Homework Due Fri., Nov. 20 (Alpha) / Mon., Nov. 23 (Omega)

Type up your Civil War ballad and bring it to class.

Read "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloomed" and annotate/take notes.

“When Lilacs Last in the Door-Yard Bloom’d” Notetaking Exercise

1. Find as many examples as you can of the poetic devices we have seen Whitman using in other works: alliteration, assonance, parallel structure, cataloguing/listing, juxtaposition, macrocosmic/microcosmic imagery, etc. Mark and label these examples.

2. Find places where Whitman uses panoramic imagery and/or montages. Mark these.

3. At the beginning or end of the poem, or at points where they appear in the poem, write down your interpretation of the following symbols: the star; the bird (or the bird’s song); the lilac.

4. How is this poem thematically similar to other Whitman works we have read? Write your response to this question at the end of the poem.

5. Based on this poem and other Whitman works, what do you think is Whitman’s attitude toward death? Write your response at the end of the poem.