Dealing with Difficulty: Figurative Language and Imagery - English 10
Which excerpt best illustrates a contemplative mood? 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.
"Ah, when she moved, she moved more ways than one:"
Read the poem below and answer the question that follows. "Spring" by Edna St. Vincent Millay To what purpose, April, do you return again? Beauty is not enough. You can no longer quiet me with the redness Of little leaves opening stickily. I know what I know. The sun is hot on my neck as I observe The spikes of the crocus. The smell of the earth is good. It is apparent that there is no death But what does that signify? Not only underground are the brains of men Eaten by maggots. Life in itself Is nothing, An empty cup, a flight of uncarpeted stairs. It is not enough that yearly, down this hill, April Comes like an idiot, babbling and strewing flowers. Source: Millay, Edna St. Vincent. "Spring." Second April. New York: J. J. Little and Ives Company, 1921. Poetry Foundation. Web. 05 May 2011. Which lines from the poem above illustrate personification?
"April/Comes like an idiot, babbling and strewing flowers."
Read the poem below and answer the question that follows. "Listening to Her Practice: My Middle Daughter, on the Edge of Adolescence, Learns to Play the Saxophone" by Barbara Cooker For Rebecca Her hair, that halo of red gold curls, has thickened, coarsened, lost its baby fineness, and the sweet smell of childhood that clung to her clothes has just about vanished. Now she's getting moody, moaning about her hair, clothes that aren't the right brands, boys that tease. She clicks over the saxophone keys with gritty fingernails polished in pink pearl, grass stains on the knees of her sister's old designer jeans. She's gone from sounding like the smoke detector through Old MacDonald and Jingle Bells. Soon she'll master these keys, turn notes into liquid gold, wail that reedy brass. Soon, she'll be a woman. She's gonna learn to play the blues. Source: Cooker, Barbara. "Listening to Her Practice: My Middle Daughter, on the Edge of Adolescence, Learns to Play the Saxophe." Ordinary Life. New York: ByLine Press, 2000. El Camino College. Web. 6 May 2011. Which line from the poem illustrates a simile?
"She's gone from sounding like the smoke detector"
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:"
Read the poem below and answer the question that follows. "God's World" by Edna St. Vincent Millay O world, I cannot hold thee close enough! Thy winds, thy wide grey skies! Thy mists, that roll and rise! Thy woods, this autumn day, that ache and sag And all but cry with colour! That gaunt crag To crush! To lift the lean of that black bluff! World, World, I cannot get thee close enough! Long have I known a glory in it all, But never knew I this: Here such a passion is As stretcheth me apart,—Lord, I do fear Thou'st made the world too beautiful this year; My soul is all but out of me,—let fall No burning leaf; prithee, let no bird call. Source: Millay, Edna St. Vincent. "God's World." Renascence and Other Poems. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1917. Poetry Foundation. Web. 6 May 2011. Which line from the poem above illustrates alliteration?
"To lift the lean of that black bluff!"
Read the poem below and answer the question that follows. "Spring" by Edna St. Vincent Millay To what purpose, April, do you return again? Beauty is not enough. You can no longer quiet me with the redness Of little leaves opening stickily. I know what I know. The sun is hot on my neck as I observe The spikes of the crocus. The smell of the earth is good. It is apparent that there is no death But what does that signify? Not only underground are the brains of men Eaten by maggots. Life in itself Is nothing, An empty cup, a flight of uncarpeted stairs. It is not enough that yearly, down this hill, April Comes like an idiot, babbling and strewing flowers. Source: Millay, Edna St. Vincent. "Spring." Second April. New York: J. J. Little and Ives Company, 1921. Poetry Foundation. Web. 05 May 2011. Which excerpt illustrates the use of alliteration in this poem?
"You can no longer quiet me with the redness/Of little leaves opening stickily."
Read the poem below and answer the question that follows. "She Walks in Beauty" by Lord Byron She walks in beauty, like the night Of cloudless climes and starry skies; And all that's best of dark and bright Meet in her aspect and her eyes; Thus mellowed to that tender light Which heaven to gaudy day denies. One shade the more, one ray the less, Had half impaired the nameless grace Which waves in every raven tress, Or softly lightens o'er her face; Where thoughts serenely sweet express, How pure, how dear their dwelling-place. And on that cheek, and o'er that brow, So soft, so calm, yet eloquent, The smiles that win, the tints that glow, But tell of days in goodness spent, A mind at peace with all below, A heart whose love is innocent! Source: Byron, George Gordon. "She Walks in Beauty." Poetry.org. The Academy of American Poets, n.d. Web. 19 July 2011. Which excerpt best reflects Byron's appreciation of beauty?
"the nameless grace/Which waves in every raven tress"
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
Which of the following is a key reason to include hyperbole in a literary work? I. to add humor Il. to heighten effect III. to create suspense
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
Which statement illustrates the use of metaphor?
The girl believed that life is just a bowl of cherries.
Which statement about the poem is false? 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.
The subject of the poem is deer and the flight risk that they pose.
Which line from the poem "Edge" contains an allusion?
Which line from the poem "Edge" contains an allusion?
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?
[NOT] "Let seed be grass, and grass turn into hay:"
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)."
[NOT] II only
Read the excerpt below from the poem "I Knew a Woman" by Theodore Roethke and complete the sentence 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: Roethke, Theodore. "I Knew a Woman." The Collected Poems of Theodore Roethke. New York: Random House Inc., 1961. Poetry Foundation. Web. 9 June 2011. All of these types of figurative language appear in the excerpt above except __________.
[NOT] allusion
Which of the following are features of blank verse?
a poem written in unrhymed iambic pentameter
meek
adj. Lacking courage or strength.
recumbent
adj. Reclining or leaning back.
figurative
adj. The use of words to suggest meanings beyond the literal; used to express ideas in vivid and imaginative ways.
petulant
adj. Unusually irritable; rude; ill-tempered.
Each of the following types of figurative language is used in the excerpt except __________. 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.
allusion
Read the excerpt below from the poem "Ulysses" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and answer the question that follows. Old age hath yet his honour and his toil; Death closes all; but something ere the end, Some work of noble note, may yet be done, Not unbecoming men that strove with Gods. The lights begin to twinkle from the rocks: The long day wanes: the slow moon climbs: the deep Moans round with many voices. Come, my friends, 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world. Push off, and sitting well in order smite The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths Of all the western stars, until I die. It may be that the gulfs will wash us down: It may be we shall touch the Happy Isles, And see the great Achilles, whom we knew. Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho' We are not now that strength which in old days Moved earth and heaven; that which we are, we are; One equal temper of heroic hearts, Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield. Source: Tennyson, Alfred. "Ulysses." The Early Poems of Alfred, Lord Tennyson. London: Edward Moxon, 1842. Project Gutenberg. 2005. Web. 7 June 2011. In this poem, Tennyson refers to both Ulysses and Achilles. What is this technique called in literature?
allusion
What is the definition of "symbol"?
an image that simultaneously represents itself and something else
What is it called when a poet directly addresses a person or thing that cannot respond?
apostrophe
Which poetic technique does Crapsey use when she speaks directly to the dead in her poem "To the Dead in the Graveyard Underneath My Window"?
apostrophe
Read the excerpt below from the poem "Ulysses" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and answer the question that follows. Old age hath yet his honour and his toil; Death closes all; but something ere the end, Some work of noble note, may yet be done, Not unbecoming men that strove with Gods. The lights begin to twinkle from the rocks: The long day wanes: the slow moon climbs: the deep Moans round with many voices. Come, my friends, 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world. Push off, and sitting well in order smite The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths Of all the western stars, until I die. It may be that the gulfs will wash us down: It may be we shall touch the Happy Isles, And see the great Achilles, whom we knew. Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho' We are not now that strength which in old days Moved earth and heaven; that which we are, we are; One equal temper of heroic hearts, Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield. Source: Tennyson, Alfred. "Ulysses." The Early Poems of Alfred, Lord Tennyson. London: Edward Moxon, 1842. Project Gutenberg. 2005. Web. 7 June 2011. Which of the following describes the structure of this excerpt best?
blank verse
Read the excerpt below from the poem "Ulysses" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and complete the instruction that follows. Old age hath yet his honour and his toil; Death closes all; but something ere the end, Some work of noble note, may yet be done, Not unbecoming men that strove with Gods. The lights begin to twinkle from the rocks: [5] The long day wanes: the slow moon climbs: the deep Moans round with many voices. Come, my friends, 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world. Push off, and sitting well in order smite The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds [10] To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths Of all the western stars, until I die. It may be that the gulfs will wash us down: It may be we shall touch the Happy Isles, And see the great Achilles, whom we knew. [15] Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho' We are not now that strength which in old days Moved earth and heaven; that which we are, we are; One equal temper of heroic hearts, Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will [20] To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield. Source: Tennyson, Alfred. "Ulysses." The Early Poems of Alfred, Lord Tennyson. London: Edward Moxon, 1842. Project Gutenberg. 2005. Web. 7 June 2011. Examine lines 16 through 18 and select the answer that describes the poetic technique used there.
enjambment
What is it called when a line of poetry continues on to another line both in sense and in grammar?
enjambment
Which term is defined as the continuation of a line of poetry to the next line without punctuation or pause?
enjambment
Read the excerpt below from "The Ball Poem" by John Berryman and answer the question that follows. What is the boy now, who has lost his ball, What, what is he to do? I saw it go Merrily bouncing, down the street, and then Merrily over—there it is in the water! No use to say 'O there are other balls' Source: Berryman, John. "The Ball Poem." Collected Poems: 1937 - 1971. Ed. Charles Thornbury. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1991. Google Books. Web. 06 June 2011. What is the structure of this poem?
free verse
apostrophe
n. A direct address to a person or thing that cannot respond.
personification
n. Giving human qualities to things, ideas, or animals.
enjambment
n. In verse, when one line runs over into the next without pause or punctuation.
free verse
n. Poetry without rhyme or meter.
mood
n. The emotional response a reader has to a text.
"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 "Edge" by Sylvia Plath and answer the question that follows. Feet seem to be saying: We have come so far, it is over. Which poetic technique do these lines from Plath's poem "Edge" illustrate?
personification
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 phrase best describes Plath's technique in her poem "Edge"?
the use of largely figurative language
What is a key reason to include metaphors in a literary work?
to create new and surprising comparisons and deepen understanding
"Blank verse" refers to __________.
unrhymed poetry written in iambic pentameter
What is blank verse?
unrhymed poetry written in iambic pentameter
