Show:
Water Imagery
Setting
Symbolism of Birds
Changing of Seasons
Foreshadowing/
Personification
100
Page 340-Find the literary element comparing water with a part of the setting.
Simile- "The moonlight was silvery, like water, pouring over the asphalt and the streets."
100
Page 326-Find textual evidence on how the setting had changed in the eyes of Abe's mother.
"She took the train up to Haddan, looking out at the landscape she once knew so well; it all seemed terribly unfarmiliar..." She had moved away, possibly trying to run away from the remembrance of her son, Frank, and when she returned it wasn't the same to her.
100
Page 325-What does the passing by of geese symbolize? How do they make people feel?
"A flock of geese soaring across the pale sky could cause a person to weep." They symbolize the coming of spring.
100
Page 330- How does the change in weather symbolize the changing of seasons?
"The weather had turned nasty, the way it often did on Frank's birthday, an unpredictable day in an unpredictable month" It shows how even though the weather is nice out one change and affect everything.
100
Page 225- An arbor is A shady recess formed by tree branches. How does the title of the chapter foreshadow closure?
The trees are blooming and creating closure over the arbors, foreshadowing Carlin's closure with her dead friend.
200
Page 342-Find the simile about the effect of Gus's presence on Carlin.
"She felt Gus's presence whenever she stepped out of the sunlight, like a splash of water."
200
Page 330-What does the weather reflect about Frank's birthday?
"The weather had turned nasty, the way it often did on Frank's birthday, an unpredictable day in an unpredictable month." The weather reflects the depressing feeling that overcomes the Greys when they think of their deceased family member.
200
Page 326-How do the birds make Abe's mother feel?
"...the flocks of blackbirds, the multitudes of warblers who returned at this time of year, marking Frank's birthday by swooping across the cold, wide sky." They remind her of her dead son, bringing down her mood.
200
Page 325- How does the ice prevent the changes from occurring?
"The world had closed down for so long it seemed as though the ice would never melt." The ice is the object that is keeping all the changes trapped because it shows how no one is moving on yet.
200
Page 344-How does Hoffman personify the fish as they swim with Carlin?
"By then, the fish had grown used to her, and they swam along beside her, all the way home." Hoffman makes the fish seem as if they developed feelings for Carlin and they kept her company when she swam in the river.
300
Page 341- Find an example of water imagery and use it to describe what is going on in the scene.
"Streams that had been running high from melting snow had overflowed and the fields were now green with water rather than cabbages and peas." This shows the excess water that is flooding the town now because the snow is melting.
300
Page 343-How do you think looking at the river made Carlin feel? Use textual evidence.
"Without Chalk House in the way, Carlin now had a view of the river. She was up in her room admiring the expanse of water and willow trees, when the black cat climbed in the trellis to her window ledge."
300
Page 329-330-How do the hawks symbolize sadness?
Above them in the sky, two hawks glided west, cutting through the canopy of rolling clouds." The hawks come by when the weather gets nasty, which surprises Abe and his mother, making Frank's death seem even more upsetting.
300
Page 325- How does the setting show a change of season?
"Soon enough, there would be a renewal, sap would again rise in the maples" shows how there is always going to be a change and that once this change occurs everyone will be refreshed and renewed with their problems.
300
Page 343-What does the fading away of Gus's picture foreshadow about Carlin and Gus's relationship?
"For quite some time, Carlin kept it in a silver frame beside her bed, until the image began to fade." The fading away of the picture foreshadows Carlin letting go of her guilt and letting go of Gus.
400
Page 343-344- Find the water imagery in the last paragraph and explain how the water affects Carlin
"She still thought about Gus when she swam laps in the pool and once she felt him there beside her, matching her strokes, cutting through the water, but when she stopped to tread water she found she was alone." The water brings out Gus's presence to Carlin and makes her feel less alone. He is connected to her through water.
400
Page 333- What kind of scene is described if you "Love someone and they're yours forever, no matter how much time intervenes..."?
"The sky will always be blue; the wind will always rise up across the meadow and thread its way through the grass."
400
Page 332- How does the presence of robins seem ironic in this situation?
"There were dozens of robins, returning from wintering in the Carolinas, and they perched in the apple trees that grew near Annie's grave, the one in the meadow..." Robins are usually cheerful birds, but in this situation they are sitting near a grave.
400
Page 326- How did the nature change from when she last visited Haddan and how is it significant?
"She took the train up to Haddan, looking out at the landscape she once knew so well; it all seemed terribly unfamiliar." It is significant because it shows how time keeps going on even if someone can't move on from their life problems and past. It is a reminder of Frank's death.
400
Page 325-What does the description of March foreshadow about the mood in the end of the book?
"It was the season of despair and it lasted for four dismal weeks, during which time more damage was done in the households of Haddan than the combined wreckage of every storm that had ever passed through town." This foreshadows that the month of March is depressing because the weather is unpredictable and relationships fall apart.
500
Page 342-Use textual evidence to show how the river affects Haddan.
"Some of the big white houses would have to be reroofed, but the Haddan School had been hit with the most severe damage, for the river had risen four feet above its highest level, flooding the buildings, which had fortunately been emptied of residents during spring break. Now, the sopping carpet in the library would have to be torn up and removed, and the parking lot behind the administration building was still being drained with a sump pump belonging to the department of public works." Water is a controlling force for the people living by the Haddan River.
500
Page 330-Where had Abe's father been left as a baby?
"That child had in fact been born and lived on, left by his mother in the care of the swans, tucked into the roots of the willows and kept out of sight until Wright had come searching for Dr. Howe." He had been abandoned by a river, surrounded by nature.
500
Page 336- How do the blackbirds react to the hawks flying by and what might this connect to in the passage?
"In the woods, the violets were blooming, and hawks swooped above the meadows. They got out when they reached the farm, slamming their doors shut, so that the blackbirds took flight all at once, weaving above them as if cross-stitching themselves onto the sky." In this, readers see that the hawks overpower the blackbirds and how they are afraid of them. This can connect to how death sometimes can overpower the living.
500
Page 344- Why does the change in weather temperature connect to how Carlin is dealing with Gus' death?
"In time, the weather grew too warm to wear his coat.". This setting change in the temperature shows how Carlin now realizes that it is now time to let go because she can't wear the coat anymore.
500
Page 341-What does Gus's presence following Carlin foreshadow about what she needed to do?
"Carlin had thought that she'd leave what had happened behind when she left school, but in Florida she continued to find black stones, on the back porch, in the kitchen sink, beneath her pillow." Gus's presence in Florida showed Carlin that she couldn't run away from her guilt and sorrow, and that she would need to face this problem in order for it to go away.