“The Wreck of the Hesperus”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Maine Speaks anthology or… 
Blupete Literature Wreck or...
youtube reading

Think about ... a time you were in a dangerous or risky situation involving water or a storm.  Then read this narrative poem to see how the captain and his daughter coped with the storm that struck their ship...  

Vocabulary
Skim through the story and identify at least 3 words that look unfamiliar to you. 
Guess at their meanings using context clues and then verify your guesswork (check a dictionary)
 

TASK - Read the poem and answer the following questions with examples from the text:

1. What is the setting of this poem?  What is the significance of the setting?
    

2. Who are the 2 main characters and what are they like?
    

3. Paraphrase the plot (the major events) in several sentences.
    

4. Describe the conflict.  Is the conflict resolved?  Why or why not?
    

5. What part did superstition play in the foreshadowing of the disastrous events?
   Complete this worksheet on foreshadowing:
    

6. Imagery - Which words or phrases are especially effective in helping you picture the storm and the wreck?
    

7. Review the following literary terms:

Simile – comparing two unlike objects using “like” or “as"
 Ex.  “My brain is like bubble gum.”
Onomatopoeia – a word that represents a sound
Ex. “hiss”  “drip-drop” “meow”

Then identify these phrases from the poem as simile or onomatopoeia.

a.   “Her cheeks were like the dawn of day.”

b.   “The snow fell hissing in the brine.”

c.   “Through the whistling sleet and snow. 

d.   “ The vessel shuddered and paused like a frighted steed.”

e.   “And a whooping billow swept the crew like icicles from her deck.”

f.     ” The cruel rocks gored her sides like the horns of an angry bull.”

g.     “Ho ho, the breakers roared!”