Two Scavengers in a Truck....

Lawrence Ferlinghetti

Two Scavengers in a Truck....

Learning Intentions

Key Teaching Points:• To read the poem• To examine the way the poem

presents contrasts• To make some comparisons with

‘Island Man’

Key Terms:• Contrast• Participle• Static• Ironic

Lawrence Ferlinghetti• Born in New York in 1919, he has lived most of his

life in San Francisco, a city both racially and culturally mixed. It has been a centre for artists and musicians and from the 1960’s was the centre of the ‘hippy’/ ‘flower power’ movement.

• He said “When I was named first poet laureate of this left-coast city in 1998 I expressed my outrage at how San Francisco was fast becoming a playground for the rich and witless – a Disneyfied Mall for the S.U.V. (sports utility vehicle) drivers and cellphone addicts.”

• And in his Whole Earth speech in 1999, as poet laureate he also said, “all that made this city so unique in the first place seems to be going down the tube at an alarming rate. The gap between the rich and the poor in San Francisco increased more than 40% in just two years recently. Now it’s becoming almost impossible for a lot of people who have made this a world-class city – people who have been the heart and soul of the city for decades – from the fishers and pasta-makers and blue-collar workers to the jazz musicians to the beat poets to the punks and so many others – to exist here any more. And when you’ve lost that part of the city, you’ve lost San Francisco.”

Ferlinghetti’s concerns

• He is concerned with the contrasts between different ways of life and the way they affect each other.

• We will later be comparing this to ‘Island Man’.

Now read the poem

• In pairs list the descriptive words and phrases used for the “two garbagemen” and the “elegant couple”.

• When you have finished with your partner I want you to look at the effect of these phrases.

The Two Garbagemen

Descriptive phrases

Effect

Bright yellow garbage truck

Red plastic blazers

Grungy

Grey iron hair

Gargoyle Quasimodo

Also with sun glasses and long hair

The Elegant CoupleDescriptive phrases

Effect

Elegant

Shoulder-length blonde hair

Linen suit

Short skirt

Coloured stockings

Structure and Language• The poem is written in a series of

‘freeze frames’. Time is stopped for an instant by the red traffic light.

• Now, working in pairs, try to decide where one ‘freeze frame’ ends and the next begins. You have five minutes!

• What do you notice about the way the poem uses verbs?

• There are no main verbs here – only present participles. Why is this?

• To emphasisie the static nature of the descriptions?

• What can you see about the way the lines are arranged?

• They interrupt the flow of the description and slow the pace of the poem. This also contributes to the static effect.

The Writer’s Attitude

• Now re-read lines 26 – 30• What criticism of the elegant couple

is made by comparing them to a ‘T.V. ad’?

• They seem unreal, they are created images.

• Now re-read lines 31 – 36• What do you make of the words “as

if”?• The writer is being IRONIC• It is not possible for there to be any

relationship between these two groups of characters. The words “as if” show that this is an illusion. The use of the word “democracy” is ironic. The phrase “high seas” carries connotations of lawlessness – another criticism of American democracy.

Comparing ‘Island Man’ and ‘Two Scavengers’

• You now have to write a few paragraphs comparing the two poems.

• Title: Compare the ways in which ‘Island Man’ and ‘Two Scavengers in a Truck. . . ‘ both explore contrasts between two different ways of life.

• Compare: – People (appearance/ thoughts/

feelings)– The most important features of

how the poems are written– The endings of the poems and the

main impressions the reader is left with

– The writer’s tone and attitude to the people or situation described.

Examples of Comparison• Grace Nichols writes about a man

who . . . . On the other hand, Ferlinghetti’s characters . . . .

• Grace Nichols uses contrasting images of . . . . for example . . . . Ferlinghetti’s methods of creating contrasts are different. He . . . .

• The ending of ‘Island Man’ emphasises . . . . Whereas the ending of ‘Two Scavengers’ suggests . . . .

• The two writers have different attitudes to the people they describe . . . .

• The two writers have different ideas they want to convey to us. For example . . . .