Eszter’s Comments (group member since Mar 18, 2009)

Eszter’s comments from the Assignment group.

Read the poem and answer the following questions on loose leaf paper.

Wishing
by Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Wishing
By: Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Do you wish the world were better?
Let me tell you what to do.
Set a watch upon your actions,
Keep them always straight and true.
Rid your mind of selfish motives,
Let your thoughts be clean and high.
You can make a little Eden
Of the sphere you occupy.

Do you wish the world were wiser?
Well, suppose you make a start
By accumulating wisdom
In the scrapbook of your heart.
Do not waste one page on folly;
Live to learn, and learn to live.
If you want to give men knowledge
You must get it ere you give.

Do you wish the world were happy?
Then remember day by day
Just to scatter seeds of kindness
as you pass along the way:
For the pleasures of many
May be oft times traced to one,
As the hand that plants an acorn
Shelters armies from the sun.





Name _____________________________
Date ___________________
Wishing
by Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Multiple Choice
1. What does the author mean by the phrase, "Set a watch upon your actions"?

A-Always act in the right way, no matter what.

B-Always act like you know what time it is.

C-Always make sure your watch says the correct time.

2. Which of the following is the best summary of stanza two?

A-Knowledge is not important.

B-If you want to teach someone something, you must learn about it first.

C-The world will never be wiser.
3. What is the "sphere you occupy"?

A-the place where you live

B-a globe

C-a ball you are bouncing on

4. According to the author, how can you make the world happy?

A-be kind to everyone

B-plant more trees

C-join the army
Short Answer Questions
5. Explain in your own words, the advice the author gives in the second stanza.


6. Why does the author begin each stanza with a question?


7. The tone of a poem is how the author feels about his subject. What is the tone of this poem? Give evidence from the poem to support your answer.



Mother to Son
by Langston Hughes

Well, son, I'll tell you:
Life for me ain't been no crystal stair.
It's had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor—
Bare.
But all the time
I'se been a-climbin' on,
And reachin' landin's,
And turnin' corners,
And sometimes goin' in the dark
Where there ain't been no light.
So, boy, don't you turn back.
Don't you set down on the steps.
'Cause you finds it's kinder hard.
Don't you fall now—
For I'se still goin', honey,
I'se still climbin',
And life for me ain't been no crystal stair.



Poetic Techniques Short Answer Questions
1. What do you think the son in the poem is like? Cite examples that support your answer.
2. What does the image of a "crystal stair" suggest?
3. What has the mother's life been like? Cite several images in the poem that support your answer.
4. What advice does the mother give to her son?
5. What does the mother's dialect tell you about her? Cite examples that support your answer.
6. The poem contains an extended metaphor. What is the comparison that is being made?