Casey At The BatErnest Lawrence Thayer

By Brianna, Sarah, Jordan, and Kaitlyn

1st stanza[1] It looked extremely

rocky for the Mudville nine that day;

The score stood two to four, with but an inning left to play,

So, when Cooney died at second, and Burrows did the same,

A pallor wreathed the features of the patrons of the game.

The Mudville game was extremely tense that day.

The score was 2 to 4 with an inning to go.

Cooney got out at second and Burrows did too.

[5] A straggling few got up to go, leaving there the rest,

With that hope which springs eternal within the human breast,

For they thought: “If only Casey would get a whack at that,”

They’d put even money now, with Casey at the bat.

People were getting up to leave and some stayed.

Hoped for a miracle.

They hope Casey would go up to bat.

They would even gamble money.

2nd stanza

Flynn and Blake was going before Casey.

It seemed like Casey wasn’t going to get a chance to bat.

[9] But Flynn preceded Casey, and likewise so did Blake,

And the former was a pudd’n, and the latter was a fake,

So on that stricken multitude a deathlike silence sat;

For there seemed but little chance of Casey's getting to the bat.

3th stanza

4rd stanza

[13] But Flynn let drive a “single”, to the wonderment of all,

And the much-despised Blake, “tore the cover off the ball.”

And when the dust had lifted, and they saw what had occurred,

There was Blakey safe at second and Flynn a-huggin’ third.

Flynn hit the ball and was safe at first base.

Blake hit the ball too.

When all the comotion on the field had stopped…

Blake was safe at second base and Flynn was third base.

5th stanza

[17] Then from the gladdened multitude went up a joyous yell-

It rumbled in the mountaintops, it rattled in the dell;

It struck upon the hillside and rebounded on the flat;

For Casey, mighty Casey, was advancing to the bat.

The sad crowd became excited.

Their cheers were so loud they could be heard from the tops of mountains to deepest parts of the earth.

The cheering got louder.

Casey was making his way to bat.

6th stanza

[21] There was ease in Casey's manner as he stepped into his place;

There was pride in Casey's bearing and a smile on Casey's face.

And when responding to the cheers, he lightly doffed his hat,

No stranger in the crowd could doubt 'twas Casey at the bat.

Casey was clam as he approached home plate.

Casey was smiling because he had confidence in himself.

He tipped his hat to his fans in the stadium.

People not familiar with the game so far could tell the crowd was cheering for casey.

7th stanza[25] Ten thousand eyes were

on him as he rubbed his hands with dirt;

Five thousand tongues applauded when he wiped them on his shirt.

Then while the writhing pitcher ground the ball into his hip,

Defiance gleamed in Casey's eye, a sneer curled Casey's lip.

The crowd watched him with anticipation.

The crowd yelled and cheered as he’s wiping his fingers on his shirt.

The pitcher is uncomfortable, so he rests the ball on his hip.

Casey felt like a rebel, like he was going to hit the ball and score.

8th stanza

[29] And now the leather-covered sphere came hurtling through the air,

And Casey stood a-watching it in haughty grandeur there.

Close by the sturdy batsman the ball unheeded sped;

"That ain't my style," said Casey. "Strike one," the umpire said.

The pitcher pitches the ball.

Casey just stood there watching it go by him.

He didn’t move and didn’t even care that the ball went by him.

He’s being ironic, because he knew he could hit the ball. He just didn’t hit it.

[33] From the benches, black with people, there went up a muffled roar,

Like the beating of the storm waves on a stern and distant shore.

"Kill him! Kill the umpire!" shouted someone on the stand;

And it's likely they'd have killed him had not Casey raised his hand.

The fans were confused at what happened and were mad.

Comparing the fans anger to a storm’s violent waves on a shore.

The fans want to kill the umpire for the call.

Casey reassured the crowd by raising his hand to calm the fans down.

9th stanza

10th stanza

[37] With a smile of Christian charity great Casey's visage shone;

He stilled the rising tumult; he made the game go on;

He signaled to the pitcher, and once more the spheroid flew;

But Casey still ignored it, and the umpire said, "Strike two."

Casey’s face had a big inviting, caring smile.

He got ready for the next pitch.

The pitcher pitched the ball.

Casey didn’t hit the ball and struck out again.

11th stanza[41] "Fraud!" cried the

maddened thousands, and the echo answered “Fraud!”

But one scornful look from Casey and the audience was awed.

They saw his face grow stern and cold, they saw his muscles strain,

And they knew that Casey wouldn't let that ball go by again.

The crowd is angry at the umpire again.

Casey looked at the audience with disrespect and the audience was surprised and was quiet.

Casey started to get serious.

The crowd had confidence in Casey and that he’d hit the next pitch.

12th stanza[45] The sneer is gone from

Casey's lip, his teeth are clenched in hate;

He pounds with cruel vengeance his bat upon the plate.

And now the pitcher holds the ball, and now he lets it go,

And now the air is shattered by the force of Casey's blow.

Casey is getting agitated.

He beats his bat on the plate to get out his anger and stress.

The pitcher throws the ball…

The crowd gets loud as they see what Casey ahs done.

[49] Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright;

The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light,

And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout;

But there is no joy in Mudville : Mighty Casey has struck out.

Somewhere besides Mudville the sun is shinning…

There’s a band playing and people are happy…

Men are laughing and having fun and children shout.

But in no joy is celebrated in Mudville because Mighty Casey has struck out.

Finale

Main Idea Speaker

The main idea of this poem is to teach a lesson that people shouldn’t expect too much from their heroes.

The speaker is someone narrating the game.

-So on that stricken multitude a deathlike silence sat;

-He pounds with cruel vengeance his bat upon the plate.

-From the benches, black with people, there went up a muffled roar,

-With a smile of Christian charity great Casey's visage shone

-Five thousand tongues applauded when he wiped them on his shirt.

-And now the pitcher holds the ball, and now he lets it go,

And now the air is shattered by the force of Casey's blow.

-So on that stricken multitude a deathlike silence sat

Techniques…

Alliteration- line 11

Hyperbole- lines 14, 18, 47

Imagery- lines 4, 21-23, 25-29, 33, 49-51

Metaphor- line 37

Personification- lines 11, 26

Repetition- lines 47-48

Simile- line 11

Mood Tone

The mood at the beginning of the poem is abandonment of hope. The fans don’t think they will win the game so some leave before it does end. In the middle, the mood is tension and agitation. At the end, the mood is disappointment.

The tone of the narrator is calm in the beginning and then gets tense and eager. At the end, it’s disappointed.

Scheme Mock Epic

The rhyming scheme is: AABBCCDDEEFFHHIIJJKK

LLMMNNOOPPQQRRSSTTUU

VVWWXXYYZZ

This poem is a Mock Epic because the poet tells a story about a fallen hero. It is mockery because it shows that the poem isn’t elegant.