Page 151 - Lavender-B-8

About the Poet
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include the poems
‘Paul Revere’s Ride’, ‘The Song of Hiawatha’, and ‘Evangeline’. He was the first American to completely translate Dante
Alighieri’s Divine Comedy and was one of the fireside poets from New England.

Time to answer

A. Choose the correct option.

1. In Line 4, the poet compares the lighthouse to a ‘pillar of fire’? Which of these options
could be the most likely reason for doing so?

because the lighthouse has been there for many years as a pillar of strength

because the lighthouse looks like a giant pillar from far away

because the lighthouse has provided comfort to many sailors

because the lighthouse is a pillar which shines brightly at night

2. What could be the best summary of Stanza 5?

Using a metaphor, the poet compares St Christopher to the lighthouse because
both are braving the tempestuous waves.

Using a simile, the poet compares the lighthouse to St Christopher because like
Christopher, the lighthouse wades among the rocks and sands to save the mariners.

Using a simile, the poet compares the lighthouse to the great giant Christopher

because the lighthouse keeps a watch on the mariners sailing on the tempestuous
waves.

Using personification, the poet compares the lighthouse to a giant that fights the
tempestuous waves.

3. Which of these lines in the poem tell you that the lighthouse is reliable?
The Lighthouse lifts its massive masonry,

A pillar of fire by night, of cloud by day.

Starts into life a dim, gigantic shape,

Holding its lantern o’er the restless surge.

And the great ships sail outward and return,
Bending and bowing o’er the billowy swells,

Steadfast, serene, immovable, the same,
Year after year, through all the silent night

151