Rock It PoetryFebruary 23, 2014Emily Wells

“In Just-”E.E. CummingsDiction: The diction is very euphonious. Words like “spring,” “luscious,” “hop-scotch,” and “whistles” provide support for the pleasant, energetic tone of the poem. The diction is also very informal and relaxed. “Balloonman” and “bettyandisbel” or “eddieandbill” are read quickly to show the excitement and energy of the events in the poem.

Imagery: Alliteration – “luscious the little lame balloonman”Metaphor: “the world is mud-luscious” “the world is puddle-wonderful”The images of spring are vivid in this poem. Images of children playing (“dancing from hop-scotch and jump-rope”), a balloonman going down the street (“balloonman whistles far and wee”), and of spring (“when the world is puddle-wonderful”) are used to describe the events of a sunny spring day following a rainy day.

Details: This poem is obviously about springtime and the excitement of children playing outside. The poem vividly describes a busy spring day, including children “running from marbles” and an “old balloonman” whistling.

Language: Repetition – “spring” “balloonman whistles far and wee” these phrases are repeated to reinforce the events of a busy day during the spring.Informal, relaxed, childishFigurative – the poem entirely illustrates a busy spring day “in Just-spring when the world is mud-luscious”Symbolic – spring time represents childhood and early life

Sentence Structure: The form of the poem is very relaxed. The lack of punctuation and capitalization along with the odd indentations and spacing throughout the poem represents the carefree, fast pace of children on a spring day.“eddieandbill” and “bettyandisbel” are two phrases that represent the excitement of children and how quickly they respond to the sight of a man handing out balloons.