Because I Could Not Stop for Death

Because I Could Not Stop for Death

By: Emily Dickinson

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Multiple Choice

Read stanza 1 below:

Because I could not stop for Death -

He kindly stopped for me-

The Carriage held but just Ourselves -

And Immortality

Which type of figurative language did Dickinson use in this stanza?

• Simile

• Metaphor

• Personficiation

• Hyperbole

Multiple Choice

Death is personified as _____________.

• A polite gentleman

• A rough carriage driver

• A tour guide

• A weary grave digger

Multiple Choice

Read stanza 1 below:

Because I could not stop for Death -

He kindly stopped for me-

The Carriage held but just Ourselves -

And Immortality

Who are the characters in the first stanza?

• Emily and Death

• Emily only

• Death only

• Emily, Death, and Immortality

We slowly drove - He knew no haste

And I had put away

My labor and my leisure too,

For his Civility -

Multiple Choice

Read the line from stanza 2 below:

"We slowly drove, he knew no haste"

What does the word haste mean in this sentence?

• hurry

• slowness

Multiple Choice

Read stanza 2:

We slowly drove, he knew no haste,

And I had put away

My labor, and my leisure too,

For his civility

The description in these lines suggests a view of death as being

• tiring

• peaceful

• tragic

• exciting

Multiple Choice

Read stanza 2:

We slowly drove, he knew no haste,

And I had put away

My labor, and my leisure too,

For his civility

Whom does the word "we" in line one of this stanza refer to?

• The speaker

• The speaker and Death

• Death and Immortality

• The speaker, Death, and Immortality

We passed the School, where Children strove

As Recess in the Ring -

We passed the Fields of Grazing Grain -

We passed the Setting Sun

Multiple Choice

Read stanza 3:

We passed the School, where Children strove

As Recess in the Ring -

We passed the Fields of Grazing Grain -

We passed the Setting Sun

What type of figurative language has Dickinson used in this stanza?

• Allusion

• Simile

• None of these choices

• Repetition

Multiple Choice

Read stanza 3:

We passed the School, where Children strove

As Recess in the Ring -

We passed the Fields of Grazing Grain -

We passed the Setting Sun

What image from this stanza suggests a person becoming old and dying?

• children at recess

• the setting sun

• swelling ground

• fields of grain

Or rather - He passed us -

The Dews drew quivering and chill -

For only Gossamer, my gown -

My Tippet - only Tulle

We paused before a House that seemed

A Swelling of the Ground -

The Roof was scarcely visible -

The Cornice - in the Ground

Multiple Choice

Read stanza 4:

We paused before a House that seemed

A Swelling of the Ground -

The Roof was scarcely visible -

The Cornice - in the Ground

What does the house in this stanza represent?

• the speaker's childhood home

• a haunted house

• the speaker's grave

• the afterlife

Since then - 'tis Centuries - and yet

Feels shorter than the Day

I first surmised the Horses' Heads

Were toward Eternity -

Multiple Choice

Read stanza 5:

Since then - 'tis centuries - and yet

Feels shorter than the Day

I first surmised the Horses' Heads

Were toward Eternity -

How long has the speaker been in the carriage with Death?

• centuries

• a year

• an hour

• 20 years

Multiple Choice

Read stanza 5:

Since then - 'tis centuries - and yet

Feels shorter than the Day

I first surmised the Horses' Heads

Were toward Eternity -

Which words in the last stanza reveal a shift in time?

• shorter than a day

• since then

• I first surmised

• were toward Eternity

Multiple Choice

Which of the following identifies the theme of the poem?

• Immortality is a heavy burden.

• Death is something to be feared and avoided.

• It is often hard to accept death.

• Death may signify the end of life, but also immortality.