Fast Break Poem Analysis

The two poems, “Slam, Dunk & Hook” and “Fast Break” both capture the attention of the audience by describing basketball as a game of imagery versus a game of athleticism. In, “Fast Break” by Edward Hirsch, the author uses vivid diction. Hirsch states, “to see an orange blur” (Hirsch). This describes the basketball as a flowing object. His tone is very easy going at this point in the poem. He uses vivid imagery to show that basketball is an art and it isn’t always about the fans and the players but about the ball and the court.
The tone of each piece is different. Hirsch uses gentle diction. The quote, “by himself now and laying it gently against the glass for a lay-up,” (Hirsch) demonstrates that the ball doesn’t bounce off of the backboard but glides. Komunyakka uses more violent diction such as, “We’d corkscrew up & dunk balls that exploded the skullcap of hope & good intention”(Komunyakka). His tone is more violent which gives the reader a more violent image of what basketball really is. Komunyakka suggests that basketball is a game of intensity while Hirsch suggests it is
However, they are told in different tenses. “Slam, Dunk & Hook” is told in the past which contrasts “Fast Break” which is told in the present. The present tense of “Fast Break” gives the reader an impression of better rhetoric because the events are happening as the piece is read. One device used is a simile. The author mentions, “gathering the orange leather from the air like a cherished possession” (Hirsch). The author again employs imagery describing the ball not as a basketball but as, “orange leather.” The author of “Slam, Dunk & Hook” does not use this type of imagery. Komunyakka uses harsh imagery such as corkscrew, which is an action versus a description. Although it describes the movement of the players, it doesn’t describe the color of the scene. If the poems were movies, this would be a black & white movie while the other would be in