A. E. Houseman's Ex-Basketball Player

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In many modern musical choices, the words, “glory days” seem to appear in multiple places. The glory days, of the time when adults seem to reminisce, can be characterized by their days spent as a high school student and if growing up was an enjoyable thing or not. Two authors exemplify the post high school experiences in a very interesting way. John Updike’s poem, “Ex-Basketball Player” and A.E. Houseman’s poem, “To an Athlete Dying Young” compare and contrast the lives of former high school athletes and how they are affected. These two poems are similar because of the two pasts the main character share. Both characters grew up in a town that was centered around the ability to play sports. Each town praised their athlete for the accomplishments

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