Skills Lesson: Figurative Language and Imagery Practice & Quiz

Read the excerpt below from the poem "I Knew a Woman" by Theodore Roethke and answer the question that follows. I knew a woman, lovely in her bones, When small birds sighed, she would sigh back at them; Ah, when she moved, she moved more ways than one: The shapes a bright container can contain! Of her choice virtues only gods should speak, Or English poets who grew up on Greek (I'd have them sing in chorus, cheek to cheek). Source: Source: Roethke, Theodore. "I Knew a Woman." The Collected Poems of Theodore Roethke. New York: Random House Inc., 1961. Poetry Foundation. Web. 9 June 2011. Which excerpt best illustrates a contemplative mood?

"Ah, when she moved, she moved more ways than one:"

Read the excerpt below from the poem "I Knew a Woman" by Theodore Roethke and answer the question that follows. Let seed be grass, and grass turn into hay: I'm martyr to a motion not my own; What's freedom for? To know eternity. I swear she cast a shadow white as stone. But who would count eternity in days? These old bones live to learn her wanton ways: (I measure time by how a body sways). Source: Roethke, Theodore. "I Knew a Woman." The Collected Poems of Theodore Roethke. New York: Random House Inc., 1961. Poetry Foundation. Web. 9 June 2011. Which excerpt is a simile that indicates a thoughtful mood?

"I swear she cast a shadow white as stone."

Read the excerpt below from the poem "I Knew a Woman" by Theodore Roethke and answer the question that follows. Let seed be grass, and grass turn into hay: I'm martyr to a motion not my own; What's freedom for? To know eternity. I swear she cast a shadow white as stone. But who would count eternity in days? These old bones live to learn her wanton ways: (I measure time by how a body sways). Source: Roethke, Theodore. "I Knew a Woman." The Collected Poems of Theodore Roethke. New York: Random House Inc., 1961. Poetry Foundation. Web. 9 June 2011. Which line is an example of the poetic technique metonymy?

"These old bones live to learn her wanton ways:"

Compare and contrast metaphors and similes and their purposes.

A metaphor is a figure of speech that makes a comparison between objects. A simile is a more specific type of metaphor, which is directly expressed using like, as, or than. Both metaphors and similes are used to compare known objects and unknown or to-be-explained objects. Metaphors equate these two objects. Similes, slightly differently, illustrate the similarities between these two objects.

Read the poem below and answer the question that follows. "Simile" by N. Scott Momaday What did we say to each other that now we are as the deer who walk in single file with heads high with ears forward with eyes watchful with hooves always placed on firm ground in whose limbs there is latent flight Source: Momaday, N. Scott. "Simile." The Language of Literature. New York: McDougal Littell, 2006. 265. Print. What types of figurative language and imagery are used in the poem?

Figurative language and imagery appear throughout N. Scott Momaday's poem "Simile." A simile appears in line two of the poem: "now we are as the deer." Sensory imagery appears in lines three through eight. Visual imagery appears in lines three, four, and six; auditory/visual imagery appears in line five; and kinetic imagery appears in lines seven and eight.

Read the poem below and complete the instruction that follows. "In My Mother's House" by Gloria G. Murray every wall stood at attention even the air knew when to hold its breath the polished floors looked up defying heel marks the plastic slipcovers crinkled in discomfort in my mother's house the window shades flapped against the glare of the world the laughter crawled like roaches back into the cracks even the humans sat— cardboard cut-outs around the formica kitchen table and with silver knives sliced and swallowed their words Source: Murray, Gloria G. "In My Mother's House." Poet Lore 99.1 (2005). Poetry Foundation. Web. 18 July 2011. Identify the subject and mood of the poem. Discuss how the poet's use of figurative language, imagery, and symbolism contribute to the reader's understanding.

Gloria Murray effectively uses figures of speech, imagery, and symbolism to convey the sterile, restricted quality of her mother's house and the tenseness she feels when she is there. The mood is tense and constricted. She points out that "even the air knew/when to hold its breath," and the walls "[stand] at attention." These details also work symbolically, representing how the inhabitants are expected to behave and how they must keep their silence about any human feelings they might have.

Read the poem below and answer the question that follows. "Simile" by N. Scott Momaday What did we say to each other that now we are as the deer who walk in single file with heads high with ears forward with eyes watchful with hooves always placed on firm ground in whose limbs there is latent flight Source: Momaday, N. Scott. "Simile." The Language of Literature. New York: McDougal Littell, 2006. 265. Print. Which of the following techniques does this poem use? I. simile II. sensory imagery III. allusion

I and II

Read the excerpt below from the poem "miss rosie" by Lucille Clifton and answer the question that follows. when I watch you wrapped up like garbage sitting, surrounded by the smell of too old potato peels Source: Clifton, Lucille. "miss rosie." Good Woman: Poems and a Memoir 1969-1980. Rochester: BOA Editions, Ltd., 1987. Poets.org. Web. 9 June 2011. Which of the following techniques is used in the excerpt? I. simile II. personification III. sensory imagery

I and III

Read the excerpt below from the poem "I Knew a Woman" by Theodore Roethke and answer the question that follows. She played it quick, she played it light and loose; My eyes, they dazzled at her flowing knees; Her several parts could keep a pure repose, Or one hip quiver with a mobile nose (She moved in circles, and those circles moved). Source: Roethke, Theodore. "I Knew a Woman." The Collected Poems of Theodore Roethke. New York: Random House Inc., 1961. Poetry Foundation. Web. 9 June 2011. Which of the following images from the excerpt indicates an exhilarated mood? I. "She played it quick, she played it light and loose;" II. "My eyes, they dazzled at her flowing knees;" III. "(She moved in circles, and those circles moved)."

I, II, and III

Define imagery, give an example from your reading or of your own creation, and explain why imagery is used.

Imagery is made of words that trigger sensory memories. An image is a mental picture or memory of something seen, heard, tasted, smelled, or touched. Poets use imagery to intensify emotion and create vivid word pictures that enhance a reader's understanding and appreciation of the poem. One example is a haiku by Issa: The snow is melting and the village is flooded with children.

Define mood and theme; explain how an author's choice of language impacts them in a literary work.

Mood is the emotional response that a work of literature stimulates in the reader. Theme is a central idea or message of a work of literature, the insight that a work of literature offers into life. An author creates mood and theme with various devices, including the choice of language. To create a gloomy mood, an author might include dark or foreboding images. To develop a theme that related to the power of love, an author might use love-related symbols, like roses, or figurative language that compares love to something more tangible, like a rock or a peaceful sunset.

Read the poem below and answer the question that follows. "Simile" by N. Scott Momaday What did we say to each other that now we are as the deer who walk in single file with heads high with ears forward with eyes watchful with hooves always placed on firm ground in whose limbs there is latent flight Source: Momaday, N. Scott. "Simile." The Language of Literature. New York: McDougal Littell, 2006. 265. Print. Which statement about the poem is false?

The subject of the poem is deer and the flight risk that they pose.

Read the excerpt below from the poem "The Taxi" by Amy Lowell and complete the statement that follows. When I go away from you The world beats dead Like a slackened drum. Source: Lowell, Amy. "The Taxi." The Complete Poetical Works of Amy Lowell. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1983. Poetry Foundation. Web. 9 June 2011. Each of the following types of figurative language is used in the excerpt except __________.

allusion

What is the definition of "symbol"?

an image that simultaneously represents itself and something else

Read the poem below and answer the question that follows. "Happiness Epidemic" by David Hernandez Without any warning, the disease sweeps across the country like a traveling circus. People who were once blue, who slouched from carrying a bag of misery over one shoulder are now clinically cheerful. Symptoms include kind gestures, a bouncy stride, a smile bigger than a slice of cantaloupe. You pray that you will be infected, hope a happy germ invades your body and multiplies, spreading merriment to all your major organs like door-to-door Christmas carolers until the virus finally reaches your heart: that red house at the end of the block where your deepest wishes reside, where a dog howls behind a gate every time that sorrow pulls his hearse up the driveway. Source: Hernandez, David. "Happiness Epidemic." Casa Poema. Casa Poem, n.d. Web. 6 June 2011. Which poetic technique is illustrated throughout the entire poem "Happiness Epidemic"?

conceit

"Conceit" is best defined as a lengthy or extended __________.

metaphor

"Metonymy" is best defined as a figure of speech in which __________.

one noun is substituted for another with which it is closely associated

Read the excerpt below from the poem "There's a certain Slant of light" by Emily Dickinson and answer the question that follows. When it comes, the landscape listens, Shadows hold their breath. Source: Dickinson, Emily. "There's a certain Slant of light." The Poems of Emily Dickinson. Ed. R. W. Franklin. Harvard: Harvard University Press, 1999. Poetry Foundation. Web. 9 June. 2011. Which technique does this excerpt use?

personification

Which of the following is a key reason to include allusions in a literary work?

to broaden the context and deepen the meaning of a literary work

What is a key reason to include metaphors in a literary work?

to create new and surprising comparisons and deepen understanding