Literary Devices Literary Devices    

Lesson 15: Metaphor: When I have Fears That I May Cease to Be

by John Keats

Performer: Librivox - Nomenphile

Directions

Study the poem for one week.

Over the week:

• Read or listen to the poem.
• Review the synopsis.
• Read about the poet.
• Complete the enrichment activities.

Synopsis

In John Keats' stark and ponderous poem, 'When I have Fears That I May Cease to Be,' the narrator discusses his fears of not fully realizing his potential in life. He worries he will not write enough books. He worries he won't meet his fated true love. But when he ponders the universe, he realizes that in the big picture, fame and love may be meaningless.

Concepts

Poets often use literary devices, defined as 'rules of thumb, convention, or structure that are employed in literature and storytelling.'

The nine literary devices we'll study include:

1. Rhyming
2. Alliteration
3. Similes
4. Metaphors
5. Personification
6. Foreshadowing
7. Allusion
8. Hyperbole
9. Onomatopoeia

Metaphors use a word or phrase to refer to something that they are not to make an implied comparison.

Enrichment

Activity 1: Recite Poem Information

Recite the title of the poem and the name of the poet.

Activity 2: Study the Poem Picture

Study the poem picture and describe how it relates to the poem.

Activity 3: Recite the Poem

Practice reciting the poem aloud.

Activity 4: Identify the Metaphors in the Examples

Read aloud the metaphors below. Note that metaphors make a comparison like a simile but do not use 'as' and 'like.'

• The old firecracker danced a spirited jig. (old man compared to firecracker)
• The ballroom was an enchanted fairy land. (ballroom compared to fairy land)
• The oven in the sky baked us with its rays. (sun compared to an oven)
• The monster truck rumbled over the rocks. (truck compared to monster)
• The child was a whirling dervish. (child compared to a spinning whirling dervish dancer)

Activity 5: Identify the Rhyme Scheme

Review the poem and identify the pattern of its rhyming scheme. (e.g. ABBACDCD, etc.)

Activity 6: Identify Similes

• Review the poem excerpts and identify any similes.
• Name the pairs of elements that the similes compare.

Activity 7: Identify Metaphors

Review the poem excerpts, and identify the metaphors.

Name the pairs of elements that the metaphors compare.

• Hold like rich garners the full ripened grain. (note - contains both a simile and a metaphor)
• When I behold, upon the night's starred face,
• And when I feel, fair creature of an hour

Activity 8: Complete Book Activities   

• Click the crayon above, and complete pages 46-48 of 'Elementary Poetry 5: Literary Devices.'

References

'Metaphors.' Wikipedia. Wikipedia.org. n.p.