Question

I fell back,

Dazed, clutching my brow,

Groaning, “Oh my shin, oh my shin,”

And everybody peeled away from me

And dropped from laughter, and there we were,

All of us writhing on the ground for one reason

Or another.

—“How I Learned English,”
Gregory Djanikan

Why are the other boys laughing at the main character of the poem?

They think the main character getting hit by the ball is funny.
They think the main character looks funny holding his head.
They think it is funny that the main character tries to play baseball.
They think it is funny that the main character mistakes his head for his shin.

Answer 1

The other boys are laughing at the main character because they think it is funny that the main character mistakes his head for his shin. The humor arises from the absurdity of his reaction and the confusion in his expression of pain, highlighting both the physical mishap and the language barrier he faces as a learner of English.