WorksheetsThe Cremation of Sam McGee
Total questions: 50
Worksheet time: 25mins
Where is Sam McGee from?
Alaska
Massachusetts
Tennessee
New York
What month did Sam die?
November
January
December
August
Who is the narrator of this poem?
Sam McGee
Cap
Robert Service
The narrator is unknown
Which point of view is this written in?
first person
second person
third person objective
third person limited
third person omniscient
Why most likely is it important to Sam McGee that he be cremated?
A. Sam McGee was a criminal in Tennessee and he wants to leave no traces.
B. Sam McGee wants to go to heaven.
C. Sam McGee deeply suffers from the cold, and so he wants to die in warmth and fire.
D. Sam McGee hopes that the fire from his cremation will help keep the others warm.
Which passage from the poem most strongly supports the answer to Question 5?
A. “In the days to come, though my lips were numb, in my heart how I cursed that load. / In the long, long night, by the lone firelight...”
B. “On a Christmas Day we were mushing our way over the Dawson trail.”
C. “...it’s my awful dread of the icy grave that pains; / So I want you to swear that, foul or fair, you’ll cremate my last remains.”
D. “A pal’s last need is a thing to heed, so I swore I would not fail; / And we started on at the streak of dawn...”
Which device is used in "where the cotton blooms and blows"?
personification
allusion
alliteration
hyperbole
Which of the following reveals why Sam McGee was in Alaska?
"God only knows."
"the land of gold seemed to hold him like a spell"
"the stars o'erhead were dancing heel and toe"
"you'll cremate my last remains"
Which device is used in "I'm chilled clean through to the bone"?
personification
simile
alliteration
hyperbole
What is "the thing" and "the hateful thing" that Cap refers to in stanzas 8-9?
Sam's corpse
the dogs
himself
the weather
What are the people seeking in “The Cremation of Sam McGee?”
knowledge
land
fame
gold
In “The Cremation of Sam McGee,” what does Sam fear most?
getting lost
dying alone
being cold
losing money
In “The Cremation of Sam McGee,” what does the narrator use to fulfill his promise to Sam?
an abandoned boat
a team of huskies
an empty sleigh
a sack of gold
At the end of “The Cremation of Sam McGee,” what does the narrator see when he opens the furnace door?
a living Sam McGee
a fire that has gone out
the ashes of Sam McGee
the unburned coal and wood
If a story is grisly, which of these is true?
It goes on for a long time.
It gives a sense of horror.
It is full of interesting details.
It imparts an important lesson.
Which is the best example of someone who is ghastly?
a child who seems cranky and hungry
a singer who sounds tired and hoarse
a swimmer who feels sore and achy
a patient with a terrible wound
Which of the following situations could best be used to illustrate the meaning of dread?
someone taking great care to avoid an injury
someone hoping to have better luck in the future
someone writing about an experience that was difficult
someone opening a letter that might contain bad news
What conflict does the narrator face in “The Cremation of Sam McGee”?
He has to conquer the challenges of nature in order to save his friend’s life.
He has to perform a gruesome task in order to fulfill his friend’s wish.
He has to race against time in order to reach his destination.
He has to give up his dream in order to return to his home.
The following question has two parts. Answer Part A first, and then Part B.
Part A:
In “The Cremation of Sam McGee,” how does the narrator feel about his promise to his friend?
He is angry at his friend for asking a favor of him.
He is grateful to his friend for trusting him.
He feels burdened by the responsibility.
He feels honored to have been chosen.
Part B:
Which excerpt from the text best supports the answer to Part A?
so I swore I would not fail
a corpse half hid that I couldn’t get rid
the trail has its own stern code
in my heart how I cursed that load
"There are strange things done in the midnight sun By the men who moil for gold;"
What is the meaning of the word, moil?
to eat
to sleep
to work hard
to freeze
Sam McGee wants Cap to cremate his body when he dies. What does he mean?
He wants Cap to bury him somewhere nice.
He wants Cap to send his body back to Tennessee.
He wants Cap to burn his body to ashes.
He wants Cap to arrange a funeral service for him.
Plain or unattractive in appearance.
homely
special
sickly
tired
A warm jacket with a hood.
parka
porto
piece
parkour
A pal's last need is a think to heed, so I swore I would not fail;
Heed means to _________.
pay attention to
ignore
change
floss
And we started on at the streak of dawn; but God! he looked ghastly pale.
He looked ____________.
frightful and deathly
smart and beautiful
sneaky
happy and smiling
Loathe
to hate
to sing
to enjoy
to skip
Derelect
abandoned, run down
sleepy
scary, frightful
creepy
If you do something seldomly, you do it ___________.
all the time
never
everyday
rarely; not often
My son had a scowl on his face.
He frowned angrily.
He smiled.
He smiled like the Joker.
The year is almost over.
Grisly
frightful, horrible, ghastly
smiley
happy
Next year, I will start to bring a pencil to class.
"But the stars came out and they danced about ere again I ventured near;"
Ventured means...
risked or dared to go
too afraid to go
Two weeks left of school.
I need coffee.
Poetic structure is...
the organization of lines and stanzas in a poem
the way the poem uses figurative language
It looks like a skyscraper.
Love songs. Aw!
A group of lines in a poem...
stanza
meter
rhyme
rhythm
A poem that does not have rhythm, rhyme, or set line length.
free verse
open verse
tired verse
coffee verse
"But the stars came out and they danced about ere again I ventured near;"
This line is an example of...
personification
hyperbole
metaphor
simile
How can you infer that the poem takes place during the Klondike Gold Rush?
"The arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold;"
But the stars came out and they danced about ere again I ventured near;
The I made a hike, for I didn't like to hear him sizzle so;
Some planks I tore from cabin floor, and I lit the boiler fire;
One central idea of the poem is...
Life was hard for these people who were moiling for gold during the Klondike Gold Rush.
It was so cold for those men who were moiling for gold.
The Klondike Gold Rush was a terrible time in history.
Klondike bars are yummy!
What line in the poem shows that Cap feels obligated to cremate Sam McGee? Choose TWO.
"Well, he seemed so low that I couldn't say no;then he says with a sort of moan; It's the cursed cold, and It's got right hold till i'm chilled clean through bone."
"On a Christmas Day we were mushing our way over the Dawson trail. Talk of your cold! through the parka's fold it stabbed like a driven nail."
"A pal's last need is a thing to heed, so I swore I would not fail;
"And we started on at the streak of dawn; but God! He looked ghastly pale."
Which of the following lines is an example of a simile?
Talk of your cold! through the parka's fold it stabbed like a driven nail.
Now Sam McGee was from Tennessee, where the cotton blooms and blows.
And the dogs were fed, and the stars o'erhead were dancing heel and toe.
What is a simile?
blooms and blows
alliteration
rhyme
negative connotation
slant rhyme
dread
negative connotation
positive connotation
loathed
negative connotation
positive connotation
calm
negative connotation
positive connotation
hateful
negative connotation
positive connotation
In the long, long night by the lone firelight
imagery
onomatopoeia
repetition
alliteration
and I hurried, horror-driven
imagery
onomatopoeia
repetition
alliteration
What is the central idea of stanza 1?
Life in the Arctic is harsh and hellish.
People who lived in the Arctic were secretive.
Sam McGee died in the Arctic.
Many strange things have happened in the Arctic.
What is the central idea of stanza 2?
Sam McGee was from Tennessee.
Cotton blooms in Tennessee.
Sam McGee wanted gold but hated the cold.
Sam McGee was a grumpy, cantankerous man.
What is the central idea of stanzas 3-5?
Sam McGee believes he will die on the trip and asks to be cremated.
The trip to Dawson trail was dreadfully cold.
The narrator shows the reader that Sam McGee was his best friend.
Sam McGee lists his greatest fears and wishes.
