Eleanor and Park: Chapter 5 Summary & Analysis

Mr. Stessman, Park’s English teacher, gives the class a new assignment: to memorize a poem. He tells them all that though they’ll probably forget most of what they’re learning in his class, they’ll always remember the poem they choose now. He urges them to pick a poem that will speak to them individually—but will also help them “speak to someone else.” Park plans to take the easy way out of the assignment by picking a simple rhyming poem. He feels “embarrassed” for Mr. Stessman for trying so hard to “work the room.”