Question: Read the excerpt from “Digging.”

Till his straining rump among the flowerbeds

Bends low, comes up twenty years away

Stooping in rhythm through potato drills

Where he was digging.

Based on the word’s connotation, what does the speaker’s use of the word “straining” suggest?

Answer: that the father is working very hard in the flowerbeds

Question: Read the excerpt from “Digging.”

Between my finger and my thumb

The squat pen rests…

Which statement best describes the effect of the assonance in this excerpt?

Answer: The assonance creates a pleasing and interesting sound.

Question: Read the excerpt from “Digging.”

The cold smell of potato mould, the squelch and slap

Of soggy peat, the curt cuts of an edge

Through living roots awaken in my head.

But I’ve no spade to follow men like them.

Which idea is typically associated with the word “spade”?

Answer: hard work

Question: Which phrases contain an example of assonance? Check all that apply

Answer: the stars in the dark

like the light

thumb through the numbers

Question:

Answer: “Digging” has multiple stanzas of varying length, while Bashō’s haiku has only one stanza of three lines.

Question: Read the excerpt from “Digging.”

Till his straining rump among the flowerbeds

Bends low, comes up twenty years away

Stooping in rhythm through potato drills

Where he was digging.

Which statement best explains the effect of the word “straining” in this excerpt?

Answer: It emphasizes that working in fields is difficult and strenuous

Question:

Answer: “Digging” jumps from the present time to the past, while Bashō’s haiku captures a single moment in time.

Question:

Answer: Both poems find a link between farming and the act of writing.

Question: Read the excerpt from “Digging.”

Between my finger and my thumb

The squat pen rests; snug as a gun.

Answer: The positive connotation of the word emphasizes how comfortable the speaker is holding his pen.

Question:

Answer: Both are concerned with the topic of farming.