19 pages • 38 minutes read
Taylor MaliWhat Teachers Make
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 2002A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
The Dinner Table
The dinner table in Mali’s “What Teachers Make” serves as the setting for the opening of his poem and, as a symbol, represents a place where people talk, exchange ideas, and debate. The poem opens with Mali’s speaker describing the “He” (Line 1) who expresses strong ideas about the occupation of teaching. This person directs the conversation, sharing a viewpoint that they believe others agree with. For instance, this person “reminds the other dinner guests that it’s true / what they say about teachers” (Lines 5-6); here, the dinner guest speaks for the other guests, as though they all share the same opinion. Establishing this setting, Mali establishes his position to argue against the dinner guest, in favor of teaching.
Mali chooses to open the poem at the dinner table for many reasons. First, Mali recognizes that talking about worth and money are controversial topics (“Because we’re eating, after all, and this is polite conversation” [Line 11]), which are often avoided at dinner parties. Second, by deciding to engage with the dinner guest who singles him out, Mali decides to stand up for what he believes in, rather than bow down to someone who knows nothing about teaching. Mali lets his voice, the voice of an actual teacher, be heard, rather than let the dinner guest speak about teachers in an authoritative way without any evidence to back it up (“What’s a kid going to learn / from someone who decided his best option in life / was to become a teacher?” [Lines 2-3]). Both dinner tables and classrooms are communal spaces known for sharing ideas and exchanging conversation. But as Mali acknowledges, dinner party ideas are known for being much more superficial and much less impactful. By breaking through this expectation and demonstrating a substantive, passionate viewpoint, Mali demonstrates to the other dinner guests in real time the depth and impact he has on his students and the levels of interest and nuance that are possible beyond the bounds of their own professional lives and conventional dinner topics. Starting with Line 14, Mali speaks the truth, standing up for teachers worldwide. In this way, by setting his poem at a polite dinner party, Mali encourages others to stand up and speak up for what they know is true.
Money
In “What Teachers Make,” money represents worth. Alluded to by the word “make” (Line 13) when the “He” (Line 1) turns to Mali’s speaker directly and states, “Be honest. What do you make?” (Line 13), money acts as a symbol in the poem denoting a measurement of success, identity, and overall personal value. Mali, however, chooses not to answer the question in the way the dinner guest anticipates. Instead of sharing their salary, the speaker uses the word “make” to describe all of the different ways they teach, educate, and lead their students each day. The word “make” becomes an action, describing what the teacher does (not what they earn). Mali’s speaker makes “kids work harder than they ever thought they could” (Line 18) and makes “them read, read, read” (Line 43). By referencing the teacher’s actions over their salary, Mali’s speaker redefines their worth. This point is reinforced in Lines 51-52 when the speaker states that they teach their students the following: “and if someone ever tries to judge you / by what you make, you give them this” (Lines 51-52). “What Teachers Make” is a representation of exactly this; the vocal dinner guest in Stanza 1 attempts to judge Mali’s success, wealth, and value based on his occupation as a teacher; Mali’s response is this poem.
Truth
The symbol of truth and the concept of what’s true appears throughout “What Teachers Make.” Appearing initially in the first stanza, the “He” (Line 1) speaks an old saying, which he defines as “true” (Line 5): “Those who can, do; those who can’t, teach” (Line 7). The concept of truth in the poem returns several times after this. For instance, the speaker has some thoughts about the “truth” of lawyers, (possibly hinting at the occupation of the “He” [Line1]): “it’s also true what they say about lawyers” (Line 10). In a defense of truth, the poem erupts into a one-sided debate beginning with Line 14. As a symbol, the concept of truth shifts throughout the poem, which Mali does specifically to illustrate that truth can only be proven with evidence.
Beginning with Stanza 3, Mali’s speaker brings forth the evidence to disprove the dinner guest’s saying. Mali, who taught English for many years and who also studied Shakespearean theater, is no stranger to the art of debate. The majority of “What Teachers Make” shows that teachers can actually “do” (Line 7); every piece of evidence that Mali lists is an action on the part of the teacher. For instance, Mali’s speaker makes kids work (Line 18), he makes them wonder (Line 38), he makes them write, read, and spell (Lines 42-44), he makes them understand (Line 49). These actions disprove the belief that teachers can’t “do” (Line 8) as Mali showcases not the net worth but the value teachers bring.
Truth is returned in the final stanza of the poem when Mali readdresses the dinner guest, offering to state the truth one last time, clearly. The speaker states, “Here, let me break it down for you, so you know what I say is true” (Line 53). Mali’s speaker has taken the word “true” (Line 5), used initially in Line 5 by the dinner guest, and redefined it throughout the course of the poem. By Line 53, truth means the following: “Teachers make a goddamn difference!” (Line 54). Truth in “What Teachers Make” represents the difference between what those who aren’t teachers believe (the false statement that teaching is not a valuable procession) to the everyday details and educational impact, showcased by an actual teacher.
