The Rider - Poetry Practice

What is the mood of the poem?

• Hopeful

• Hopeless

• Apprehensive

• Pessimistic

How does the author's swift riding contribute to the theme of the poem?

• It shows that it is easier to escape loneliness by rollerskating than by riding a bicycle.

• It shows that winning a race can help you appreciate the beauty of nature.

• It shows that loneliness is a feeling that people want to escape.

• It shows that if you work hard enough you become a champion.

Which line(s) from the poem best support the theme that loneliness is a feeling that people want to escape?

• the best reason I ever heard-- for trying to be a champion.

• while you float free into a cloud of sudden azaleas,-- pink petals that have never felt loneliness,-- no matter how slowly they fell.

• if he roller-skated fast enough-- his loneliness couldn't catch up to him

• What I wonder tonight-- pedaling hard down King William

Which trait BEST describes the speaker of the poem?

• Afraid

• Happy

• Sad

• Lonely

Which line(s) best support the idea that the speaker is lonely?

• his loneliness couldn’t catch up to him,

• A victory! To leave your loneliness– panting behind you on some street corner

• while you float free into a cloud of sudden azaleas,– pink petals that have never felt loneliness,– no matter how slowly they fell. 

• What I wonder tonight– pedaling hard down King William Street– is if it translates to bicycles.

What figurative device is being used in lines 3 and 10?

• Idiom

• Personification

• Simile

• Irony