The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls

The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls

Multiple Choice

Which words from stanza 3 help the reader understand the meaning of steeds?

The morning breaks; the steeds in their stalls

Stamp and neigh, as the hostler calls;

The day returns, but nevermore

Returns the traveler to the shore,

15 And the tide rises, the tide falls

• The morning breaks

• Stamp and neigh

• The day returns

• Returns the traveler

Multiple Choice

Read this line from the first stanza of the poem.

And the tide rises, the tide falls.

The repetition of this line throughout the poem contributes to a mood of--

• resentment

• adventure

• suspense

• longing

Multiple Choice

Read lines 8 and 9 from the poem.

The little waves, with their soft, white hands,

Efface the footprints in the sands

The poet includes this figurative language most likely to —

• emphasize that life is fleeting

• suggest that the ocean is cruel and unfeeling

• identify the person responsible for the disappearance of the footprints

• explain why the traveler should not have been in such a hurry

Multiple Choice

Which statement expresses the main theme of the poem?

• An ocean’s tide moves in predictable currents.

• Human activity is random and frantic, but the tide is constant.

• Life is temporary and is usually unnoticed or forgotten by others.

• Day, night, and the ocean are all on a rising and falling cycle of time.

Multiple Choice

Read lines 13 and 14 from the poem.

The day returns, but nevermore

Returns the traveler to the shore.

The poet repeats the word “returns” in order to —

• contrast the ongoing cycle of a day to the end of the traveler’s journey

• suggest that the traveler and the day both return to the shore

• emphasize the importance of returning to complete a cycle

• show that the traveler had other places to visit and had moved on