Is there an "art" to living and dying? Do we perfect this craft? Do we live each day trying to do it better than the last? Is there an "art" to breathing, walking, performing? Ask yourselves these questions as you click on the picture of the boat and read Billy Collins' poem The Art of Drowning. Name some specific words or passages from the poem that shows how drowning can be an artform. How does this relate to our protagonist in The Stars at Noon. Does she feel like she is dying or going to die in Nicaragua? Is there an escape for her? Does she feel like there is an "art" to surviving in this desolate country? Is she sinking? Do you agree with what Collins is trying to say? Do you think the narrator of our book would agree? Why? All of these questions need answers. Form an opinion and answer them in a poem or song by using the words you've picked out in the poem. Click "next" to move on to task 3.
