Answer the following exam question and support your interpretation with evidence gained from a close reading analysis of the texts(s). Be sure to mention the author’s use of literary devices such as imagery, metaphor, irony, and symbol.

Your final exam essay should be a multi-paragraph essay with an introduction and a thesis statement, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Your essay should include quotations and follow the conventions of standard English grammar and usage, as well as MLA in-text citation rules for quotations.

In “Digging,” by Seamus Heaney, and “For Saundra,” by Nikki Giovani, the poets seem to reach the opposite conclusion: Heaney decides to write, but Giovani wonders about not writing. How does the speaker of each poem arrive at his/her conclusion, and which conclusion do you find more persuasive?