Mantis Dreams by Adam Pottle

Author:Adam Pottle
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction
ISBN: 9781927575352
Publisher: Caitlin Press
Published: 2013-03-15T00:00:00+00:00

Tossing Away an Albatross Is More Difficult than You Think—October 28, 2009

McTavish at my class today. He sat at the back with his notebook balanced on his lap. Although I hated it, the students seemed more relaxed with him in the room. I played nice with them. Even went so far as to praise the one I’d belittled last week. Well done! I said after she described the rhyme scheme for a Shakespearean sonnet. You’ll be prepared for graduate school by the end of this term. Now, if you can identify the type of rhythm Shakespeare utilizes, I’ll give you a cherry lollipop. McTavish grimaced. He didn’t appreciate my sarcasm. “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” I said. This is a specific kind of question that Shakespeare asks. It’s a strategy that authors use when the answer is obvious. Now, what kind of question is it? The class blanked. To myself I said, Apparently the answer’s not so obvious in this room. McTavish straightened and wrote in his notebook. I sighed. Okay, I said to the class. When you ask someone a question to which you already know the answer, what kind of question is it? A student put up her hand and, in the voice of a child looking over the edge of the high diving board, said, Interrogation? I gritted my teeth. Nice try, I said, but this isn’t CSI. McTavish: scritch-scritch-scritch. I imagined he was playing Hangman, filling in SUSPENSION letter by letter, a stick man in a wheelchair dangling from a gallows. Another student put up his hand. Manipulation? he said. It starts with an R, I said. Do you give up? No, McTavish said, holding out his hand. They can get it. Give them a bit more time. I’m trying to move the lesson along, I said. They can get it. There’s time. I exhaled. Okay, I said. Does anybody have an idea? It starts with an R? That’s right. What’s the second letter? An H. H…rhombus? That’s not it. Rheumy? That’s not spelt with an H, is it? I looked at McTavish. Raised my eyebrows desperately. What’s the third letter? Through my clenched teeth: An E. So it’s not rhombus. What other words start with RHE? Hang on, let me get my dictionary. It’s rhetorical! I said. McTavish pursed his lips. A rhetorical question! That is the kind of question Shakespeare is asking! “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” It’s a rhetorical question! A question to which the answer is obvious! The students looked at their books. Many of them puzzled. One of them put up his hand. How is it obvious? he said. I shut my eyes and said, Read the next line. Oh. Oh yeah! I looked at McTavish. His notebook was closed. I’m expecting a report from him soon.

Maggie came here yesterday. Asked me why I hadn’t called. Asked me why my bookshelves were empty and why there were boxes all over the floor. Are you moving? she said.

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