Empty House

The larger setting (place) of the poem is in a ​ (a)   . The smaller setting is inside a ​ (b)   . The time isn't clear but the poem mentions ​ (c)   so perhaps it is during the ​ (d)   .

• house
• bedroom
• shadows
• late afternoon

The rhyming pattern of the poem is

(a)  

Which answer shows alliteration from the fifth stanza? (including correct exam format and underlining)

• friend / flutter

• 'body beats'

• 'Out through the window, watch him wheel and fly'

• 'I won't hurt you, my friend. Don't flutter, don't start'

Choose the best answer to the question: In the poem what is personified? How is it personified?

• The house is personified. It is given the human-like quality of being lonely.

• The narrator is personified. He / She is given the human-like action of opening the bedroom door.

• The bird is personified. It is described as a 'friend' and given the pronoun 'he'.

• The water is personified. It is given the human-like action of 'rumbling'.

Match the similes to the 'best fit' shared qualities

• quick, light, energetic

• 'And the silence hangs like dust in the air'

• piercing, cold, penetrating

• 'But his body beats wild like a feathered heart.'

• still, heavy, lingering

• 'Driving Fear like an icicle through my heart?'

The poem has a lot of sensory imagery to do with ​ (a)   Evidence can be seen in the lines 'And the silence hangs like dust in the air' and​ (b)   . The poem also includes ​ (c)   imagery, such as 'I gather him gently in my hands' and ​ (d)   .

• hearing
• touch
• sight
• smell
• taste
• 'And hear something rustling across the floor'
• 'The rooms and the hallway seem cold and bare'

What mood is set in the first stanza? Choose the best answer and reason.

• The first stanza sets a free and peaceful mood. The narrator is alone in the house without parents.

• The first stanza sets a suspenseful and fearful mood. The narrator is terrified to be left alone in the house.

• The first stanza sets a serious mood. The narrator longs for the noise of family and the house seems empty.

• The first stanza sets a light-hearted, playful mood. The narrator exaggerates to be funny.

How could the poem's structure be changed to strengthen the serious mood?

• Create a scarier title

• Take away the rhyme and rhythm of the poem

• Add words such as 'Nazis', 'Totalitarianism' or 'Fascism'

• Change the ending so the bird dies

How does the tone of the narrator change from stanza one to stanza two?

The tone changes from ​ (a)   to ​ (b)   . The narrator ​ (c)   empty and alone in the house. Suddenly, he / she hears ​ (d)   upstairs and the tone shifts to one of fear as the narrator ​ (e)   what could be upstairs.

• isolated
• frightened
• a noise
• imagines
• feels

How does the tone of the narrator change from stanza four to five?

The tone changes from ​ (a)   to ​ (b)   The narrator carefully ​ (c)   the bird and lets him ​ (d)   , watching as he soars gracefully into the ​ (e)   .

• compassionate
• relieved
• picks up
• fly away
• open sky