Thanatopsis

What does the speaker say that nature does for you when you are happy? 

• shows her beauty
• heals illnesses
• speaks nonsense
• displays sharpness

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.8.10

CCSS.RL.8.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

The speaker suggests that you should go outside and enjoy nature's beauty when

• family members die
• you wish to go to sea
• you worry about death
• friends seem thoughtful

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.8.10

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

Who does the speaker say you ill lie with when you die?

• your closest friends
• angels and spirits
• some elderly people
• kings and good people

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.8.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

What does the speaker mean by "Couch more magnificent" in line 33?

• a place to sit
• the whole earth
• a king's throne
• the poet's bed

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.8.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

What does the poet want you to understand after reading lines 48-50?

• The people who died now watch the living. 
• Of all people, the dead are the least important.
• All of the people on earth come from the dead.
• Many more people have died than are now living. 

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.8.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

The poet uses blank verse in lines 58-61 because the sound of natural speech reinforces

• that your death will affect others
• that you will never be forgotten
• the truth that everyone will die
• the saness of a lonely death

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.13

CCSS.RL.8.10

CCSS.RL.8.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

The poet breaks for a third stanza after line 72. He most likely structured the poem this way to highlight the third stanza's mood of

• anxiety
• quietness
• hopefullness
• indifference

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.8.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

The speaker's reference to death as a "mysterious realm" indicates that he or she

• lacks a complete understanding of death
• wonders what people look like after death
• thinks people will travel to the sun at death
• imagines that dead people dream forever

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.3

CCSS.RL.6.3

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

CCSS.RL.9-10.3

The speaker tells you to approach death

• only "at night"
• "sustained and soothed"
• like a "sluggish clod"
• with a "silent" fear

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.8.10

CCSS.RL.8.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

What advice does the poet seem to offer about how to live?

• Live with an acceptance, not fear, of death. 
• Worry only about remembering the dead.
• Spend time outside so you appreciate death.
• Find love and happiness for yourself in nature. 

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.8

CCSS.RL.8.10

CCSS.RL.8.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.10

CCSS.RL.9-10.9