Hyperbole. A hyperbole is an exaggeration made for effect. I am so hungry I could eat a horse is an example of hyperbole. The poem you are about to read, “Childhood of the Ancients,” contains examples of hyperbole. As you read, fill out a chart like the one below. In the left-hand column identify phrases that might be examples of hyperbole, or exaggerations made for effect. Then in the right-hand column explain the reasons why you thought the groups of words were examples of hyperbole.
Apostrophe. An apostrophe is a poem that addresses an object or person directly. As you read, try to determine who the speaker is directly addressing and how this person is related to the speaker.
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- The poem you are going to read is about something so common it has become somewhat of a joke in our culture—a member of an older generation telling a young person that the older generation went through more difficult times. Before you begin reading “Childhood of the Ancients,” have a class discussion about which generation had it easier—yours or your parents’. List on the board reasons why it was easier to be young when your parents were your age and reasons why it is easier to be young today. Think about issues such as the following: technological advances, political and social situations, and changing values.
- When someone tells you that he or she had it much harder than you, you may feel guilty, even when you have done nothing to cause the other person’s troubles. Guilt can have both positive and negative effects. People sometimes use guilt as a way of manipulating other people into acting a certain way. When people feel they are being made to feel guilty, they may feel angry and resentful. On the other hand, sometimes guilt can lead people to change something in their own lives or in the world outside them to make the situation better.
Write about a time when someone told you that you had it easy compared to him or her. How did this make you feel about yourself? about the person telling you that you had it easy?
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