Slam+Poetry

media type="youtube" key="tshNfYWPlDg" height="315" width="560" Poetic Devices- Repetition: 'Like Lilly Like Wilson' 'I'm writing the poem that will change the world, and it's Lilly Wilson at my office door' The word 'like' Irony: When he says 'Lilly, I am like so impressed with you!' since she is a recovering like addict. Hyperbole: 'Until I declared my classroom a Like-Free Zone,and she could not speak for days.' Simile : 'And the eighth-grade mind is a beautiful thing; Like a new-born baby's face, you can often see it change before your very eyes' 'minds are like parachutes, that it doesn't matter what you pack them with so long as they open at the right time.'

Theme- The main theme is that changing your mind and being open minded is good. If you aren't right the first time it is absolutely fine to change your mind. And being acceptant of new or different ideas is fantastic, even if they clash with your own ideas. Also like Taylor said 'that changing your mind is one of the best ways of finding out whether or not you still have one'. Another theme I noticed is to think before you speak, which some people usually don't do but really should. 'Imagine that, It's for your own good, even if you don't like it'.

Why I chose it- I chose this poem because it spoke to me. I feel that me and this poem are connected, and that it understands me like I understand it. I feel that it knows my pet peeves, that I hate when people over use the word like, that I hate when people don't think before saying something, and how people are too afraid to change their minds, possibly being afraid of getting judged if they do. I have listened to this poem approximately 100 times, every time I listen to it I understand it more. The quotes in this poem are best, they are things that I would actually say to people. This poem is my soul mate.

Key words and phrases- 'Mr. Mali, this is. . . so hard Now I have to think before I. . . say anything.' 'Imagine that, Lilly. It's for your own good. Even if you don't like. . . it.' 'And the eighth-grade mind is a beautiful thing; Like a new-born baby's face, you can often see it change before your very eyes' 'Lilly, I am like so impressed with you!' 'That changing your mind is one of the best ways of finding out whether or not you still have one.' 'Or even that minds are like parachutes, that it doesn't matter what you pack them with so long as they open at the right time.'

I'm writing the poem that will change the world, and it's Lilly Wilson at my office door. Lilly Wilson, the recovering like addict, the worst I've ever seen. So, like, bad the whole eighth grade started calling her Like Lilly Like Wilson Like. Until I declared my classroom a Like-Free Zone, and she could not speak for days. But when she finally did, it was to say, Mr. Mali, this is. . . so hard. Now I have to think before I. . . say anything. Imagine that, Lilly. It's for your own good. Even if you don't like. . . it. I'm writing the poem that will change the world, and it's Lilly Wilson at my office door. Lilly is writing a research paper for me about how homosexuals like shouldn't be allowed to adopt children. I'm writing the poem that will change the world, and it's Like Lilly Like Wilson at my office door. She's having trouble finding sources, which is to say, ones that back her up. They all argue in favor of what I thought I was against. And it took four years of college, three years of graduate school, and every incidental teaching experience I have ever had to let out only, Well, that's a real interesting problem, Lilly. But what do you propose to do about it? That's what I want to know. And the eighth-grade mind is a beautiful thing; Like a new-born baby's face, you can often see it change before your very eyes. I can't believe I'm saying this, Mr. Mali, but I think I'd like to switch sides. And I want to tell her to do more than just believe it, but to enjoy it! That changing your mind is one of the best ways of finding out whether or not you still have one. Or even that minds are like parachutes, that it doesn't matter what you pack them with so long as they open at the right time. O God, Lilly, I want to say you make me feel like a teacher, and who could ask to feel more than that? I want to say all this but manage only, Lilly, I am like so impressed with you! So I finally taught somebody something, namely, how to change her mind. And learned in the process that if I ever change the world it's going to be one eighth grader at a time.