Day 1

The Portent Lesson Plan

Discussion of Thought Questions

  1. 1

    What images are present in the poem? What sticks out and why? Discuss the importance of these images.

    The two most prominent images of the poem are those of John Brown hanging from the beam and the meteor that is mentioned at the end of poem. The constellations of images associated with John Brown hanging serve to give texture and weight to John Brown's execution, but the final image serves to comment on what John Brown's violent rebellion and violent death point to: the coming Civil War.

  2. 2

    What does the speaker mean when they write, "Hidden in the cap / Is the anguish none can draw"?

    The speaker is saying that the hood that John brown wears while...

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