Analyzing Word Choice in Literature
Grade 8 ELA worksheet focused on analyzing word choice and its impact on meaning, tone, and mood in literary texts.
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Analyzing Word Choice in Literature
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Read the following passage carefully. Then, answer the questions that follow, paying close attention to the author's word choice and its impact.
Passage from 'The Secret Garden' by Frances Hodgson Burnett:
When Mary Lennox was sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her uncle, everybody said she was the most disagreeable-looking child ever seen. It was true, too. She had a little thin face and a little thin body, thin hair and a sour expression. Her hair was yellow, and her face was yellow because she had been born in India and had always been ill in one way or another. Her father had held a position under the English Government and had always been busy and ill himself, and her mother had been a great beauty who cared only to go to parties and amuse herself with gay people. She had allowed Mary to be looked after by ayahs and other servants who were as indifferent as she was herself. So when she was a sickly, fretful, ugly little girl, she was sent home, and her parents died soon after. She had been passed on from one indifferent caretaker to another, until finally she was dispatched to her uncle, a man as melancholic and reclusive as the manor itself.
1. What is the primary connotation of the word 'disagreeable-looking' as used in the first sentence?
Unfriendly
Ugly or unpleasant in appearance
Sad
Angry
2. The author uses words like 'sickly,' 'fretful,' and 'ugly' to describe Mary. What mood do these words create for the reader?
Joyful and excited
Hopeful and optimistic
Sympathetic and somber
Amused and lighthearted
3. The phrase 'as indifferent as she was herself' suggests that Mary's caretakers were just as to her needs as her mother had been.
4. The word 'melancholic' in the last sentence implies that Mary's uncle was and often felt a sense of sadness.
5. Explain how the author's choice of words like 'thin face,' 'thin body,' and 'sour expression' contributes to the initial characterization of Mary Lennox.
6. Identify two words or phrases from the passage that create a sense of neglect or abandonment. Explain your choices.
7. The word 'dispatched' in the last sentence has a positive connotation, suggesting Mary was eagerly welcomed.
True
False
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