Poetry Response - Still Memory

In the first stanza, Karr compares a dream to floating on a river but how it always returns to its notch. The poem is a reflection on his childhood and events that occurred when he woke up in the morning. It speaks of his father returning from work, his mother in the kitchen, the environment outside his house, and his sister walking on the cold tile floor of the bathroom. Karr also says her "parents are not yet born each into a small urn of ash" meaning they have not yet passed away. When she writes "My ten-year-old hand reaches for a pen to record it all as would become long habit." it makes me think of her as a ten year old writing memories down and how she continues to do that for many years following.

I Stand Here Ironing

I Stand Here Ironing is about a mother looking back at her daughter's past in terms of how she raised her and the outcome of that.

Level 1: What does Emily discover that she likes?
Level 2: What is the significance of the mother telling the story while ironing?
Level 3: How much do you think love, attention, and affection during childhood affects a person?

The theme is a lack of affection when a person is growing up has a large impact later and through out life.
It's significant that the mother tells Emily's story while ironing because she doesn't really have to pay attention to anything and can just think. Another thing that I thought about was what the purpose of her telling the story is. Is she trying to justify her actions as a mother? Or is she going through everything that happened trying to figure out what she could have done differently?
I think that the way parents interact with their kids has a large impact on how their kids grow up. Emily spent a lot of time away from home at daycare or the place she went when she was sick. Because of this, she didn't form a strong connection with her mother and when her mother tried to show affection to her, she didn't accept it. Emily's insecurities and problems can be partly attributed to her upbringing, but I think part of the way she feels is unrelated to that. Some people, even if they grow up in loving families, go through similar struggles as Emily.

The Lesson

The Lesson is a short story about inner city kids being exposed to class differences.

Level One: Where does Miss Moore take the kids?
Level Two: Why did Miss Moore take them to the toy store?
Level Three: What do you think Sylvia meant when she said "But ain't nobody gonna beat me at nuthin."

Miss Moore took them to the toy store to expose them to class differences. Before they leave she talks about how money is unfair. She values her college education and tries to teach the kids useful skills such as when she asks Sylvia to calculate a tip for the cab driver.
I think there are a few ways to interpret the last line of the story. She could have meant that she wasn't going to let the class differences bring her down or keep her poor. Another possibility is that she ignored the lesson and decided she wasn't going to let the other kids beat her, ignoring the rest of the world.