Click here for authlete instructions.
Voter Instructions:
- The countdown at the bottom of each pairing indicates how much time is left to vote.
- When voting closes, timer will disappear.
- Read both poems as many times as you like.
- Mark the poem you like best by clicking the circle next to its name.
- Press the “Vote” button to record your vote.
- Votes are counted in real time and cannot be changed once entered.
- You can only vote once from a given IP address.
- Classrooms should submit one vote as a class.
- Students can then vote again individually from home.
Things to Consider in Making a Choice:
- How well the poem incorporates the authlete’s assigned word.
- Technical elements: meter, rhyme, form, shape, and other poetic standards.
- Creativity: wordplay, imagery, unusual approach, etc.
- Subtle elements that make the whole greater than the sum of its parts.
- Your overall response: emotional reaction such as admiration, tears, laughter, terror, or some indefinable feeling.
Here are the poems:
16-deleterious
Into The Sea
By William Peery
When the little clam closed on my nose,
When the sea turtle latched on my toe,
When the shark and the eel seized my arms,
When you toss out your trash in the sea–
vs.
9-fathom
Fat Tom
By Samuel W. Kent
Fat Tom couldn’t fathom the nickname he bore.
The fact was, he wasn’t that fat anymore
because all last summer, his calories burned
in hopes of a mightier moniker earned.
The flab on his butt and his gut and his face
erased at a near-deleterious pace,
but being “Fat Tom” was his permanent doom
with six other Toms in Miss Henderson’s room.
16-deleterious vs. 9-fathom: Which Poem Did You Prefer?
- 16-deleterious (William Peery) (33%, 71 Votes)
- 9-fathom (Samuel W. Kent) (67%, 145 Votes)
Total Voters: 216

“This is awesome, where can I find more?”:
Browse other matchups using the slider below and click to go straight to that matchup!