Before Reading
I’m Nobody! Who are You?
Poem by Emily Dickinson
Is the Moon Tired?
Poem by Christina Rossetti
Mooses
Poem by Ted Hughes
VIDEO TRAILER
KEYWORD: HML6-628
How can POETRY
surprise you?
RL 1 Cite textual evidence to
support inferences drawn from
the text. RL 4 Determine the
meaning of words and phrases as
they are used in a text, including
figurative meanings. RL 6 Explain
how an author develops the point
of view of the speaker in a text.
SECTION C
Have you ever read a story that completely surprised you? Perhaps
you were surprised by what happened to its characters or the feeling
it gave you when you finished reading. Poetry can also surprise us
because the poet uses language in an especially original way. Figures
of speech (similes, metaphors, personification, and hyperbole), images,
and sounds can make a poem totally surprising—and memorable.
DISCUSS In this section you will find three poems. One is about being a
nobody, one is about the moon, and one is about a moose. Discuss for a
few minutes what aspect of each subject you imagine each poem will
focus on. After you read the poems, see if they surprised you.
T H E S TA R J O U R N A L
C9
Garfield
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GARFIELD © 1995 Paws, Inc. Reprinted with permission
of Universal Press Syndicate. All rights reserved.
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Meet the Authors
text analysis: figurative language
Figurative language is language based on imaginative
comparisons. Writers use figurative language to describe
a part of life in memorable and original ways. As you read,
look for the following types of figurative language.
• A simile is a comparison of two things, using the words like
or as. (Her eyes were like green emeralds.)
• A metaphor is a comparison of two things without the
words like or as. (Her eyes were green emeralds.)
• Personification is the giving of human qualities to
something that is not human. (The sun smiled down on us.)
• Hyperbole is the use of exaggeration for effect. (The sun
burned us to a crisp.)
Emily Dickinson
1830–1886
Famous Nobody
Emily Dickinson kept to herself and
rarely left home. Only seven of her
poems were published before
her death. After Dickinson
died, her family discovered
a collection of nearly
1,800 other poems and
had them published. Today
she is considered one of the
greatest American poets.
Review: Sound Devices
Christina Rossetti
reading skill: make inferences
1830–1894
When you read poetry, you will have to make inferences,
or educated guesses, about the poem’s meaning. To make
an inference, you use details from the text, plus what you
know from your own experience. As you read, record each
inference you make in a graphic organizer like the one shown.
Lines in Poem
My Knowledge
Inference
“I’m Nobody!”
(line 1)
When someone is
called a “nobody,”
it could mean
“nobody special.”
The speaker is
very ordinary.
+
=
Quiet Artist
Christina Rossetti came from a
talented family of poets,
writers, and painters. She
resisted fame, however,
and “went very little
into society.” Poor health
was one reason for her
solitary life.
Ted Hughes
1930–1998
vocabulary in context
In two of the poems you are about to read, the following
words are used to create images or metaphors. Use the
correct word to complete the sentences that follow.
word
list
1.
2.
3.
4.
blunder
cackle
dreary
lectern
It would be _____, not fun, to be a somebody.
The moose is tall and sturdy like a high wooden _____.
The dry underbrush seems to _____ at the ugly moose.
Clumsy and lost, he will _____ on through the woods.
Complete the activities in your Reader/Writer Notebook.
Natural Poet
Ted Hughes grew up hunting
in the woods of rural
England. Later he avoided
hunting, preferring to
write poetry about the
“aliveness of animals in
their natural states.”
Authors Online
Go to thinkcentral.com. KEYWORD: HML6-629
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Detail of The Son of Man (1964), René Magritte.
© 2008 C. Herscovici, Brussels/Artists Rights Society
(ARS), New York. Photo © Christie’s Images/Corbis.
Emily Dickinson
I’m Nobody! Who are you?
Are you—Nobody—Too?
Then there’s a pair of us!
Don’t tell! they’d advertise—you know!
5
How dreary—to be—Somebody!
How public—like a Frog—
To tell one’s name—the livelong June—
To an admiring Bog!1 a
dreary (drîrPC) adj.
dismal, bleak, or boring
a
FIGURATIVE
LANGUAGE
In lines 5–8, the speaker
uses a simile to compare
a public person—
“Somebody”—to a frog,
and uses a metaphor
to compare the public
to a “Bog.” Are these
flattering comparisons?
Explain why or why not.
1. bog: an area of soft, waterlogged ground.
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unit 5: the language of poetry
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Detail of The Masterpiece on the Mysteries (1955),
René Magritte. Oil on canvas. © 2008 C. Herscivici,
Brusssels/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.
Photo © Christie’s Images/SuperStock.
Is the Moon Tire
Christina Rossetti
Is the moon tired? she looks so pale
Within her misty veil: b
She scales the sky from east to west,
And takes no rest.
5
Before the coming of the night
The moon shows papery white;
Before the dawning of the day
She fades away. c
d?
b
MAKE INFERENCES
What is the “misty veil”
mentioned in line 2?
c
FIGURATIVE
LANGUAGE
What words does
Rossetti use to personify
the moon?
i’m nobody! who are you? / is the moon tired?
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Ted Hughes
The goofy Moose, the walking-house frame, d
Is lost
In the forest. He bumps, he blunders, he stands.
5
10
15
He can’t find the world!
Where did it go? What does a world look like?
The Moose
Crashes on, and crashes into a lake, and stares at the
mountain and cries
“Where do I belong? This is no place!”
He meets another Moose.
He stares, he thinks “It’s only a mirror!”
FIGURATIVE
LANGUAGE
Reread line 1. Explain
why you think the poet
uses this metaphor to
describe the moose.
With massy bony thoughts sticking out near his ears—
Reaching out palm upwards, to catch whatever might be
falling from heaven—
He tries to think,
Leaning their huge weight
On the lectern of his front legs.
He turns and drags half the lake out after him
And charges the cackling underbrush—
632
d
blunder (blOnPdEr) v. to
move clumsily
lectern (lDkPtErn) n. a
stand that holds papers
for someone standing
up to deliver a speech or
lecture
e
FIGURATIVE
LANGUAGE
What hyperbole—or
exaggeration—can you
find in line 16?
e
cackle (kBkPEl) v. to
make a sound of shrill
laughter or chatter
unit 5: the language of poetry
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Splash, Nancy Glazier. Oil, 26˝ × 34˝.
f
20
“Where is the world?” he groans, “O my lost world!
And why am I so ugly?
And why am I so far away from my feet?”
He weeps.
Hopeless drops drip from his droopy lips.
25
SOUND DEVICES
How does the
alliteration in line 24—
the repetition of
consonant sounds in
words close together—
help you to picture the
moose?
f
The other Moose just stands there doing the same.
Two dopes of the deep woods.
g
g
MAKE INFERENCES
Who might the speaker
be referring to in the
last line?
mooses
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After Reading
Comprehension
1. Recall In “I’m Nobody! Who are You?” why doesn’t the speaker want to be
a “somebody”?
2. Clarify What does the speaker in “Is the Moon Tired?” think made the
moon tired and pale?
3. Clarify In “Mooses,” what does the speaker think of mooses?
RL 1 Cite textual evidence to
support inferences drawn from
the text. RL 4 Determine the
meaning of words and phrases as
they are used in a text, including
figurative meanings. RL 6 Explain
how an author develops the point
of view of the speaker in a text.
Text Analysis
4. Make Inferences What does the speaker in “I’m Nobody! Who are You?”
think about the public? How does the poem connect with Dickinson’s own
experiences as a poet?
5. Draw Conclusions Do you think the speaker in “I’m Nobody! Who are
You?” means what she says about fame? Explain.
6. Understand Figurative Language Find the metaphors used to describe
the moose in lines 1 and 9 of “Mooses.” What does the metaphor in line 4
describe?
7. Evaluate Inferences Look back at the chart you completed as you read the
poems. Compare your charts in class. Do you all agree on the inferences
you made about each poem’s meaning?
y”
of
o
8. Make Judgments Reread “Mooses” and use
g
“
a web like the one shown to record details in
Funny
the poem that are funny or sad. Is “Mooses”
a mostly sad poem or a mostly humorous
one? Support your judgments with details
from the poem.
s”
op
r
sd
les
e
op
“h
Sad
Extension and Challenge
9. Creative Project: Writing We often think of the things around us, such
as cars, computers, or pets, as having personalities of their own. Choose
an animal or object. Using personification, write a poem that shows the
animal or object you chose with human qualities. Share your poem with
the class.
How can POETRY surprise you?
Discuss in class the element of surprise in these poems: Did each poem
include something that you did not expect? Think of language as well as
message.
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Vocabulary in Context
vocabulary practice
To show your understanding of the vocabulary words, choose the letter
of the term that is most closely related to the boldfaced word.
blunder
cackle
1. blunder: (a) dance, (b) cook, (c) stumble, (d) mumble
2. lectern: (a) voter, (b) guide, (c) desk, (d) chair
dreary
lectern
3. cackle: (a) laugh, (b) gather, (c) cry, (d) punish
4. dreary: (a) heavy, (b) gloomy, (c) ready, (d) old
academic vocabulary in speaking
• associations
• device
• insight
• reaction
• specific
Poets use figurative language to describe aspects of life in a unique way.
With a partner, discuss a specific example of figurative language from one of
the poems. What is your reaction to the poet’s use of figurative language?
What insight about life did the poet hope to make? Use at least two
Academic Vocabulary words in your discussion.
vocabulary strategy: the latin root lect
The vocabulary word lectern contains the Latin root lect, which means “to
choose” or “to read.” This root appears in many English words. You can use
other word parts and context clues to figure out the meaning of words
containing the root lect.
L 4b Use Latin roots as clues to
the meaning of a word.
PRACTICE Choose the word from the web shown that best completes each
sentence. Use context clues, or, if necessary, use a dictionary.
1. We held a(n) _______ to decide who would be in charge of the
Student Council.
2. People in other parts of the country may speak a different
_______ of English.
3. Since this store has such a great _______, you can buy nearly
anything here.
4. The teacher’s ________ on literature was long, but interesting.
5. The house had been abandoned for years and showed signs of
_______.
lectern
dialect
lecture
lect
selection
election
neglect
Interactive
Vocabulary
Go to thinkcentral.com.
KEYWORD: HML6-635
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