Reading Response 1
Hannah Olmstead
Ashley Keyser
Reading Response #1
The Real Meaning Behind “Boy”
The poem “Boy” may be seen by some readers as a recollection of childhood memories entailing what it was like to once be a young child. The speaker of this poem describes the “internal wanting” to be a young boy again, and uses poetic devices to try and convey this in an innocent and simplistic manner. I believe, however, that the poem depicts a more painful and complicated series of emotions described by the speaker that contribute to the overall theme of the poem. By examining the choice of words used to convey a “sour” tone, it can be seen that beneath the seemingly light-hearted situation of the poem is a gloomier story. The point of view of “Boy” seems to come from a man who can’t help but relive his past of being a young boy. The speaker of this poem presents the tone immediately within the first sentence, stating “I liked being small” (1). The reader knows right away that this is the key feeling felt by the speaker throughout the poem’s entirety. As exemplified in line 2, the speaker begins to reminisce on activities pertaining to being young, such as putting on pajamas. The word choice presented in the first stanza supports this feeling of joy behind wanting to be small again. Within the second stanza, the speaker explicitly states, “what I don’t like is being large” (4) and carries on with examples contributing to the theme on the unpopular feeling of being a “grown-up.” The use of words in this specific stanza, such as “whoosh” (5) and “hairy” (5), add a negative connotation to becoming an adult. The speaker begins the third stanza explaining how “the world is terror,” (7) where it can be inferred that the world becomes a much scarier place as you get older. The speaker feels reassurance in the fourth stanza as it is explained that the speaker “can do it though” (10). However, the speaker continues on the same emotional path of wanting to be young again. An older
Ashley Keyser
Reading Response #1
The Real Meaning Behind “Boy”
The poem “Boy” may be seen by some readers as a recollection of childhood memories entailing what it was like to once be a young child. The speaker of this poem describes the “internal wanting” to be a young boy again, and uses poetic devices to try and convey this in an innocent and simplistic manner. I believe, however, that the poem depicts a more painful and complicated series of emotions described by the speaker that contribute to the overall theme of the poem. By examining the choice of words used to convey a “sour” tone, it can be seen that beneath the seemingly light-hearted situation of the poem is a gloomier story. The point of view of “Boy” seems to come from a man who can’t help but relive his past of being a young boy. The speaker of this poem presents the tone immediately within the first sentence, stating “I liked being small” (1). The reader knows right away that this is the key feeling felt by the speaker throughout the poem’s entirety. As exemplified in line 2, the speaker begins to reminisce on activities pertaining to being young, such as putting on pajamas. The word choice presented in the first stanza supports this feeling of joy behind wanting to be small again. Within the second stanza, the speaker explicitly states, “what I don’t like is being large” (4) and carries on with examples contributing to the theme on the unpopular feeling of being a “grown-up.” The use of words in this specific stanza, such as “whoosh” (5) and “hairy” (5), add a negative connotation to becoming an adult. The speaker begins the third stanza explaining how “the world is terror,” (7) where it can be inferred that the world becomes a much scarier place as you get older. The speaker feels reassurance in the fourth stanza as it is explained that the speaker “can do it though” (10). However, the speaker continues on the same emotional path of wanting to be young again. An older