In this module journal I will look to describe relevance and meaning of the poem Did I Miss Anything? Something I will look to do is to show who exactly is speaking in the poem and why it is clear it is these such people who are speaking. I also will look to show the viewpoints that both sides have and try to balance them out to show which side gives the better argument, this will also follow on from the people who are speaking and thus could be reason to why certain viewpoints rise. This will also help to show how each side of the argument feels and the reason why they feel it.
Finally, I will look to shed light on the poem towards my own personal experiences in similar situations or environments. By doing so it means that I can relate to the situation and give my own viewpoints towards it. Reading this poem it is clear to me that the conversation taking place is between a student and a teacher. This is clear due to the educational involvement, in stanza 2 the poet suggests this by talking about something the teacher did, “I gave an exam worth 40 percent for this term” this shows that the situation had to be educational based.
The other person in the argument is clearly a student because of the way the teacher describes several points and by the way the student retaliates. The argument could be taking place within the students head as the student is trying to imagine what the day would be like without the student and what the teacher’s reaction would be when the student returned to class. This could be true because of the answers and continuous respond with questions and answers to combat. The language used is also quite sarcastic often coinciding with the attitude of young adults.
There are some very clear viewpoints within the poem that the poet has made very clear to understand. The point of “Nothing” is the sort of sarcastic view of the student thinking that nothing of much importance could have happened in the students absence. That if the student was not there the student could easily catch up. As the poem continues the student begins to worry that he/she may have missed something important and ensues in trying to reassure him/herself that nothing would have happened.
Then there is the view of the teacher whom tries to explain to the student that in fact he/she did actually miss something of importance, “exam worth 40 percent”. The teacher does not actually mean the thing he/she says but is referring to the fact that he/she may have decided to hold an exam that day or give out a piece of homework and the student would be none the wiser due to the fact that they were not there.
This is the teacher putting over the viewpoint that every day in class is important as the next due to the fact that you are learning everyday and you may miss something of importance or something that motivates you in life. In the teacher’s mind this day missed is not a day that can be taken back due to the fact that never again will the same lesson occur on the same day with the same outcome and information. It is also an indicator to the fact that the teacher is attempting to drum into the student that attending class is essential but is something that should be wanted but not forced.
If a student comes with the attitude that they are being forced to attend then they will be less willing to learn and less able to actually take in the curriculum. By the student asking ‘Did I Miss Anything? ‘ the teacher is sort of taking this as rhetorically because of course the student missed something in their absence. What the student really is asking is did I miss anything of importance to which the teacher answers you will never know as you were not here.
Meaning the student may have missed something important or something unimportant but can the student really take the chance that one the day they miss class it will be unimportant. Some of the poem also seems to refer to the student feeling the world revolves around them to which the teacher shuts down, “When we realized you weren’t here we sat with our hands folded on our desks in silence, for the full two hours,” what the teacher means by this is that did the student expect that everything would have stopped in his non appearance, no the day has to go on as does the world.
To summarize I feel that the teacher is trying point out the importance of education and attendance and lack of could prove costly in future life, such as “Everything” meaning education should mean “everything” as should attendance. On the students side the “Nothing” is what the student believes they have missed, but thus this is not true because one conversation or point given that day may have inspired or motivated the student in a different way. A conversation that may have impacted his career path, life goals, relationships and whole entire life.
My own experience, this is one that is extremely similar to the situation of the student in the poem. Many a time I have had a fallen out or disagreement with a teacher over a particular reason, even sometimes the same reason as the poem. Such as one time I feel out with a teacher because I had a lack of effort due to a slight pig-headedness in class due to receiving great grades thought the entirety of such class that I became slightly complacent and disinterested to which the teacher picked up on and discussed in full with me.
He talked about the importance to paying attention and listening to other viewpoints as there is something to be learned from everything that someone says. This information was new to me at the time as previously every other teacher that had a similar problem with me just discarded me to the side and thought I was just a child that did not want to learn but in fact was one whom needed a little support and motivation to try harder. Thus, this teacher became my favourite throughout secondary school and also helped in me having his subject of teaching by far my favourite.
For the first time in my life I had a teacher that actually believed in my ability and he could see areas of amazement that others could not he taught me differently to the rest of the students due to reason that different teaching methods benefited me greatly whereas other could not learn in similar ways. The teacher knew there was something inside me that wanted to learn I just needed to find my passion and thus went from someone that was getting good grades in the course to one who was getting top grades in the course and enjoying it thus why I am where I am today.
If this teacher had spoken to me I may never have been where | am, to refer back to the poem had I not turned up that singular day and had the conversation with him my whole life may have been completely different, just goes to show how much motivation and inspiration can be achieved from a single conversation with someone. A conversation that would not be had, had I not shown up to class this really goes to show the real reason why education and attendance is so important.
If you are given an amazing opportunity why would you throw it away just to sit at home for the day. To conclude, the speaker is clear a student and teacher having an argument about the values of attending class, one says one thing while the other says the opposite. The student cannot understand why attendance is so important whereas the teacher is trying to tell the student that a significant occurrence may happen in his/her absence and they will miss it something that the rest of the class may be inspired by and that you should not take the chance in not attending.
I have also shared something quite personal in my own experience as have had the exact argument with countless teachers until one teacher actually started making sense with the point they were putting across for which I know kind of sympathize with both parties in this situation even though the student attitude is sort of the wrong one to have and the teacher is just trying to help the student get the best out of their education. The student though is blind to this and only sees it as them getting told off. Later in life the student may look back and think to him/herself what if || just attended class on that one day.