the musings of a dreamer

i HATE the interpretations that we have to do for English. i DO NOT know how to identify, interpret, and especially validate a response to literature. I have no idea what the poems mean. Why can't poems be written just to see words on a paper. Why must they all contain hidden themes on

life and death. How are we so sure that this is what Longfellow meant when he wrote his apparently masterful masterpieces? How do we know that he wasn't just writing a story about how one time he was at the beach on his way to work? What is this "elements to be analyzed, commentaries, and textural evidence?" I don't know I don't know. I return to school in a day. I wish something exciting happened that would cause me to actually look forward to attending that penitentiary. Egad, sometimes I wish I had Ms. Alvarado. They do this kind of poem interpretation once a week, whereas Mrs. Morales has only had us do one so far. Diane would have been able to do this in a snap, or at least have the ability to make BS look like a 5 on the AP test. I am so screwed.