6. Summary

'The Ball Poem' by John Berryman revolves around a little boy who lost his ball. The poet asks what would become of the boy now that he has lost his most treasured ball. He also wonders what the boy would do now. The poet saw the ball merrily bouncing and falling into the water. He says that one must never trivialise this incident saying that there are other balls and this incident does not matter. The boy stood there, seeing the ball in the water as he filled with grief. He stands there rigidly thinking about all the memories with the ball and about his past younger days, which cannot be gained back. The poet does not want to intrude on this thought. A dime or a new ball will not take away his grief. In this whole incident, the boy learnt to be more responsible and to stand up after his loss. Like great men in the past, he understands that money is external and that he has to accept and bounce back from the loss.