1. Define each of the following terms and give an example.
a. connotation
b. assonance
c. antimetabole
d. asyndeton and polysyndeton
e. anastrophe/inversion
f. hasty generalization
g. slippery slope
h. ad hominem
i. near rhyme
j. blank verse
2. Read the following poem and then answer the questions below.
Recuerdo ("Memory" in Spanish)
"We were very tired, we were very merry
We had gone back and forth all night on the ferry.
It was bare and bright, and smelled like a stable
But we looked into a fire, we leaned across a table,
We lay on a hill-top underneath the moon;
And the whistles kept blowing, and the dawn came soon.
We were very tired, we were very merry
We had gone back and forth all night on the ferry;
And you ate an apple, and I ate a pear,
From a dozen of each we had bought somewhere;
And the sky went wan, and the wind came cold,
And the sun rose dripping, a bucketful of gold.
We were very tired, we were very merry,
We had gone back and forth all night on the ferry.
We hailed, "Good morrow, mother!" to a shawl-covered head,
And bought a morning paper, which neither of us read;
And she wept, "God bless you!" for the apples and pears,
And we gave her all our money but our subway fares."
--Edna St. Vincent Millay
a. What kind of stanzas make up this poem?
b. What is the rhyme scheme of the poem?
c. What is the meter (name and number of feet)? Hint: read the poem until you hear its rhythm. Then scan line 2 and see what you come up with. (Meter is not a simple matter in this poem.)
d. Is there any enjambment in the poem?
e. What kinds of imagery do you find in this poem?
f. What is the setting of the poem?
g. What is the situation of the poem?
h. Who is the speaker and who is with the speaker?
i. What alliteration do you see in lines 3-5?
j. What kind of poem is this?
3. Read this speech, from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, in which Brutus explains to a crowd of plebeians why he assassinated Caesar. Then answer the questions below.
"(1) Romans, countrymen, and lovers! hear me for my cause, and be silent, that you may hear: believe me for mine honours, and have respect to mine honour, that you may believe: censure me in your wisdom, and awake your senses, that you may the better judge. (2) If there be any in this assembly, any dear friend of Caesar's, to him I say that Brutus' love to Caesar was no less than his. (3) If then that friend demands why Brutus rose against Caesar, this is my answer: not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more. (4) Had you rather Caesar were living, and die all slaves, than that Caesar were dead, to live all free men? (5) As Caesar loved me, I weep for him; as he was fortunate, I rejoice at it; as he was valiant, I honour him; but as he was ambitious, I slew him. (6) There is tears for his love; joy for his fortune; honour for his valour; and death for his ambition. (7) Who is here so base that would be a bondman? (8) If any, speak; for him have I offended. (9) Who is here so rude that would not be a Roman? (10) If any, speak; for him have I offended. (11) Who is here so vile that will not love his country? (12) If any, speak, for him have I offended."
a. In sentence 1 when Brutus says, "believe me for mine honours, and have respect to mine honour," what kind of appeal is he making?
b. In sentence 5 when Brutus explains that he killed Caesar for his ambition, what kind of appeal is he making?
c. In sentences 7-12, what kind of appeal is Brutus making?
d. What term best describes Brutus's statement that he killed Caesar because he was ambitious? Please fill in the rest of the argument. Does it illustrate any kind of fallacy?
e. Sentences 3 and 4 provide excellent examples of what rhetorical devices?
f. Sentences 5 and 6 provide excellent examples of what rhetorical devices?
g. Sentences 7, 9, and 11 provide excellent examples of what rhetorical devices?
h. Which of these sentences begins with the subject?
i. Label the opener of sentence 6 and tell the grammatical type of the sentence.
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