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Study the poem below carefully and answer the questions that follow.
The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about same, And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back. I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I – I took the one less travelled by, And that has made all the difference. Questions
1 Comment
 Read the following poem carefully and answer questions that follow.
Happy baby Her lip suckle the nipple Milk bubble, foams and ripples Little hand up in the air Catch on the mothers hair Sweet sensation rise in pressure Tiny legs kick with pleasures Sleep comes gently and strong Sleep whispers softly and long. Questions
(a) Write down three pairs of words whose final syllables have the same sounds ( 3mks)
(b) How would you say line six of the poem? “ Sweet sensation rises in Pressure,” (2mks) (C) Giving two illustrations from the poem, state the tone you would adopt if you were to read this poem aloud (3mks) Answers
a) Oral poem
a. Nipple air strong Ripple hair long b. With a rising tone, a happy /joyous face and raised hands i. Verbal (1mk) ii. Non- verbal (1mk) c. Happy tone because the child in this poem is portrayed as being very happy and contented e.g sweat sensation, tiny legs kick with pleasure (2mks) i. Soothing tone ½ mk – sleep comes gently and strong sleep whisper softly (2mks) Read the item below and answer the questions that follow.
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When the Cock crows
the lazy man smacks his lips and says; So it is daylight again, is it? And before he turns over heavily, before he even yawns, the farmer has reached the farm, the water carriers have arrived at the river, the spinners are spinning their cotton the weaver works on his cloth, and the fire blazes in the blacksmith’s hut. The lazy one knows where the soup is sweet. He goes from house to house, If there is no sacrifice today, his breastbone will stick out ! but when he sees the free yam, he starts to unbutton his shirt, he moves close to the celebrant. Yet his troubles are not few, when his wives reach puberty, rich men will help him marry them. |
Questions
(i) Classify the above oral poem. (1mk)
………………………………
(ii) Identify and explain any two stylistic devices used in the poem. (6mks)
………………………………
(iii) How could you say line 18 of the poem?
“Yet his troubles are not few.”
Give a reason for your answer. (1mk)
………………………………
(ii) Identify and explain any two stylistic devices used in the poem. (6mks)
………………………………
(iii) How could you say line 18 of the poem?
“Yet his troubles are not few.”
Give a reason for your answer. (1mk)
Answers
(a) THE LAZY MAN
(i) Satirical verse /mocking poem/ridiculing poem. ½ mk
It satirises the lazy man’s laziness .√ ½ mk Total =1mk
(i) Satirical verse /mocking poem/ridiculing poem. ½ mk
It satirises the lazy man’s laziness .√ ½ mk Total =1mk
(ii) Repetition - And before he turns over – line 4
Before he even yawns- line 5
the farmer has reached the farm
the water carriers…..
the spinners…..
the weaker…..
- The repetition serves to mock /ridicule/satirize emphasizes on this man’s laziness ( he wakes up late when people have done a lot of work).
- It makes the poem musical /rhythmic
Before he even yawns- line 5
the farmer has reached the farm
the water carriers…..
the spinners…..
the weaker…..
- The repetition serves to mock /ridicule/satirize emphasizes on this man’s laziness ( he wakes up late when people have done a lot of work).
- It makes the poem musical /rhythmic
Alliteration- Cock crows (line1), spinners spinning (line 8)
Weaver works (line 9), fire blazes in the blacksmiths hut (line 10) Soup is Sweet (line 11)
This satirizes his laziness. The cock crows and he continues sleeping. Workers are busy doing their work while he sleeps.
Assonance: Lazy man smocks his lips (line 2), daylight again (line 3), when he sees the free yam (line 16)
-It makes the poem musical /rhythmic
-It satirizes/ emphasizes on his laziness
-Reveals the tone of the persona as satirical and his/ her contemptuous attitude.
Satire: The poem ridicules this man’s laziness to discourage it. He sleeps until late…..
“ When the cock crows, the lazy man smacks his lips…”
“ Before he even yawns”
“ the farmer has reached the farm”
-It satirizes dependency . He “goes from house to house” (line 13), “,,,Knows where the soup is sweet (line 12), “rich men will help him marry….(last line)
-This is intended to expose his laziness as a vice that should be discouraged.
-It reveals the mocking/contemptuous / Spiteful/ Satirical tone of the persona.
-I t reveals the attitude of the persona towards laziness or lazy people as that one of dislike/contempt
(any 3 styles, 3 marks each)
Identification =1mark
Illustration = 1mark
Effectiveness = 1mark (3x2=6mks)
Weaver works (line 9), fire blazes in the blacksmiths hut (line 10) Soup is Sweet (line 11)
This satirizes his laziness. The cock crows and he continues sleeping. Workers are busy doing their work while he sleeps.
Assonance: Lazy man smocks his lips (line 2), daylight again (line 3), when he sees the free yam (line 16)
-It makes the poem musical /rhythmic
-It satirizes/ emphasizes on his laziness
-Reveals the tone of the persona as satirical and his/ her contemptuous attitude.
Satire: The poem ridicules this man’s laziness to discourage it. He sleeps until late…..
“ When the cock crows, the lazy man smacks his lips…”
“ Before he even yawns”
“ the farmer has reached the farm”
-It satirizes dependency . He “goes from house to house” (line 13), “,,,Knows where the soup is sweet (line 12), “rich men will help him marry….(last line)
-This is intended to expose his laziness as a vice that should be discouraged.
-It reveals the mocking/contemptuous / Spiteful/ Satirical tone of the persona.
-I t reveals the attitude of the persona towards laziness or lazy people as that one of dislike/contempt
(any 3 styles, 3 marks each)
Identification =1mark
Illustration = 1mark
Effectiveness = 1mark (3x2=6mks)
(iii)
(i)- I would say it with a falling intonation.Ö ½ mk
Since it is a statement with an absolute
Message( finality) complete statement.Ö ½ mk
- I would say it with a sneer √ ½ mk,as this line is satirical in order to show the mockery.Ö ½ mk.
- I would stress “truobles’√ and not few to emphasize on the man’s indifference to his state of poverty . Ö ½ mk
* Must begin: I would ,,,,( ½ mk)
* Reason for the answer ( ½ mk) Total =1m
(i)- I would say it with a falling intonation.Ö ½ mk
Since it is a statement with an absolute
Message( finality) complete statement.Ö ½ mk
- I would say it with a sneer √ ½ mk,as this line is satirical in order to show the mockery.Ö ½ mk.
- I would stress “truobles’√ and not few to emphasize on the man’s indifference to his state of poverty . Ö ½ mk
* Must begin: I would ,,,,( ½ mk)
* Reason for the answer ( ½ mk) Total =1m
Read the following poem and answer the questions that follow
Why do you wear that dress so white?
Why do you where that veil so light?
Why do your young eyes shine so bright?
Is it your wedding?
I wear the dress and veil to show
That gladly to my love I go
My young eyes shine because I know
It is my wedding.
Why do you where that veil so light?
Why do your young eyes shine so bright?
Is it your wedding?
I wear the dress and veil to show
That gladly to my love I go
My young eyes shine because I know
It is my wedding.
Questions
- a) Identify the rhyming words in this poem (2marks)
- b) describe the rhyme scheme of this poem (2marks)
- c) How would you perform the poem to distinguish stanza 1 and 2 (2marks)
- d) Identify and illustrate two stylistic devices in this poem (4marks)
Answers / Marking scheme
- (a)Rhyming words know, show, go, Light/white
- (b)Rhyme scheme Aa, ab, cc, cd the rhyme scheme is regular since the next pattern is predictable
- (c)Falling intonation to show finality, falling intonation since they are why questions
- (d)
i . Repetition – why do you(has been repeated)
ii. Rhyme- white, bright, light
iii. Alliteration - why wear white
iv. Assonance - shine bright
Read the following poem and answer the questions that follow.
The seed shop.
Here in a quiet and dusty room they lie,
Faded as crumbled stone or shifting sand,
Forlorn as ashes, shriveled scentless dry,
Meadows and gardens running through my hand.
In this brown husk a dale of haw throne dreams;
A cedar in this narrow cell is thrust,
That will drink deeply of a century’s streams,
These lilies shall make summer on my dust,
Here in their safe and simple house of death,
Sealed in their shells, a million roses leap;
Here I can blow a garden with my breath,
And in my hand a forest lies asleep.
Here in a quiet and dusty room they lie,
Faded as crumbled stone or shifting sand,
Forlorn as ashes, shriveled scentless dry,
Meadows and gardens running through my hand.
In this brown husk a dale of haw throne dreams;
A cedar in this narrow cell is thrust,
That will drink deeply of a century’s streams,
These lilies shall make summer on my dust,
Here in their safe and simple house of death,
Sealed in their shells, a million roses leap;
Here I can blow a garden with my breath,
And in my hand a forest lies asleep.
QUESTIONS
- Describe the rhyme scheme of the poem (2mks)
- What is the effect of rhyme in the poem? (1mk)
- How else has the poet achieved the effect in (ii) above? (3mks)
- Which words would you stress in the last line of stanza one and why? (2mks)
ANSWERS
The seed shop
- a b a b c d e f ef √ 1
It is regular √ 1 - Creates rhythm 1 /musicality/memorability/interesting
- Repetition √ ½ ‘Here’ in stanza 1, 3√ 1
Sibilance √ ½ Line 2 - Stone shifting sand √ 1
Line - as ashes, shrveied, scentless√1
Alliteration √ ½ mark line 3 stanza 3 drink, deeply
Line 1 stanza 3 safe and simple Accept any 2.
Identification √ ½ illustration √ 1mark.No mark for illustration without identification - Meadows √ ½ gardens √ ½ running √ ½ hand ½
Reasons – content words √ 1
Read the poem below and answer the questions that follow.
I LOVE THEE
I love thee,as I love the calm
Of sweet,star-lighted hours
I love thee,as I love the balm
Of early jasmine flowers
I love thee,as I love thee last
Rich smile of fading day
Which lingereth,like the look we cast
On rapture passed away
I love thee as I love as I love the tone
Of some soft breathing flute
Whose soul is woken for me alone
When all beside is mute
I love thee as I love the first
Young violet of the spring
Or the pale lily,April nursed
To scented blossoming.
(By Eliza Acton)…………………………………….
Of sweet,star-lighted hours
I love thee,as I love the balm
Of early jasmine flowers
I love thee,as I love thee last
Rich smile of fading day
Which lingereth,like the look we cast
On rapture passed away
I love thee as I love as I love the tone
Of some soft breathing flute
Whose soul is woken for me alone
When all beside is mute
I love thee as I love the first
Young violet of the spring
Or the pale lily,April nursed
To scented blossoming.
(By Eliza Acton)…………………………………….
QUESTIONS
- a) Identify the persona in the poem. (2 marks)
- b) What is the poem talking about? (4marks)
- c) List four pairs of rhyming words from the above poem. (4 marks)
- d) Who is the poet of the above poem? (2marks)
- e) Identify any instance of repetition. (2 marks)
- f) Who is referred to as “thee” in the poem? Explain your answer (3marks)
ANSWERS
- (a)The persona is a lover(1mark).Addressing his/her love.(1mark)
- (b)The poem is talking about love. The speaker compares his/her love for his love with various things(4marks)e.g star lighted hours, jasmine flowers, etc
- (c)-calm-balm, last-cast,tone-lone,hours-flowers,first-nursed,spring blossoming(any four pairs-4marks)
- (d)Eliza Acton(2marks)
- (e)I love thee,as I love…..(2marks)
- (f)The persona’s love interest(2marks) Explanation: because that is the subject matter(1mk) total 3mks
Identify words that are pronounced almost the same way as the words below(5marks)
- a) Shore………………………………………………………………………………
- b) Heal………………………………………………………………………………..
- c) Sale…………………………………………………………………………………
- d) Ewe………………………………………………………………………………...
- e) Waste…………………………………………
ANSWERS
- (a)-show(1mark)
- (b)-heel(1mark)
- (c)-sail(1mark)
- (d)-you(1mark)
- (e)-waist(1mark)
Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow:
A SECOND OLYMPUS
From the rostrum they declaimed
On martyrs and men of high ideals
When they sent out
Benevolent despots to an unwilling race
Straining at the yoke.
Bull dozers trampling on virgin ground
In blatant violation.
They trampled down all that was strange,
And filled the void.
With half digested alien thoughts;
They left a trail of red.
Whenever their feet had passed
Oh, they did themselves fine.
And strutted about the place,
Self-proclaimed demi-gods
From counterfeit Olympus
One day they hurled down thunderbolts
On a toiling race of the earthworms.
They might have rained down pebbles.
To pelt the brats to death
But that was beneath them
They kept up the illusion
That they were fighting foes.
Killing in the name of high ideals.
At the inquest they told the world
The worms were becoming pests.
Moreover they said?
They did not like wriggling things
Strange prejudice for gods.
On martyrs and men of high ideals
When they sent out
Benevolent despots to an unwilling race
Straining at the yoke.
Bull dozers trampling on virgin ground
In blatant violation.
They trampled down all that was strange,
And filled the void.
With half digested alien thoughts;
They left a trail of red.
Whenever their feet had passed
Oh, they did themselves fine.
And strutted about the place,
Self-proclaimed demi-gods
From counterfeit Olympus
One day they hurled down thunderbolts
On a toiling race of the earthworms.
They might have rained down pebbles.
To pelt the brats to death
But that was beneath them
They kept up the illusion
That they were fighting foes.
Killing in the name of high ideals.
At the inquest they told the world
The worms were becoming pests.
Moreover they said?
They did not like wriggling things
Strange prejudice for gods.
Poetry Questions and Answers
Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow.
Thou art indeed just, Lord, if I contend
With thee; but, sir, so what I plead is just.
Why do sinners’ way prosper? and why must
Disappointment all I endeavour end?
Wert thou my enemy O thou my friend
How wouldst thou worse, I wonder, than thou dost
Defeat, thwart me? Oh, the sots and thralls of lust
Do spare hours more thrive than, that spend,
Sir, life upon thy cause. See, banks and breaks
Now, leavèd how thick! lacèd they are again
With fretty cherril, look, and fresh wind shakes
Them; birds build – but not I build; no, but strain,
Time’s enough, and not breed one work that wakes.
Mine, O thou lord of life, send my roots rain.
Poetry Questions and Answers
Read the oral poem below and then answer the questions that follow.
Her lip suckle the nipples
Milk bubbles, foams and ripples
Little hands up in the air
Catch on the mother’s hair
Sweet sensation rises in pressure
Tiny legs kick with pleasure
Sleep whispers softly and long
(Emusara Ossie Enekase)
Poetry Questions and Answers
Read the song below and then answer the questions that follow.
Soloist : Greetings to you comrade warriors.Others: Greetings!
Soloist: Do you know or you do not know me?
Others : We do not know you?
Soloist : I know you know me not
For I am he who is known as Ole Pare who wears a loose ring
And who owns stout steers and a healthy herd.
That bears in the months of plenty.
That are over-weight by fat.
Others : Yes it is him indeed!
Soloist : He that owns heifers with large stomachs.
For whom the meadow is insufficient but who gets stuffed at the valleys.
Where cow bells are removed1
As they are grazed together with those of the king’s
Others: It is him!
Soloist: I have the blue one with the horn.
Whose beauty resists branding.
Who leads the large herd of Kilapa2
Whose numbers pose difficulty when moving homes.
- From NaomKipury, Oral literature of the Maasai
- Notes: 1. To prevent them from being discovered.
- 2. Name of a cow.
Read the following poem then answer the questions that follow
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A song in springs
O little buds all burgeoning with spring You hold my winter in forgetfulness Without my window lilac branches swing Within my gate I hear a robin song O little laughing blooms that lift and bless So blow the breezes in a soft caress Blowing my dreams upon swallow’s wing; O little merry buds in dappled dress You fill my heart with very wantonness Oh little buds all burgeoning with spring By Thomas |
Read the poem below and answer the questions that follow.
Your nails are black with dirt, brother
And your palms are clammy with sweat
I refuse to take the hand you extend in help
I shall not join hands with you brother
For unclean hands make me uneasy
For filthy fingernails rob me of my pride.
You argue, gesticulating with your once
Impeccably clean and beautiful hands
That before long it shall not matter
For ‘everybody’ is delving and digging
And all shall have hands dripping with dirt.
And your palms are clammy with sweat
I refuse to take the hand you extend in help
I shall not join hands with you brother
For unclean hands make me uneasy
For filthy fingernails rob me of my pride.
You argue, gesticulating with your once
Impeccably clean and beautiful hands
That before long it shall not matter
For ‘everybody’ is delving and digging
And all shall have hands dripping with dirt.
Western civilization - KCSE English poetry questions and answers
Read the poem below and answer the questions that follow.
Sheets of tin nailed to posts
driven in the ground
make up the house
Some rags complete
The intimate landscape
The sun slanting through the cracks
welcomes the owner.
After twelve hours of slave
labour
Breaking rock
shifting rock
breaking rock
shifting rock
fair weather
wet weather
breaking rock
shifting rock
Old age comes early
a mat on dark nights
is enough when he dies
gratefully
of hunger
Sheets of tin nailed to posts
driven in the ground
make up the house
Some rags complete
The intimate landscape
The sun slanting through the cracks
welcomes the owner.
After twelve hours of slave
labour
Breaking rock
shifting rock
breaking rock
shifting rock
fair weather
wet weather
breaking rock
shifting rock
Old age comes early
a mat on dark nights
is enough when he dies
gratefully
of hunger
questions
a) What is the poem about? (4 marks)
b) Identify and illustrate two features of style used in the poem. (4 marks)
c) What does the fifth stanza suggest about the work done by “he”? (2 marks)
d) What basic requirements does the “he” in the poem lack? (3 marks)
e) Why do you think the “he” dies “gratefully”? (1 mark)
f) Describe two themes brought out in the poem. (4 marks)
g) Explain the meaning of “Old age comes early” (1 marks)
h) Supply a word that means the same as hunger as used in the poem. (1 mark
b) Identify and illustrate two features of style used in the poem. (4 marks)
c) What does the fifth stanza suggest about the work done by “he”? (2 marks)
d) What basic requirements does the “he” in the poem lack? (3 marks)
e) Why do you think the “he” dies “gratefully”? (1 mark)
f) Describe two themes brought out in the poem. (4 marks)
g) Explain the meaning of “Old age comes early” (1 marks)
h) Supply a word that means the same as hunger as used in the poem. (1 mark
White child meets black man - KCSE English poetry questions and answers
Read the poem below and answer questions that follow.
She caught me outside a London
Suburban shop, I, like a giraffe
And she a mouse. I tried to go
But felt she stood
Lovely as light on my back
I turned with hello
And waited. Her eyes got
Wider but not her lips.
Hello I smiled again and watched.
She stepped around me
Slowly, in a kind of dance,
Her wide eyes searching
Inch by inch up and down:
No fur no scales no feathers
No shell. Just a live silhouette,
Wild and strange
And compulsive
Till mother came horrified
'Mummy is his tummy black?'
Mother grasped her and swung
Toward the crowd. She tangled
Mother’s legs looking back at me
As I watched them birds were singing.
James Berry (Jamaica)
She caught me outside a London
Suburban shop, I, like a giraffe
And she a mouse. I tried to go
But felt she stood
Lovely as light on my back
I turned with hello
And waited. Her eyes got
Wider but not her lips.
Hello I smiled again and watched.
She stepped around me
Slowly, in a kind of dance,
Her wide eyes searching
Inch by inch up and down:
No fur no scales no feathers
No shell. Just a live silhouette,
Wild and strange
And compulsive
Till mother came horrified
'Mummy is his tummy black?'
Mother grasped her and swung
Toward the crowd. She tangled
Mother’s legs looking back at me
As I watched them birds were singing.
James Berry (Jamaica)
questions
(a) Briefly explain what the poem is about. (3mks)
(b) Explain what the reaction of the white child makes the persona feel. (4mks)
(c) Compare and contrast the reactions of the mother and daughter to the black man. (6mks)
(d) Identify and explain any two figures of speech used in this poem. (4mks)
(e) Explain the significance of the last line of the poem. (3mks)
(b) Explain what the reaction of the white child makes the persona feel. (4mks)
(c) Compare and contrast the reactions of the mother and daughter to the black man. (6mks)
(d) Identify and explain any two figures of speech used in this poem. (4mks)
(e) Explain the significance of the last line of the poem. (3mks)
THE PRESS - KCSE English poetry questions and answers
Read the poem below and then answer the question that follows.
So What is the mountain deal?
About the minister’s ailing son
That makes boiling news?
How come it was not whispered?
When Tina’s hospital bed was crawled with maggots
And her eyes oozed pus
Because the doctors lacked gloves?
What about Kasajja’s only child
Who died because the man with the key
To the oxygen room was on leave?
I have seen queues
Of emaciated mothers clinging to
Babies with translucent skins
Faint in line
And the lioness of a nurse
Commanding tersely
‘Get up or live the line’
Didn’t I hear it rumored that
The man with the white mane
Ushered a rape case out of court
Because the seven-year-old
Failed to testify?
Anyway, I only remembered these things
Ehen I drink
They indeed tipsy explosions.
Susan Nalugwa Kiguli
Adopted By from: Echoes across the valley.
So What is the mountain deal?
About the minister’s ailing son
That makes boiling news?
How come it was not whispered?
When Tina’s hospital bed was crawled with maggots
And her eyes oozed pus
Because the doctors lacked gloves?
What about Kasajja’s only child
Who died because the man with the key
To the oxygen room was on leave?
I have seen queues
Of emaciated mothers clinging to
Babies with translucent skins
Faint in line
And the lioness of a nurse
Commanding tersely
‘Get up or live the line’
Didn’t I hear it rumored that
The man with the white mane
Ushered a rape case out of court
Because the seven-year-old
Failed to testify?
Anyway, I only remembered these things
Ehen I drink
They indeed tipsy explosions.
Susan Nalugwa Kiguli
Adopted By from: Echoes across the valley.
questions
a) Identify and explain the social evils dealt with in the poem. (6 marks)
b) Pick out three poetic devices evident in this poem and comment on their significance. (6 marks)
c) Comment on the tone of the poem. (2 marks)
d) Is the title significant? Why or why not? (2 marks)
e) Explain the irony of the poem? (2 marks)
f) Explain the meaning of the following words: (2 marks)
i) Crawled
ii) Ushered
b) Pick out three poetic devices evident in this poem and comment on their significance. (6 marks)
c) Comment on the tone of the poem. (2 marks)
d) Is the title significant? Why or why not? (2 marks)
e) Explain the irony of the poem? (2 marks)
f) Explain the meaning of the following words: (2 marks)
i) Crawled
ii) Ushered
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