Paul de Man has a great reading of this poem's final rhetorical question. And what a question it is: "How can we know the dancer from the dance?" If you think Deconstruction has nothing to do with dance, think again.
In any case, there's no denying that it has to do with knowing. With complicating what we think we can know. So sit back, don't relax, and enjoy the "Among School Children." Get your think on.
- What's the relationship between the poem's last line and what comes before it?
- What other deconstructive theorists or theories would you test against Yeats's poem? Why?