Amy's Poem and Handout

Poetry Seminar
Amy Hurst



The Children Are Laughing

It is Monday and the children are laughing
The children are laughing; they believe they are princes
They wear no shoes; they believe they are princes
And their filthy kingdom heaves up behind them.

The filthy city heaves up behind them
They are older than I am, their feet are shoeless
They have lived a thousand years; the children are laughing
The children are laughing and their death is upon them

I have cried in the city (the children are laughing)
I have worn many colors (the children are laughing)
They are older than I am, their death is upon them
I will wear no shoes when the princes are dying.

-Gwendolyn MacEwen


Thesis: MacEwan's use of imagery, first person point of view, and repetition serves as a clear demonstration into the reaction she thinks that children have to life's dire circumstances.

Questions:

1. Who do you think MacEwan is talking about when she says, 'the children'?

2. She says, "They are older than I am, their feet are shoeless. They have lived a thousand years; the children are laughing." Why do you think she still refers to them as children if they have 'lived a thousand years'?

3. Why do you think the poem mentions Monday, but no other day?

4. Do you think that children today act older than they actually are? In what ways?

5. How do you think "The children are laughing and their death is upon them" applies to our lives? Do you think it's an accurate representation of our youth?

6. What do you think she means in the final line when she says, "I will wear no shoes when the princes are dying"?