GRADE EIGHT ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS

UNIT THREE: “Secrets”

Unit Test Review

My Parents Kept Me
By Stephen Spender

My parents kept me from children who were rough

And who threw words like stones and who wore torn clothes.
Their thighs showed through rags. They ran in the street
And climbed cliffs and stripped by the country streams.

I feared more than tigers their muscles like iron

And their jerking hands and their knees tight on my arms.
I feared the salt coarse pointing of those boys
Who copied my lisp behind me on the road.

They were lithe, they sprang out behind hedges

Like dogs to bark at our world. They threw mud
And I looked another way, pretending to smile.
I longed to forgive them, yet they never smiled.

PART A: Multiple Choice

Circle the correct response to each question below.

1. What type of poem is “My Parents Kept Me”?

A. Blank verse
B. Concrete
C. Ballad
D. Free verse

2. What is implied by the line, “I longed to forgive them, yet they never smiled”?

A. The boys felt guilty about being unkind to the speaker

B. The boys never apologized for being unkind to the speaker
C. The speaker refused to accept the boys’ apology
D. The speaker readily accepted the boys’ apology

3. What is the best definition for the word “lithe”? (HINT: Re-read the stanza the line appears in and
make your best guess!)

A. Frustrated
B. Clumsy
C. Slow
D. Agile
 4. Identify the device(s) used in the following line: “And who threw words like stones and who wore
torn clothes.”

A. Simile
B. Metaphor
C. Simile and metaphor (“threw words” = metaphor, “words like stones” = simile)
D. No device has been used

5. Identify the device(s) used in the following line: “Their thighs showed through rags.”

A. Alliteration (“Their thighs showed through rags”)

B. Metaphor
C. Alliteration and metaphor
D. No device has been used

PART B: Short Answer Questions

Answer each of the questions below in the space provided.

1. Define literal meaning.

Literal meaning is the actual meaning of a word, phrase, or text.

What is the literal meaning of this poem?

The literal meaning of this poem is that the speaker’s parents kept him from kids who were rough.
The speaker was terrified of them, as they abused him physically and teased him. That said, the
speaker wanted to forgive them for their actions but they were never kind to him.

2. Identify one line from this poem where the poet did not directly state what he meant, but where
you inferred his meaning. Explain what inferences were you able to make in the space provided.

LINE:
“My parents kept me from children who were rough / And who threw words like stones and who
wore torn clothes.”

INFERENCE:
I was able to infer that the speaker must be more affluent or well-to-do than the children he/she
describes in the poem. In the poem, the speaker’s parents are described as not wanting their
son/daughter associating with “rough” children, children who were rude (“threw words like
stones”) and obviously living in poverty (“wore torn clothes”). The fact that the speaker mentions
these details suggests that these children are not like him/her, thus implying he/she must be
socially and economically better off.
PART C: Simile / Metaphor TDSC Response

Answer the question below in the space provided.

Locate one strong example of either a simile or metaphor from this poem. In a well-developed,
single-paragraph TDSC response, state what two things are being compared, how they are alike,
and whether or not the comparison is effective. Remember, BE SPECIFIC in explain how the
comparison is effective; an effective comparison will usually help create a strong image, develop
character, reveal conflict, establish theme, etc.

One strong example of a simile used in the poem “My Parents Kept Me” by Stephen Spender is “I
feared more than tigers their muscles like iron.” A simile is a comparison between two things
using the words “like” or “as.” The comparison being made in this simile is between the muscles of
the “rough” boys and iron. These two things are alike because the boys are strong - much stronger
than the speaker of the poem appears to be - and iron is also a very strong metal. This comparison
is effective because it helps the reader better understand the interpersonal conflict between the
speaker and the boys. The speaker appears greatly intimidated by their strength, as he/she
suggests their muscles are as strong as iron. He seems to view their strength as almost inhuman, a
force that is impossible for him to stand up against. He appears to feel weak and powerless by
comparison. It is evident, then, that a simile has been used effectively in the poem “My Parents
Kept Me” by Stephen Spender.