In the novel Slave Dancer by Paula Fox, a child close to your own age is kidnapped off the street and taken aboard a ship to serve as a crew member. He later learns that the boat is sailing for Africa.

Your task begins with putting yourself in such a child's place. Imagine what he/she went through. Your journey across the Atlantic is full of new experiences and is exciting in many ways. It’s your first trip anywhere and you see things you could never even imagine before. But when you arrive on the African coast, you are totally unprepared for what happens. (Just imagine the above situation. Do not include it in your poem.)

Your task is to write a first person poem describing your thoughts and feelings as you watch human beings being dragged aboard the ship in chains and thrown into the hold. Tell about your experiences and emotions during the weeks of the return voyage. How has this journey changed your view of the world? How has it changed you?

Include details from your reading to make your poem realistic.

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