Mary Oliver's This World

Based on your reading of the poem above, what evidence from the text supports the idea that

the speaker is comfortable in the natural world?

•  ''I thought the earth remembered me''

• ''I slept as never before, a stone on the riverbed'

•   ''I heard the small kingdoms breathing around me''

•   ''They floated light as moths among the branches of the perfect trees''

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   Sleeping Forest by Mary Oliver – Lines 1-5

I thought the earth

remembered me, she

took me back so tenderly, arranging

her dark skirts, her pockets

full of lichens and seeds. I slept

What does the memory mentioned in lines 1-5 of the poem say about the speaker’s relationship to nature?

• a)    The speaker is comfortable with the natural world and conveys the idea that, in the forest, there is no real separation between nature and the speaker.

• a)    The speaker is remorseful as a result of the pollution caused by man to the natural world.

• a)    The speaker is angry with the natural world and conveys the idea that, the forest is no place for mankind to mingle with nature.

• a)    The speaker is uncomfortable with the natural world.

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1.    Sleeping Forest by Mary Oliver – Lines 1-5

I thought the earth

remembered me, she

took me back so tenderly, arranging

her dark skirts, her pockets

full of lichens and seeds. I slept

1.    In lines 1–5, how does the speaker think of the forest?

• a)    As an uncomfortable bed

• a)    As a skirt with pockets

• a)    As a comforting friend

• a)    As a riverbed with rushing water

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Sleeping Forest by Mary Oliver – Lines 9-11

but my thoughts, and they floated

light as moths among the branches

of the perfect trees. All night

 

In lines 9–11 above, what is compared to "light as moths among the branches"?

• Thoughts

• a)    Stones

• Lights

• Branches

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From your reading of the poem above, how does the use of personification—the giving of human qualities to an animal, object, or idea—help achieve the poet’s purpose?

•     It downplays the importance of Earth.

•   It downplays the importance of the speaker.

• It highlights the importance of Earth.

• It highlights the importance of the speaker.

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1.    Sleeping Forest by Mary Oliver – Lines 5-7

full of lichens and seeds. I slept

as never before, a stone

on the riverbed, nothing

 

Reread lines 5–7. What is compared to “a stone / on the riverbed”? Where else does this image appear in the poem?

• a)    The sleeping speaker is compared to a stone on the riverbed; both lie still. The image of being in water is repeated by the words “rose and fell, as if in water.”

• a)    The sleeping speaker is compared to a person sleeping, both rests peacefully. The image of a person sleeping in nature appears once again in the line “rose and fell, as if in water.”

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  From your reading of the poem ‘Sleeping in the Forest,’ is Oliver’s poem a good example of a lyric poem?

• a)    Yes, because it includes many examples of figurative language, including similes, metaphors, and alliteration.

• a)    Yes, because : The poem expresses the speaker’s thoughts and feelings about nature and life, and the poem has a steady rhythm.

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1.    Sleeping Forest by Mary Oliver – Lines 9-11

but my thoughts, and they floated

light as moths among the branches

of the perfect trees. All night

The message of Never Retreat is __________________:

• a)    There is a sense of perfect comfort and sweetness.

• a)    There is a sense of fear and remorse for the natural world.

• a)    There is a sense of contentment and excitement.

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   Sleeping in the Forest by Mary Oliver – Lines 12-14

By morning

I had vanished at least a dozen times

into something better.

 

Read the lines of stanza 3 in the poem above, what might the speaker mean by the phrase “something better”?

• a)    Spending a night in the forest has sent the speaker into another realm, better than the world of daylight.

• a)    Spending a night in the forest has made the speaker delirious, she now believes she is part of nature.

• a)    Spending a night in the forest has sent the speaker into a different time zone, one that allows her to transform from the fantasy world in nature and everyday life.

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A poem that expresses the personal feelings of a speaker is called a _____________.

•   ode

• sonnet

•     lyric poem

•   free verse

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