Barter - by Sara Teasdale

PASSAGE #1 (41-47)

Barter - by Sara Teasdale

Life has loveliness to sell,

All beautiful and splendid things,

Blue waves whitened on a cliff,

Soaring fire that sways and sings,

5And children's faces looking up

Holding wonder like a cup.

Life has loveliness to sell,

Music like a curve of gold,

Scent of pine trees in the rain,

10Eyes that love you, arms that hold,

And for your spirit's still delight,

Holy thoughts that star the night.

Spend all you have for loveliness,

Buy it and never count the cost;

15For one white singing hour of peace

Count many a year of strife well lost,

And for a breath of ecstasy

Give all you have been, or could be.

PASSAGE #2 (#48-#57)

Read “The Choice” and “The Road Not Taken” and answer the following question(s).

Text 1: The Road Not Taken By: Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

5To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

10Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

15I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

20And that has made all the difference.

PASSAGE #3

Text 2: The Choice

Bernadette Jackson loved going to school because she did well in her classes, got along well with her teachers, and had many friends. With a uniquely outgoing personality and inherent friendliness, Bernadette truly did not know a stranger. She had always prided herself on refusing to participate in gossip, and in befriending everyone she knew from school. Because of this, Bernadette had no enemies and was truly friends with everyone in her ninth–grade class.

So it came as no surprise when Bernadette befriended the new girl, Cassidy Grimes, on her very first day at Camden High School. As soon as Bernadette spotted Cassidy struggling with her locker in the hallway, she knew she needed to assist Cassidy. Without hesitation, Bernadette left the conversation she was having with Jackie Nast and approached Cassidy.

"Hi, I'm Bernadette," she said cheerily. "Can I help you with your locker?" Without waiting for an answer, Bernadette expertly opened the locker for Cassidy and then smiled down at her expectantly.

"Uh, thanks," said Cassidy quietly, as she put her books inside her locker without meeting Bernadette's eyes.

"This must be your first day of school here, so I can show you the ropes if you want," said Bernadette.

"Uh, I guess that would be good because I really have no idea where I'm going," said Cassidy, warming to Bernadette but still not looking at her.

"Great! So, what is your name? Where are you from? Who is your homeroom teacher?" Bernadette started peppering Cassidy with questions with such rapidity that, when Bernadette finally paused, Cassidy just stared at her blankly for a few seconds.

"Well, my name is Cassidy Grimes, I am in ninth grade, and I think I have Weggerstein for homeroom," Cassidy said, closing her locker and slinging her backpack over her shoulder.

"I have Weggerstein too!" exclaimed Bernadette, as she gently guided Cassidy toward Mrs. Weggerstein's classroom. "We are certain to be great friends!"

Cassidy and Bernadette did become friends after Cassidy finally understood that Bernadette's energy had no end and that she truly meant well. They ended up having five classes together, and found that they had a lot in common even outside of school.

The biggest thing uniting them, actually, was their love for nature. Both girls had grown up helping their mothers plan, plant, prune, and water elaborate flower gardens, along with taking countless hikes through nature. In fact, they started to spend Saturday afternoons exploring the city's parks and nature preserves to experience the outdoors together.

Even though they were very happy friends, their friendship did not go unnoticed by other girls, and it spurred tremendous jealousy, as everyone wanted to be best friends with Bernadette. Her popularity was genuine and lasting because she was really a good person. One girl in particular, Jackie Nast, was horribly jealous, and decided to do something about it.

As Halloween approached, Jackie decided to have a party and invite all the girls in the school's ninth–grade class—all the girls except for Cassidy, that is.

In the meantime, Cassidy took no notice of the party planning and was instead focused on a Halloween gala that the nature preserve closest to her house was hosting on the same night as Jackie's party. The gala was to feature apple pie baking, a tutorial on raising pumpkins, and a "haunted" hike through the dark forest. She could not have been more excited, and wanted to waste no time telling Bernadette about it.

"Bernadette!" yelled Cassidy when she spotted her friend in the hallway before first period. "You will not believe what is happening on the 31st of this month!" Cassidy said, her cheeks flushed from the excitement.

"Sure she does—my party," said Jackie, who happened to be standing right next to Bernadette. "I know you are always so busy, so I didn't invite you because I was sure you couldn't make it, right Cassidy?" said Jackie with a sneer.

"Oh, uh, right," stammered Cassidy, once again refusing to look at Bernadette. "Never mind, Bernadette. Have fun at the party," Cassidy scurried away before she heard Bernadette say anything. If Cassidy had been courageous enough to look back, she would have seen the shocked look on Bernadette's face, as she was clearly ignorant that Cassidy had not been invited to the party until that minute.

Bernadette was feeling quite stressed because she did not know what to do about the party. She too had read about the gala and assumed that Cassidy was going to invite her to attend before Jackie interceded. Bernadette loved the idea of the nature gala, but Jackie had been her friend for years and all of her other friends would be at the party. Her desire to be friends with everyone was stronger than her love of nature, but she could not decide what to do. Should she attend a party she knew she would enjoy with all of her long–time friends, knowing that Jackie was less than kind in her treatment of Cassidy? Or, should she forego the party in favor of a calmer path and attend the nature gala with Cassidy even though it meant that others would question her choice? Should she take the easy road, and go to the party with everyone else? Or, should she take the harder road and stay true to her friend Cassidy even though it might prove to be a lonely path because she risked angering all her other friends?

Bernadette truly had a dilemma—she would love to attend both the party and the gala, but she was only one person and that would be impossible. She decided to talk it over with her mother that night at dinner.

"Mom, I have a huge problem because I have to make a choice between two really fun things," said Bernadette breathlessly. "Jackie invited me to her party and everyone will be there, so it will be awesome. Cassidy wants me to go to the nature gala with her, and I know that would be super fun too. They are both equal in terms of fun, but I know that Cassidy will be alone if I don't go with her. What should I do?"

"Well, Bernadette, you need to ask yourself what is important to you and really think it over," her mother said, calmly pausing. "Which is the right thing for you? Will there be another party later on if you choose to go to the gala? Likewise, will there be another event like the gala if you choose the party?"

Bernadette carefully thought it over because she knew that, the way things tended to go, there would not be another party like this one or another gala any time soon. "I want to do the right thing, but I know I will disappoint someone no matter what I choose, and I do not like how this makes me feel," said Bernadette, letting her head fall into her hands on the table in front of her.

"It is simply one decision in a line of many decisions you have to make in your lifetime," said her mother. "You have to decide what really matters to you because how you choose between these two will truly say something about you for ages and ages. Your friends will remember."

Bernadette had a few sleepless nights as the 31st slowly approached. When she woke up that Halloween morning, she looked out her window at the beautiful orange, yellow, and red leaves falling all over her backyard. Suddenly, she knew what she had to do.

Several hours later, as Bernadette weaved through the crowd and finally located her friend, she knew that she was content with her decision and would never regret it.

"Hey!" Bernadette yelled as she approached her friend with a huge smile on her face. She saw her smile mirrored back at her and felt contentment in her heart. "Hand me an apron, and let's bake some apple pie."

PASSAGE #4 (#57-#61)

The Odyssey by Homer

Below is a translation of a passage in Homer’s Odyssey, a Greek epic poem, which tells of the struggle that Odysseus has to resist the Sirens and their irresistible song that lures sailors to their deaths.

. . . our trim ship was speeding toward

the Sirens’ island, driven by the brisk wind.

Now with a sharp sword I sliced an ample wheel of beeswax

down into pieces, kneaded them in my two strong hands

5and the wax soon grew soft, worked by my strength

and Helios’ burning rays, the sun at high noon,

and I stopped the ears of my comrades one by one.

They bound me hand and foot in the tight ship –

erect at the mast-block, lashed by ropes to the mast –

10and rowed and churned the whitecaps stroke on stroke.

We were just offshore as far as a man’s shout can carry,

scudding close, when the Sirens sensed at once a ship

was racing past and burst into their high, thrilling song:

“Come closer, famous Odysseus – Achaea’s pride and glory –

15moor your ship on our coast so you can hear our song!

Never has a sailor passed our shores in his black craft

until he has heard the honeyed voices pouring from our lips,

and once he hears to his heart’s content, sails on, a wiser man.”

So they sent their ravishing voices out across the air

20and the heart inside me throbbed to listen longer.

I signaled the crew with frowns to set me free –

they flung themselves at the oars and rowed on harder.

Perimedes and Eurylochus springing up at once

to bind me faster with rope on chafing rope.

25But once we’d left the Sirens fading in our wake,

once we could hear their song no more, their urgent call –

My steadfast crew was quick to remove the wax I’d used

to seal their ears and loosed the bonds that lashed me.

PASSAGE #5

“Siren Song” by Margaret Atwood - #62-#66

This is the one song everyone

would like to learn: the song

that is irresistible:

the song that forces men

5to leap overboard in squadrons

even though they see beached skulls

the song nobody knows

because anyone who had heard it

is dead, and the others can’t remember.

10Shall I tell you the secret

and if I do, will you get me

out of this bird suit?

I don’t enjoy it here

squatting on this island

15looking picturesque and mythical

with these two feathery maniacs,

I don’t enjoy singing

this trio, fatal and valuable.

I will tell the secret to you,

20to you, only to you.

Come closer. This song

is a cry for help: Help me!

Only you, only you can,

you are unique

25at last. Alas

it is a boring song

but it works every time.

PASSAGE #6 - #67-#72

Excerpt from “The Sirens” - James Russell Lowell

1The sea is lonely, the sea is dreary,

The sea is restless and uneasy;

Thou seekest quiet, thou art weary,

Wandering thou knowest not whither;—

5Our little isle is green and breezy,

Come and rest thee! Oh come hither,

Come to this peaceful home of ours,

Where evermore

The low west-wind creeps washing up the shore

10To be at rest among the flowers;

Full of rest, the green moss lifts,

As the dark waves of the sea

Draw in and out of rocky rifts,

Calling solemnly to thee

15With voices deep and hollow,—

“To the shore

Follow! Oh, follow!

To be at rest forevermore!

Forevermore!”

20Look how the gray old Ocean

From the depth of his heart rejoices,

Heaving with a gentle motion,

When he hears our restful voices;

List how he sings in an undertone,

25Chiming with our melody;

And all sweet sounds of earth and air

Melt into one low voice alone,

That murmurs over the weary sea,

And seems to sing from everywhere,—

30“Here mayst thou harbor peacefully,

Here mayst thou rest from the aching oar;

Turn thy curvëd prow ashore,

And in our green isle rest forevermore!

Forevermore!”