Themes and message

The main themes explored in the poem “The History Teacher” by Billy Collins are violence and growing up and loss of innocence.

Violence

The theme of violence is explored through the way in which the teacher’s students behave outside the class, but also through the historical events and periods depicted by the teacher. When they are inside the classroom, the students are probably pleased by the amusing ways in which the lessons are constructed. However, once they are outside, they display a violent behavior towards those who are weak:

The children would leave his classroom
for the playground to torment the weak
and the smart,
mussing up their hair and breaking their glasses, (ll. 14-17)

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Growing up and loss of innocence

This theme presents the way in which children lose their innocence. The teacher tries to protect them from what is wrong and evil in the world, but he fails. The children act violently towards others and, in fact, they lose their innocence specifically because they have not been exposed to right versus wrong.

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