Full Moon by Robert Hayden
No longer throne of a goddess to whom we pray,
no longer the bubble house of childhood’s
tumbling Mother Goose man,
The emphatic moon ascends–
the brilliant challenger of rocket experts,
the white hope of communications men.
Some I love who are dead
were watchers of the moon and knew its lore;
planted seeds, trimmed their hair,
Pierced their ears for gold hoop earrings
as it waxed or waned.
It shines tonight upon their graves.
And burned in the garden of Gethsemane,
its light made holy by the dazzling tears
with which it mingled.
And spread its radiance on the exile’s path
of Him who was The Glorious One,
its light made holy by His holiness.
Already a mooted goal and tomorrow perhaps
an arms base, a livid sector,
the full moon dominates the dark.
Explain what drew you to the poem you chose and what you find intriguing about it. Note the elements of the poem that are most interesting to you, using the vocabulary learned in this unit.
Include at least one quotation from the poem; be sure to deliver it with a signal phrase and to punctuate it properly – see Quoting Lines of Poetry for assistance.
Next, suggest which one (or more) of the four modes of poetry analysis—aural, visual, symbolic, or thematic—can be said to drive the poem and why you believe this is true.
Demonstration of your understanding of the reading
Level of idea development
The quality of your writing, including grammar, logic, and transition