Tuesday, June 16, 2009

10th Grade Homework

In the comments section of this post, I have put up the comprehension question answers for Excelsior. It is your responsibility to copy these down into your notes.
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Miss Jones said...

Maiden: young girl

‘Excelsior’ Comprehension Questions

1. Recount the story of the poem.
A young man is climbing up a village at night in the snow in the ice. He is carrying a banner that has the sign “Excelsior” on it, which means “still higher.” Many temptations and dangers try to keep him from ascending, but he is urged on by a mysterious voice that says ‘Excelsior’ and he also urges himself on, saying the same thing. He climbs through the night, but in the morning, he is found dead, holding his banner. From the sky, the same unknown voice that urged him before calls out ‘Excelsior’ one last time.
2. Who does the youth symbolize?
In general, the youth symbolizes any person who is working to achieve a goal, and any person who faces difficulties on the way to their goal. When we work to achieve our goals, we are tempted to stop trying as others tell us that our goals are not attainable, or as others ask us to do other things instead of what we are pursuing. The youth symbolizes any person who is strong enough to sacrifice their desires and achieve what their heart is telling them they must do.
Specific Answer: The youth in ‘Excelsior’ represents every Christian and their struggle as they seek to honor and follow God, no matter what the temptations and costs are. When a Christian chooses to follow the words of the Holy Spirit in their heart, they do not simply choose to live an ordinary life. They constantly seek to go ‘higher’ in their life—which means they seek to become closer to God. Many things can stand in our way when we want to be closer to God, and eventually, even though we strive to go higher, our lives end in death. However, after our death, God calls us to him, and we go higher, to the highest place of all.
3. What temptations did the youth encounter which would keep him from his journey?
The boy was tempted by the warm and cozy houses that beckoned to him while he was outside in the cold, he was tempted to stop by the harsh weather and the danger of the way, he was tempted by the beautiful girl who asked him to stop and rest with her, and he was tempted to stop by the barriers that stood in his way—dangers of avalanches, rivers, snow-laden trees, the cold of night, and the approaching storm.

4. answers may vary

5. Why do you think the word excelsior is repeated throughout the poem? Do you think this repetition is effective? Explain.

The word excelsior is used in two dominant ways. First of all, it serves as the refrain of the poem. Second, the word excelsior serves as a dialogue between the youth in the poem and the unknown tongue that is urging him to climb higher. This is clear within the second stanza, which creates a distinction between itself and the youth’s voice that groans “excelsior” in the third stanza (‘the accents of that unknown tongue’, ‘from his lips escaped a groan.’)
Therefore, the repetition in the poem is used in two ways. The refrain is used to create an emotional response in the reader and it reveals the theme of the poem. It is used to urge the reader higher, just as the youth was urged to go higher. The dialogue between the unknown tongue and the youth is what helps the reader understand the symbolic meaning of the poem.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

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