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319Amidst the deserted battleground, the wilting wildernessThe incinerated pages and pile of plastics, The deafeningly hot, weathered rock etchingExtinction in your waving white flag?No!We must go!For every tree that must grow!For every species worth saving!For every child that needs books!For every conflict that needs resolution!For every woman deserves equality!For every star that wants to dance!Let%u2019s reach the end zone and make itTo that beautiful place No one has seen, but Everyone wants to go.In our lives, on our Earth.That place we call OASIS. QUESTIONS Exploring the Text 1. Which struggles does Salome Agbaroji acknowledge in her poem? Which dreams does she celebrate? How does she balance these contrasting forces? 2. How does the ending of the poem call back to and extend beyond its opening lines? 3. Trace how Agbaroji%u2019s descriptions of the oasis build throughout the poem. Which aspects of this paradise does she highlight initially, and which does she emphasize later on? Why do you think she might have taken this approach? 4. Follow Agbaroji%u2019s use of rhetorical questions. How do they convey the poem%u2019s message? 5. Agbaroji has stated that laughter and joy are %u201cthe greatest forms of resistance.%u201d What evidence of this philosophy do you find in %u201cOasis%u201d?QUESTIONS Making Connections 1. What commonalities and distinctions do you notice between McKibben%u2019s and Agbaroji%u2019s visions of our world%u2019s future? 2. Do you find the essay or the poem makes a stronger appeal to your emotions? Why? 3. Both %u201cOasis%u201d and %u201c2055: How Earth Survived%u201d can be seen as calls to action. What is each writer asking the audience to do, and what methods of persuasion do they use?55 606570 QUESTIONS Bill McKibben & Salome Agbaroji TalkBack2023Copyright %u00a9 Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers. Distributed by Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers. For review purposes only. Not for redistribution.