Maya Creamer Assignment 2

The path to success?

Crowded halls
Bodies jostling along narrow paths
Fighting to reach their final destination
To enter rooms
Where they will learn
Gaining knowledge
About the world
And their place in it

I, caught in the river of bodies
But also floating above it
I know
I am getting the education
I need to succeed
I enjoy my time here
Opportunities are abundant
I see my friends
We complain about the work
Wonder why we chose the Academy
When we could have taken
The easy road
But we know
That we are the lucky ones

I watch
As other students struggle
Simply going through the motions
Hoping, praying to pass
This is no Mean Girls
No slamming heads in lockers
Or faces shoved in toilets
But some people rise above the rest
Many are not given the choice
And are forced to accept their place
in the intellectual hierarchy of high school
Luckily for me,
Fate ruled in my favor

In my poem, I discuss the underlying hierarchy I see in our school when it comes to the quality of education I receive compared to other students. I used diction, imagery, and allusions to create a struggling, yet grateful tone. Words like "fighting", "jostling", "slamming", and "shoved" all have connotations of a struggle, highlighting the way many students struggle within the walls of high school. Words like "floating", "gaining", and "abundant" show my experience; I am enjoying my time in high school, and have learned a lot, which I am thankful for. Images of a "river of bodies", students getting their heads slammed in lockers, and faces shoved in toilets, though hopefully the last two don't apply to Henry Clay, show the hardships that many students endure in high school; I, on the other hand, can "float" above the rest of the students, because I have been given the opportunity to be challenged and reach my full potential. I allude to the Academy and Mean Girls to show two contrasting images of struggle; the first is a place where, although we work hard, we know we will reap the rewards, while the second depicts a school where many students struggle under the wrath or rule of a group of girls who think they are superior to everyone else. Although at Henry Clay the hierarchy of students is unintentional, it is still there, and I, luckily, have been placed near the top, and because of it receive a good education.