Poetry Analysis — Answer Key
Part A: Multiple Choice
Circle the best answer for each question.
1. In 'Mother to Son,' the line 'Life for me ain't been no crystal stair' uses which device?
A) Metaphor
B) Simile
C) Onomatopoeia
D) Alliteration
Hughes uses an extended metaphor equating life to a non-crystal, rough staircase.
2. What is the speaker's relationship to the listener in 'Mother to Son'?
A) Teacher to student
B) Mother to her child
C) Friend to friend
D) Stranger to stranger
The title 'Mother to Son' identifies a mother addressing her own son with hard-earned wisdom.
3. 'It's had tacks in it, / And splinters' uses concrete details to create ___.
A) Hyperbole
B) Idiom
C) Imagery
D) Repetition
Tacks and splinters create tactile imagery, helping readers feel life's painful obstacles.
4. If Frost and Hughes both write about life's hardships, comparing them helps readers see ___.
A) Identical word choices
B) Identical rhyme schemes
C) Different settings only
D) Different approaches to similar themes
Comparison shows each poet's unique style, voice, and devices when handling similar themes.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the correct answer on each line.
1. Hughes's poem extends one main metaphor, comparing life to a staircase.
The whole poem extends one metaphor: life is a rough, ongoing staircase climb.
2. When one metaphor runs throughout an entire poem, it is called an extended metaphor.
Extended metaphors develop a single comparison through multiple images and lines.
3. When poems carry both surface and deeper meanings, readers call this multi-layered meaning.
Multi-layered meaning lets a poem's concrete details point to deeper abstract ideas.
4. Comparing two poets' treatments of the same theme is called a comparative analysis.
Comparative analysis examines similarities and differences in how authors handle shared themes.
5. Frost and Hughes both treat perseverance, but their tones and settings differ greatly.
Frost's snowy woods and Hughes's staircase create vastly different settings for similar themes.