Dialogue Poems

I am often hooked on a poem by its use of argument and voice - contemporary British poet John Fuller's "An Exchange Between the Fingers and the Toes" is definitely one of these poems.

Fingers:

Cramped, you are hardly anything but fidgets.

We, active, differentiate the digits:

Whilst you are merely little toe and big

(Or, in the nursery, some futile pig)

Through vital use as pincers there has come

Distinction of the finger and the thumb;

Lacking a knuckle you have sadly missed

Our meaningful translation to a fist;

And only by the curling of that joint

Could the firm index come to have a point.

You cannot punch or demonstrate or hold

And therefore cannot write or pluck or mould:

Indeed, it seems deficiency in art

Alone would prove you the inferior part.

Toes:

Not so, my friends. Our clumsy innocence

And your deft sin is the main difference

Between the body’s near extremities.

Please do not think that we intend to please:

Shut in the dark, we once were free like you.

Though you enslaved us, are you not slaves, too?

Our early balance caused your later guilt,

Erect, of finding out how we were built.

Your murders and discoveries compile

A history of the crime of being agile,

And we it is who save you when you fight

Against the odds: you cannot take to flight.

Despite your fabrications and your cunning,

The deepest instinct is expressed in running.

Just as often as I am hooked by it the complexity of a poem's figures belies its core simplicity. This poem essentially outlines a bragging contest between fingers and toes, which turned out to be a really fun prompt - I asked the kids to pick two body parts (not necessarily ones typically paired, though these often generated the most ideas) and write a dialogue between them. Who wins the argument? Why?

Mr. K., 3rd Grade

Eyes and Ears
Damien M.

Eyes could see your fingers,
arms, toes, everywhere, kitchen, and your mom.

Ears can hear people fight. Listen, birds,
animals, the ocean, lakes, Pacific Ocean.

An Exchange Between the Hands and the Feet
Alexis J.

Hands: I can scratch. I can point. I
can punch hard. I can smack. I can
push. I can hug.

Feet: I kick. I dance. I walk.
I move.

Braggers
Reymundo A.

Brain: I can help you think. You
could talk without say it out loud
If you're having a test I can
help you. I can grow bigger if you
learn more. I might have a headache
and your head might hurt.

Heart: I can help you live
that is better than a
brain. I can beat. If
I stop beating you might
stop living. I could get
you in a lot of trouble.

Ms. Sandoval-Johnson, 3rd Grade

Bones and Heart
Jonathan V.

Bones: Heart, you can't
flex or stretch like us.

Heart: Well, no I can't
stretch, but I can pump
blood and keep people
alive.

Bones: Well, I protect you.
If somebody tries to
shoot you the breast bone
protects you all the
time.

Heart: My blood
is everywhere.

Better Eyes and Ears
Alejandra I.

Blink, your eyes shut as The ears hear sounds
the eyes have puddles of water We shall
hear what other things say or see it in a
way. The hearing of music fills with joy Our
eyes are shiny, the ears hear singing.

Between Eyes/Ears
Oscar O.

Comrade, I have more awesome things
than you, I can see and you can't

I know, but I can hear and you don't

I know that, but you can't look around
in circles I hear things they are saying
can you?

Ms. Marfise, 3rd Grade

The heart and the ribs
Andres E.

I keep you alive from the dead.

I protect you all the time night sun I will always
protect you from the dead.

I hate you ribs forever.

I hate you to heart.
I am not your friend, said heart.

I am not your friend either, said ribs.

Brain vs. Heart
Veronica

Heart:

I can breathe and make kids live,
but you just lay there like a
bit fat exploding pillow.
I can float,
but you just sit on your little
stool telling kids wrong answers.
You don't do anything.

Brain:

You are wrong. I'm the
one who controls you. I am
not saying I am better than
you. I can't believe you are
a heart but not sweet.

Arms and Neck
Shalynn S.

Arms:
You think you're cool that you
can wiggle, but we got muscles
that sizzle, we hang down
you hold a head. You are
under a turtleneck when we
have sleeves.

Neck:
Yes, I do hold a ton
I do got muscles, how
do you think I hold the
head? You are lazy, all you do
is hang. I am strong, I
can crack which is a song
to me. I hope you know
I'm strong too!

The heart and the brain
Elizabeth C.

I help the body
I pump the blood

I help to learn to
read and do math

I help the body stay alive

But I learn to take books
from the library.

Mrs. Rodriguez, 5th Grade

Untitled
Jeremy T.

Heart:

I am the one who keeps the human alive
I am better because I pump blood
into every part of the body, I am
the one who does everything
I also have to stay in one
spot and never move!

Brain:

I am actually the one who
keeps the human alive
you may pump blood into every
part of the body because I
make you, I am actually the
one who does everything, if
it weren't for me you wouldn't even
live one day or second. I'm the
one who tells everyone to do everything!

P.S. I stay in one
spot too!

Mouth vs. Ears
Ismael H.

Mouth: You aren't needed, I am more
important than you, I am the one to
speak while you are merely weak
I'm the one they put in food to
eat and you just sit there and
do nothing

Ears: Without me you wouldn't be
able to hear anything and be
confused, you are not needed at all
I hear things and you get our master in trouble,
you make him say bad words and talk too
much, I let him hear stuff and am more
important, end of conversation.

Eyes and Heart
Beverly A.

Heart
I can speed up but you can't see me
because I'm inside of you
I stay in one place, bored, I'm just speeding up
The color I am is red and I have blood and veins
I can feel you touching me almost every day
I feel you running and doing exercises,
and when you stop I speed up.

Eyes
I can roll my eyes but you can't see me,
because I see with you
I can see everything in the whole world
I am a color and you know what color
I am
When you close me I can't see anything
because you are sleeping
You put contacts on me, in different colors

Toes and Fingers
Emmanuel M.

Toes
Oh toes you help me in different things, you are like a charm to me. You help me touch
the sky. You are like a trampoline to me and let me go free. You let me move
place to place, you are better than cake.

Fingers
But we fingers are things that help humans reach
although we are clumsy, we can help in different ways
we are better, we're like two noodles, two noodles that
are helpful.

Ms. Breen, 3rd Grade

An Exchange between the brain and the eyes
Elizabeth

Brain
I can do math problems
I can think up stuff and you
can't, you sit in those holes
all the time, you can't do anything.

Eyes
Don't be mean, I can do more than
sit in holes all day. I can cross my
eyes, I can see things like dogs, cats, birds,
trees, and other things. You can't see
things you can only think things.
I see colors and don't, I see colors
like pink, green, yellow, and red.

Poem
Jocelyn

You can't love someone with all
your wrists.
You can't run your fingers
in your curly wrists.
You can't look into someone's
blue wrists.

An Exchange between the mouth and the hair
Julie G.

Mouth: You always bother the
person and I help the person
say things. You don't do anything. I
eat and you don't. I help people
talk and say poetry, math, and other
better words than hair.

Hair: Oh no you didn't! You talk
the whole day and I don't. I help
the person look good and pretty. I
grow and you don't. And you
always need to get lipstick. I
let the person paint myself. you
look ugly. The person can brush
myself. And you are always
naked and I'm not because
they put on a ponytail holder.