How the Short Story Lysandra’s Poem by Budge Wilson Signifies the Importance of Passion
Passion is important to show in any aspect of one’s life. The short story “Lysandra’s Poem” written by Budge Wilson signifies the importance of passion. One point in the story that clearly shows passion is when Elaine realizes that Lysandra has become famous even after all the times she has been put down including when her dad threw her poem box into the kitchen stove to be burnt. A second scene from the story that portrays passion is when Elaine is trying to talk to Lysandra and fix their friendship which was ruined over the winner of the poem contest. The last scene of the story when passion is evident is when Elaine finds out that Lysandra has become a famous poetic writer even after her dreams were crushed in middle school. Therefore, the main theme of this short story is that one should always strive for what they believe in because if they believe, they can succeed.
Firstly, passion is evident near the end of the story it is shown when Mr. Cochrane, Lysandra’s father, makes the ultimate decision, based on the winner of the poetry contest, to throw all of Lysandra’s poetry into the kitchen stove to be burnt. The scene took place like this, “That evening Mr. Cochrane took Lysandra’s shoe box and threw its contents into the kitchen stove.” (Wilson 130). This helps the reader understand how little support Lysandra had from her family and friends yet she still managed to come out on top as a famous poetry composer. Therefore, this shows that if one believes in themselves through all the setbacks that come their way, they can still succeed in anything.
Secondly, passion is portrayed when Elaine and Lysandra get into an argument over the contest in middle school. Elaine is trying her hardest to get Lysandra to forgive her because Elaine knows how much their friendship means to her. A quote from the book, “Lysandra’s Poem,” says, “’Lysandra,’ I pleaded, ‘It wasn’t my fault!’” (Wilson 130). She continued with, “’Lysandra. Please. Be nice again. I don’t want our friendship to be wrecked.’” (Wilson 131). This scene evidently shows how much Elaine needs Lysandra as a friend and how much Lysandra means to Elaine. All in all, this point proves that no matter what has happened one must believe to succeed.
Lastly, passion is shown when Elaine notices Lysandra’s poetry in famous magazines twenty years after the contest. At this point in the story, Elaine realizes how much desire and love Lysandra had for writing poetry. The book, “Lysandra’s Poem,” states, “By now I have read a lot of Lysandra’s poetry. It appears in academic journals and in the better popular magazines. She has published seven volumes and won two national awards.” (Wilson 133). This quote is showing how successful Lysandra has become over the years, which furthermore proves her passion and determination towards writing poetry. Therefore, this scene proves that one can succeed in anything, if they believe in themselves.
In conclusion, the subject of this story is about showing passion in many aspects of one’s life. The first scene that shows passion is when Elaine notices how little support Lysandra gets from her family but she still manages to come out as a famous poetic writer. Also, when Elaine is trying anything and everything to rebuild her friendship with Lysandra. Lastly, when Elaine realizes how far Lysandra has come in writing poetry over the past twenty years. Finally, with these three points, this means that the theme of the story is to always believe in one’s self and always strive to succeed.
Wilson, B. “Lysandra’s Poem.” Sightlines 10. Ed. Mary Crane. Toronto; Prentice Hall, 2000
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