Ciaran Berry - Teachers Make a Difference - Tom Walsh & Philip Levine

The speaker reflects on two influential teachers: Tom Walsh, who ignited a passion for language and poetry during high school, and Phillip Levine, who emphasized the seriousness and importance of writing poetry during graduate studies at NYU. Both teachers profoundly shaped the speaker's appreciation and engagement with language and literature.

Which teacher introduced the narrator to the possibilities of language through poetry?

• Phillip Levine

• Emily Dickinson

• Tom Walsh

• William Shakespeare

What was the narrator's reaction to attending Tom Walsh's class?

• Anxious

• Indifferent

• Excited

• Bored

What aspect of Phillip Levine's teaching was emphasized in the third section?

• The importance of creative writing

• The history of English literature

• The seriousness of writing poetry

• The excitement of language

How did Phillip Levine make the students feel about their work?

• It was trivial

• It was entertaining

• It was important

• It was confusing

What did the narrator feel they were in conversation with, according to Phillip Levine?

• Their future selves

• Modern poets

• Everyone who had written before

• Their classmates