“Curiosity” Assertion Paragraphs

Assertion paragraph examples: Although not necessarily perfect, these scored in the A range. The assertions, examples and analysis are generally strong. There may be errors on G/S/P (remember, it’s “Curiosity” for a poem, not Curiosity) and word choice. Some paragraphs may benefit from a greater focus on the topic, sentences with a more formal style, and/or attention to other stylistic issues. PARAGRAPH 1 ­ KEY IDEAS ­ THEME Martin

In the poem, “Curiosity” by Alastair Reid, he talks about how being curious is shunned by

society, but also needed. The regular “dogs” have “well­smelt baskets, suitable wives, [and]

good lunches,” (Alastair 12). Using these objects, Alastair gives the sense that the dogs are

comfortable and basically normal. The dogs have distaste towards the cats, but it is deeper than

the cliché. Cats are “changeable, marry too many wives, desert their children. chill all dinner

tables with tales of their nine lives,” (Alastair, 28­30). By saying this, the dogs plan to create

resentment towards the cats. Also, this helps create a fear if one becomes a cat, one will have

these qualities. Dogs represent the comfortable society and they resent the cats who question and

go against the common rules. However, the cats are the answer. Dogs “never want to see the

other side of the hill,” which is disheartening (Alastair 18­19). The other side is probably

amazing, but only the cats have to courage to explore it. Exploring is needed for the

advancement of society.

Sydney #1: “Curiosity”, by Alastair Reid, is a poem about the comparison between cats and

dogs which is representing humans. Dogs are representing society and cats are

resembling people who exercise their free will by acting contrastively to society. Instead

of joining “doggy circles” (Reid stanza 2), cats “chill at dinner tables with tales of their

nine lives” (Reid stanza 3). The author proposes that dogs do what is comfortable for

them so they will not feel awkward or out of place. However, cats live on the edge with

their nine lives and are free and enjoy taking risks. Reid ties humans into his poem and

shows the reader how we are involved by writing “Face it. Curiosity will not cause us to

die­ only the lack of it will.” Reid is saying that the lack of curiosity will not literally kill

humans, but the lack of enthusiasm we would acquire would make humans dead in

literary terms. If humans did not have curiosity, we would be pedantic people.

PARAGRAPH 2 ­ CRAFT AND STRUCTURE

TESSA

The author, Alastair Reid, uses analogies to relay his poem, Curiosity. In this poem the

author uses cats to represent the followers in the society and dogs to represent non followers

in the society. He uses this analogy throughout the whole poem to relay his main theme. With

the quote, “Let them be nine lived and contradictory, curious to change, prepared to pay the

cat price, which is to die and die again and again, each time with no less pain”, he describes

cats and how they live their lives curiously and even prepared to give up one of their nine lives

for it. He uses this analogy to explain that cats are willing to risk their lives over and over for

the sake of curiosity. He goes on to describe dogs with the quote, “Where well smelt baskets,

suitable wives, good lunches are the order of things, and wear prevails much wagging of

incurious heads and tails.” (Reid 1) With this analogy, the author illustrates how dogs are

willing to settle for an ordered boring life without questioning anything like some people do.

This analogy helps the author relay his message about people and how it is more desirable

to be like a cat. He shows that is better to be curious and live an exciting life instead of just

being boring and doing what everybody else is. Alastair Reid’s use of analogies in his poem

“Curiosity” helps relay his message more accurately.

PARAGRAPH 3 INTEGRATION ­ CONNECT TO ANOTHER TEXT

TESSA

The poem, “Curiosity”, by Alastair Reid and “ The Logical Song” , by Supertramp,are

two texts that discuss the topic of individuality. They are similar because they both encourage

independent thinking. The quote, “ Won’t you sign up your name, we’d like to feel you’re

acceptable, respectable, presentable, a vegetable”( Supertramp 1) describes a person who

feels they must conform to society’s way of thinking instead of thinking for themselves. In this

way the person has become like a non thinking vegetable. There is a similar message in “

Curiosity”, when the author says, “ Never to want to see the other side of the hill or that

improbable country where living is an idyll ( although a probable hell) would kill us all.” He

relays his similar idea that life is only worth living if you are thinking for yourself and searching

for answers to unknown things. Although both authors describe the idea in different ways, the

messages are similar because both praise thinking for yourself and condemn conformity.

These two texts explore the same idea about individual thinking and how important it is to

living a meaningful life.

Lucy

3. The theme of the poem “Curiosity” by Alastair Reid is similar to one of the themes in

the novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury because they both have to do with the fact that

people (or animals) choose comfort over independence. The author of “Curiosity” comes right

out with the fact that most people aren’t curious, but it is more hidden in Fahrenheit 451.

Bradbury’s society is full of those who “[are] not happy” (Bradbury 9), just like the dogs in

Alastair’s poem who “[n]ever want to see the other side of the hill” (Reid 18). They feel that

comfort makes someone happy, and it may, but being free is an even happier idea. People

don’t like change, and they are willing to follow rules. If cats, or the curious ones, had larger

brains, they would probably rule the world today because of how knowledgeable they are from

asking questions, experimenting, and being curious. (Remove this) But Bradbury’s society is

full of dogs who are ruled by the government and have learned to simply accept their only life.

“That’s the good part of dying; when you’ve got nothing to lose, you run any risk you want”

(Bradbury 81), writes Bradbury. This is similar to what each cat says when he comes back

from hell. He says, “dying is what the living do, that dying is what the loving do, and that dead

dogs are those who do not know that dying is what, to live, each has to do” (Alastair 41).

These quotes mean that to live, one always has to die, and to die one has to live first. One

cannot die without living, and so one might as well take all the risks he or she wants because

one has nothing to lose. The dogs in Reid’s poem are just like the society in Bradbury’s novel.