Before you vote in Matchup 4, you'll read this poem carefully and answer 5 AP Literature–style questions.
You must answer each question correctly to advance — wrong answers send you back to try again.
When you reach 100%, raise your hand so your teacher can unlock the next poem.
My black face fades,
hiding inside the black granite.
I said I wouldn't,
dammit: No tears.
I'm stone. I'm flesh.
My clouded reflection eyes me
like a bird of prey, the profile of night
slanted against morning. I turn
this way—the stone lets me go.
I turn that way—I'm inside
the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
again, depending on the light
to make a difference.
I go down the 58,022 names,
half-expecting to find
my own in letters like smoke.
I touch the name Andrew Johnson;
I see the booby trap's white flash.
Names shimmer on a woman's blouse
but when she walks away
the names stay on the wall.
Brushstrokes flash, a red bird's
wings cutting across my stare.
The sky. A plane in the sky.
A white vet's image floats
closer to me, then his pale eyes
look through mine. I'm a window.
He's lost his right arm
inside the stone. In the black mirror
a woman's trying to erase names:
No, she's brushing a boy's hair.
Raise your hand and show your teacher this screen.
They'll enter the code to unlock your next poem.
Outstanding close reading. You've earned your vote in Matchup 4.
Your teacher will direct you to the bracket.
Matchup 4: Brooks vs. Komunyakaa
Your teacher will tell you when to vote.