Fishies

Fame and maintaining one’s stature on the hierarchy deludes one’s vision of reality. Our impairment allows our illusions to appear realistic, a mirage in a hostile sauna. The poem is in free verse, however the stanzas increase in fluidity (the number of syllables per line), until the fifth stanza when the climax of the poem is over and the fluidity begins to decrease. 

In “On Reading Poems to a Senior Class at South High” by DC Berry, the poem mirrors the fluidity of water, in which the inspiration that flows in and out of the room. One can immerse themselves in water, just as they can immerse themselves into the "depths of poetry." If one simply looks at the ocean, they cannot fully grasp the wonders that lie below the surface. However, even looking below the surface does not even give one the true experience of the ocean-one must become part of the ocean. The gills represent the disguised ability the students have to comprehend and analyze poetry. 

"Together we swam around the room" manifests the way in which the students and the speaker immersed themselves in the language of poetry, thereby exploring a new world. People simply resemble fish, to a figurative classroom where the reader seems to be more comfortable. While the students may have been immersed in the poetry temporarily, the speaker believes that the students are still ruled by the ringing of the bell, and the "real" world outside of the written word. The speaker even admits to being ruled by responsibility. He alludes about society's obsession with status and fame, which has distracted many people from the written word.