P4: "To a Mouse" by ANNA SACKS

Stanza #7: Bryan and Andrew

2021-12-07 20:13:14 UTC

Themesis: Even the best plans have their imperfections.

Lit Device: Shift

Quote: “The best laid schemes of mice and men Go often askew.”

Analysis: This shift between “the best laid schemes” and “askew” depicts the general imperfections of life. It shows how life is unpredictable and there is no certainty in our actions even if they are the very best ones.

Stanza 8: Compared to a mouse, man is troubled by past and future as well as the present.

2021-12-07 20:15:10 UTC

Detail: "I backward cast my eye, On prospects dreary! And forward, though I cannot see, I guess and fear!"

A mouse doesn't have to worry about its past or future. A human is affected constantly by their past and always worried about their future. From anything to their job or plans that they have, there's always something for a human to worry about.

Tim M. and Emely H.

Stanza 5: Karen S. & Udo C.

2021-12-07 20:15:34 UTC

Themsis: No matter how much we plan and scheme, life is unpredictable
Lit device: descriptive detail

" And cozy here, beneath the blast, you thought to dwell, Till crash! the cruel plough passed.." 
Analysis: The mouse was living a comfy life not worrying about anything, but out the blue it gets disturbed by a plough. Showing how life can't be planned for.

Stanza 3: Brianna & Josue

2021-12-07 20:21:39 UTC

Themsis: People aren't able to control other actions, they just have to go along with it.
Literary Device: syntax
Quote: " Is a small request; I will get a blessing with what is left,"
Analysis: The mice have stolen corn from the man, but he lets it slide. He doesn't do anything to the mice because it is only one small piece compared to all the things that he has. It shows that you aren't able to control others, you just have to be grateful for what they have done.

Brandon C. and Jennifer T.

2021-12-07 20:21:58 UTC

Burns utilizes descriptive detail and irony in order to convey the theme that the future always carries uncertainty.

In this specific stanza he goes over how the mouse's home is destroyed by his plough and will need to worry about the cold winter oncoming.
"now you are turned out, for all your trouble." This is quite ironic in itself in correlation to the theme since humans, as complex beings, interpret past, present, and future, whilst animals perceive only the present. This shows how different each being is and how "lucky" animals are in comparison to more complex thinking humans.

Hernandez, Emilio &' Escobar, Christian-Stanza 8

2021-12-07 20:22:40 UTC

Themesis: Due to the unpredictability in life, no life is truly easy as it can take an unexpected turn.
Descriptive Detail-
"And forward, though I cannot see/ I guess and fear!"
Analysis: Even though a person cannot truly understand what will come in the future, it will lead them to guessing. This uncertainty, in turn, causes fear to prevail.

Stanza 6 Giselle O & Isabela G

2021-12-07 20:23:02 UTC

Themesis: Worrying for the future is a human burden that small creatures like a mouse will never have to face

Imagery "To endure the winter's sleety dribble"

Analysis: By drawing an image of a harsh winter, we are able to see how the unexpected event negatively impacts the mouses situation however it is the human that is worried about the mouses future in the upcoming winter. The mouse is only concerned with the present.

Stanza 4: Andres & Arnold

2021-12-07 20:23:17 UTC

Themesis: No matter one's circumstances or background, life is always unpredictable.

Lit Device: "Your small house, too, in ruin! / Its feeble walls the winds are scattering!"

Analysis: The mouse's home is destroyed by human interaction, symbolizing that not even such a small simple, creature is safe from the disastrous events that life can unleash.

Stanza 7 - Ryan O., Brittney P.

2021-12-07 20:23:27 UTC

Themsis: "To a Mouse," argues that present plans could always end up in flames.

Device: Diction

Quote:
"The best laid schemes of mice and men
Go often askew" (Stanza 7, lines 3-4).
Analysis:
With the word "askew" present in the line, it suggests that something can go wrong, meaning that at times plans may not have the outcome you expected it to have.

Stanza 4: Kaleb J. and Cameron R.

2021-12-07 20:23:50 UTC

Imagery
Themesis: The poem shows that no matter how much we plan, life is unpredictable.

Quote: "Its feeble walls the winds are scattering!/And nothing now, to build a new one;"
Analysis: The use of imagery illustrates the mouse's poor house being blown down, and the winds anticipate that the cold winter is coming, with the mouse no longer prepared. Proving that even though everyone experiences tragedy's in life, we must still continue despite the pain.

Stanza 2 - Davis & Nathan

ookoye0003 — 2021-12-07 20:24:06 UTC

Theme: Life is not easy as things can go wrong for both a simple mouse or intelligent man.

Device: Descriptive Detail
"At me, your poor, earth born companion
And fellow mortal!"

Analysis: The line describes the mortality of both the mouse and the man and how life never goes their way. Problems are bound to arise, as he comments on their poor situation while adding descriptive detail.

Stanza Three Andrea Rivera & Nigella Figueroa

2021-12-07 20:24:06 UTC

Theme: Don't let uncertainty of the future stop you from living your life.
Analysis: With the use of syntax in "What then? Poor little beast, you must live!" The man tells the mouse to live his life without fear and to have no regrets. Robert Burns emphasizes this with an exclamation mark. That even if the mouse is faced with challenges, it has to live through them to experience life. `

Brandon S. Edith E. : Stanza 1

2021-12-07 20:24:28 UTC

Burns emphasizes that it's important enjoy life in the present because the future is uncertain (detail).
Quote: "Oh, what a panic is in your breast! You need not start away so hasty" (1).
Analysis: Burns utilizes descriptive detail of the mouse to represent the human impulse to panic whenever things don't go according to plan. Through his observation of the mouse, he suggests that it is fine to relax in times of distress and hardships.

Stanza 2: Chizi Oranu & Ogo Okoye

2021-12-07 20:26:27 UTC

Theme: Because of their unpredictable actions, man can no longer harmonize with nature.
Lit Device: Detail
Evidence: The entire stanza lol
Analysis:
Burns argues that life is uncertain and things are bound to change. In the second stanza, we see this theme plays out in the perspective of the mouse. The development of mankind is only able to happen at the expense of "Nature's social union". This negatively alters the relationship between man and nature. This is the reason for mice feeling the need to cower and run away from man, as Burn states later in the stanza.

Stanza 5: Alondra S and Miguel E

mbrieva0002 — 2021-12-07 20:27:06 UTC

“You saw the field laid bare and wasted,

And weary winter coming fast,

And Cozy here, beneath the blast,

You thought to dwell,

Till crash! The cruel plough passed

Out through your cell”

Themesis: No matter how well one’s life could be going, it can change in an instant.

Literary Device: Shift

Analysis: In lines 1-4, it portrays a warm and cozy feel, referencing how simple a person's life can be. Readers are presented with a negative shift starting in line 5, with the words "crash" and "cruel", implying how sudden our lives can change for the worse.