Randall Jarrell's "Thinking of the
Lost World" (1965)
English 112W
1. Where are the present-time moments in the poem? What's
the relationship between past and present?
2. Where does the poem shift from present to past? What
triggers memories?
3. On a related point, can the speaker control memory? Or,
when can he and when can't he?
4. How does descriptive detail function in the poem? What
does the descriptive detail contribute to the poem? Focus on some
of the specific images and descriptions.
5. What is the "lost world"? What is the speaker's attitude
towards this subject? Is the speaker's tone consistent?
6. What do the last 15 lines mean?
Return to Phil Nel's syllabus for English 112W, section
5 (M-W-F).