Assignment 2 - Charlie Blondell

What Matters

Backpacks, books, pencils, pens

Does it matter?

Homework, tests, quizzes, grades

Does it matter?

What about tailgates, football games, parties

Does it matter?

And pep rallies, field trips, clubs

Does it matter?

Then there's new friends, old friends, and ones in between

Does it matter?

And of course girlfriends, boyfriends, and "just" friends

Does it matter?

And you know jocks, nerds, hippies, and freaks

Does it matter?

And we all know band geeks, newspaper dudes, and teachers pets

Does it matter/

Now what about after high school

Does that matter?

Scouting, applying, and getting into college

Does that matter?

Finding yourself and what your interested in

Does that matter?

Making the best companions and relationships of your life

Does that matter?

Defining success on your terms

Does that matter?

Establishing your life, maybe with a family

Does that matter?

Making happy a reality

Does that matter?

Becoming the best you, YOU can be

Does that matter?

Making it all worth while

Does that matter?

Answer these yourself, and you'll find out

What does matter

Throughout the poem, I repeated the phrases "Does it matter?" and "Does that matter?" intentionally to have the reader recognizing a central idea of the poem: discovering what is really important during and after high school. These diction choices show a shift in the poem. When I started using "that" instead of "it," a shift occurs that recognizes what the author, myself, finds unimportant in high school, to what the author finds to actually be significant. Rather than talking about high school relationships or social schemes, I move on to life after high school, getting into college, and becoming successful. The syntax is all very similar, compromised of two sentences of things that could matter, immediately followed by that same question: does it matter? Allusions are not really made here, besides high school terms that everyone should understand, like band geek and jock. Imagery is used throughout to give vivid descriptions of items mentioned, like backpacks, books, pencils, and pens. A tone of humbleness and wonder is presented through the piece. As it progresses, the audience is meant to feel almost shocked, wondering if they went through high school prioritizing everything correctly. They are then supposed to feel wonder, and maybe even hope, if they have done this the right way, and maybe even have time to fix it if they have not.