield. 2. 5. THE BUILDER GLENN WARD DRESBACH The greatest contribution of Theodore Roosevelt to the American people was himself. The same may be said of Lincoln, Washington, and Franklin. The fact is we are all makers and builders and the most important structure we raise is not made of wood, brick, stone, or steel. Our most important structure is character; it is the result of our daily thoughts, dreams, and deeds. How is this truth brought out in the next two poems? How great will be the thing that he builds? Not quite so high as his hopes are high; And what will he build as the years go by, With stone or steel or the might of a theme? But the glory is, if he builds at all, 6. A BUILDER'S LESSON JOHN BOYLE O'REILLY "How shall I a habit break?" Thread by thread the strands we twist But remember, as we try, Wading in, the stream grows deep Toward the centre's downward sweep; Backward turn, each step ashore Shallower is than before. Ah, the precious years we waste First, across the gulf we cast Kite-borne threads, till lines are passed, CLASS ACTIVITIES 1. Tell which of these poems is the easier to understand. What makes it simpler than the other poem-its vocabulary, its sentence structure, or its thought? 2. In “A Builder's Lesson" the poet makes a striking use of contrast, or antithesis. By this is meant that he expresses his thought by using in pairs words, phrases, and clauses whose meaning is opposite. For example, in the first two lines, he uses "break" and "make"- the first word means the exact opposite of the second and the use of the two together emphasizes the way to get rid of a bad habit. Again, in line three, we find the contrasting words, "gathered" and "lose." Go through the poem and make a list of all the antitheses you can find. Why is the use of contrast especially fitting in 66 'A Builder's Lesson"? 3. Why cannot that which one builds be "quite so great as his dreams are great"? Does this contradict what Braley says in the last two lines of "The Thinker," p. 114? Note also question No. 8 on p. 115. 4. Does Dresbach mean that one should not have great dreams? Read the two lines in the second stanza which help you answer this question. 5. Explain the last two lines in both of the stanzas of “The Builder.” Do they express the same thought? 6. Can a person build a habit? How? Tell about a habit you built. 7. Which stanza best sums up the main idea in "The Builder's Lesson"? See how few times you need to read this stanza before you can repeat it from memory. 8. Tell how the two poems explain the statements on p. 155. 9. For a volunteer. Read and report on four rules to follow in forming a habit. (See H. D. Kitson, How to Use Your Mind, 64-72.) 10. Explain the most important structure each one of us is building. (Read again the sentences at the bottom of p. 155.) CLASS-LIBRARY READINGS THE MAKERS AND THE BUILDERS 1. "The Thought and the Stone," M. E. Waller, in The Joy in Work, III-120. 2. "Lines on the Death of a Worthy Shoemaker," E. Mott, in Vocational Reader, 170–171. 3. "The Flag Makers," F. K. Lane, ibid., 239–242. 4. "Business," S. W. Foss, ibid., 242-244. 5. "Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, the Children's Poet," in Makers of Our History, 227-236. |