Ex †Basketball Player Essay -- Literary Analysis, John Updike

In the poem, â€Å"Ex – Basketball Player† by john Updike, (which is a narrative poem) illustrates the nature of life on how life is potentially is seen has a mirror to other people’s life, especially people who play sports. Life is the physical and mental experience of an individual. An in the poem the main character Flick, supply the poem with a good example of how life is potentially a mirror for other people. This poem is formally organized, even though it locks some qualities, it still haves the qualifications of a good poem. The â€Å"Ex Basket Player† is an interested poem because it has a good theme, tone and lots of figurative languages. The theme of this poem is about a high school basketball star that has become less successful in the future. The theme focuses on the point that if one doesn’t work hard on their goals, they will never reach their dreams. Also, if you do not reach your goals you can end up living a disappointing life. In the poem, the theme evidently shows that Flick is not necessarily despondent, but out-of-place which carries throughout the poem. The poem stated that, â€Å"the ball loved Flick (16)† and â€Å"he was the best (14),† and this allows everyone to see that it is not just Flick who looks upon his past with a sort of admiration and pride. It is everyone in the city, and he is the local hero. The boy who didn’t exactly make it big, but he made it big enough that he’s remembered. In the poem the main character Flick is a mirror or allusion for people who was successful in sports, in the past and become a loser in the future. For example Flick was once a high-school basketball star, but now his glorious past is behind him. The ideal image of his character presents a vivid image of most people in that plat sports ... ...rpose. The tone of this poem was very neutral by not saying that the life Flick was living is good or bad. With the author not putting his opinion into the poem, it can be interpreted in many ways. The tone also brings life in to the poem and helps to understand Flick’s personality more. But even though the tone was neutral by not stating whether or not the life Flick was living is good or bad, it still Bissasor 4 enable us to understand the moral of the poem. Which is work hard and you will receive you goals and never give up. To conclude, the poem â€Å"Ex-Basketball play,† is a poem that shows the reality of life. It reflects the nature of life in the real world and it helps people who have a dream and want to pursue their goals to go for it. The poem was formally organized and provides a number of figurative languages that helps to bring out tone of the poem.