Giovanna Basso

Joseph Rogers
AP English Literature
March 20, 2020

1993 Poem: “The Centaur” (May Swenson)

Prompt: Read the following poem carefully. Then write an essay in which you discuss how such
elements as language, imagery, structure, and point of view convey meaning in the poem.

“For Teenage Girls” by Clementine von Radics (#tbt to Grade 10 with Mr. Joe)
Advice for teenage girls with wild ambitions and from the major leagues because "girls are too
trembling hearts. delicate to play baseball."

When Anne Frank was 13 years old, she
disappeared behind a bookcase with her family and
everything, hunted, writing an ocean into a diary
when they found her. She was treated as nothing
more than a spark of a burning bush. Despite this,
she still said, “I really believe people are good at
heart”.
Sacagawea was 18, with a baby on her back,
leading Lewis and Clark across North America.
Cleopatra, 18, when she became queen of the Nile.
Nellie Bly, 18, bringing justice to journalism.
And, YOU, are now 18, standing on the precipice,
trembling before your own greatness.

And when Joan of Arc was 14, she heard a voice THIS…
calling her to greatness. When the doubters called
her crazy, she did not listen. Grabbed her sword… This is your call to leap.
grabbed her shield… and her two good hands. She
was the maid of untamed patriotism, born to reunite There will always be those who say you are too
a country like a broken heart. young, or too delicate to make anything happen for
yourself. But THEY don't see the part of you that
Malala...was 15 when a man climbed on her school smolders.
bus and insisted her sisters name her enemy, but
she did not hide. She was shot...3 times in the Don't let their doubting drown out the sound of
temple. Three years later, in an ocean of survival your own heartbeat.
and no apology, she stood before the United
Nations and told them how her country was You are the first drop of rain in a hurricane.
burning.
Your bravery builds beyond you. You are needed.
When Mary Shelley was 16, she invented science
fiction. The story of a man named Frankenstein and Well the little girls still living in secret, writing
his creator, she soon learned little girls with big oceans of monsters and throwing like lightning…
ideas are much scarier than monsters.
You don't need to grow up to find greatness.
It's OK.
You're so much stronger than the world has ever
She was remembered long after they put down their even told you.
torches.
You could be, the world...is waiting for you… ...to
Jackie Mitchell was 17 when she struck out Babe set it on fire.
Ruth and Lou Gehrig, one right after the other.
Grown men were so afraid of the lightning in her Trust in yourself… and burn.
fingertips, two days later, all women were fired
Inspirational tone & Volta: changes from telling a story to motivating the audience with powerful metaphors
Dialogue, speaks directly to the audience, starts saying that the poem is actually a piece of advice, YOU,
Structural repetition when… was ….she did this so the audience can put themselves into the shoes of these girls

❡ 1: Introduction + thesis

History books tend to tell only the story of men that have impacted the world, but
many fail to tell us how women have shown strength and determination. In“For Teenage
Girls”, Clementine von Radics reminds us how girls are powerful and capable of empowering
change not in spite of their femininity but because of it. The poet gives meaning to her
spoken poem through a structural repetition of stories of the many girls that have changed the
world at a young age to create emphasis and then changes the general tone of the poem with a
volta with powerful metaphors to a direct dialogue with the audience to inspire them.

❡ 2: Body Paragraph 1: Structural repetition

- Topic sentence: In order to dismantle the misconception that only men have made
history, von Radics focuses the first half of the poem on emphasizing the stories of
many audacious young girls by repeating the structure of each stanza with similar
information.
<Sentence to introduce quote>
- CD 1: “When Anne Frank was 13 years old (...)
- CM 1: As a young girl that took matters into her own hands, Anne Frank is
the perfect example for Clementine von Radics to include in her poem. She
begins Frank’s story by mentioning her age, 13 and the youngest girls of the
examples, and then describes what made her so important to History with
creative details.
< Transition sentence to the next piece of evidence>
- CD 2: “And when Joan of Arc was 14, she heard a voice calling her to greatness.”
- CM 2: Once again, the poet repeats the same pattern of storytelling: she
introduces the historical figure with her name, her age and what made her
relevant. This pattern, although simple, is a way to emphasize the many
similarities between the girls. They are all young, courageous and audacious.
Moreover, this pattern reflects on von Radics’s intention of comparing these
girls to the audience. Because this pattern repeats in History, it will also be
repeated to the many girls listening to the poem.
< Concluding sentence associated with the theme History being a cycle.
Transition sentence to the next paragraph>
❡ 3: Body Paragraph 2: Volta: from stories to advice
- Topic sentence: As the poem progresses, Clementine von Radics surprises her
audience with a sudden change in pattern and in tone in her poem. The volta happens
when the poet stops telling stories and gives advice to her intended audience through
impactful metaphors.
 <Sentence to introduce quote>
- CD 1: “And, YOU, are now 18, standing on the precipice, trembling before your own
greatness.”
- CM 1: As the first metaphor after the stories, this line represents a sudden
change in theme and voice. Clementine von Radics goes from accounts to
inspirational advice with a powerful idea of “being near greatness”. Given that
the audience could first comprehend what the many girls have been through
and how they achieved greatness, this volta is the poet’s way of telling her
audience that they too can be great. Although the audience is not literally
standing on a precipice, the metaphor reiterates the idea that magnanimity is
also achievable.
< Transition sentence to the next piece of evidence>
- CD 2: “You are the first drop of rain in a hurricane.”
- CM 2: Once again the author emphasizes power and strength through
metaphors. Clearly, the poet is comparing her intended audience, young girls,
to the first drop of rain in a hurricane, meaning that they are beginning a major
change, something extraordinary.
There are other raindrops all around us that will join us in this movement for change.

Me at 18 is just a raindrop but watch me evolve into a hurricane

< Transition sentence to the next piece of evidence>
- CD 3: “Well the little girls are still living in secret, writing oceans of monsters and
throwing like lightning…”
- CM 3: This line creates a parallelism between Mary Shelly’s story she told at
the beginning of the poem and the idea that young girls can also empower
change. In between the lines of the metaphor, von Radics claims that a
powerful girl makes friends with her own “dragon”, the negatives in her life,
and overcomes the challenges imposed on her.
- Moreover, binds all of the stories together
- Marry shelly wrote monsters
- Jackie mitchell throw like lightning. Binds all of there different allusions
Anne frank lived in secret, writing ocean into a diary bringing it to the audicence
< Transition sentence to the next piece of evidence>
- CD 4: “Trust in yourself… and burn”
- CM 4: As the last metaphor and the last sentence of the poem, this line
represents the final conclusion between the first half of the poem, the stories,
 and the second half, the advice. With the change from stories to direct
dialogue, the metaphor of burning reiterates the idea of power and strength.
Connect to anne frank that she ways treated as just a “burning bush”, allusion to the biblical
burning bush
< Concluding sentence associated with the direct conversation between the
speaker and the audience. Transition sentence to the next paragraph>
❡ 4: Body Paragraph 3: Direct dialogue with the audience to inspire them
- Topic Sentence: As the author changes the message in the poem to advice to her
audience, she creates a direct dialogue with her audience to inspire them.
<Sentence to introduce quote>
- CD 1: “And, YOU”
- CM 1: After the change in the message of the poem, the poet directs her words
to her implied audience. She wants the girl who is reading the poem to identify
and relate with the many girls that have empowered change. This creates
intimacy and bonds the author and her audience to motivate them to “burn”.
< Transition sentence to the next piece of evidence>
- CD 2: “This is your call to leap”
- CM 2: Once more the use of personal pronouns generates a direct dialogue
between, breaking the idea that poems are distant and making this piece more
intimate and relatable. As such, Clementine von Radics achieves her goal of
connecting with and inspiring her audience.
< Concluding sentence associated with the theme of greediness.>
❡ 5: Conclusion:
< Restate the claim with final comments>

Work Cited:

- Von Radics, Clementine. “Clementine Von Radics - ‘For Teenage Girls.’” Button
Poetry, YouTube, 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=hb2WqeXe--w.