"Root Cellar" by Theodore Roethke Flashcards
tone
- part of the tone is very grimy
- the word choice creates a creepy tone, and the imagery is gross
- e.g.: mildewed crates
- part of the tone contrasts the imagery and is admiring of the ability for life to live in the root cellar
- e.g.: congress of stinks
- a mishmash of bad smells, but is somehow admiring
- speaker appreciates that all the smells overlap
- word choice shows this mixed tone
- both encourages and discourages life at the same time
- e.g.: nothing would sleep
- it was too mildewed and smelly to sleep
- e.g.: nothing would give up life
- the dirt gave breath to life
example of theme = life
- we are all determined to live just like the organisms in the root cellar who live in a place where you would think life does not exist
- we want to write a noble and global thematic statement:
- life is determined
- – textual evidence to support this statement:
- — nothing would sleep
- — bulbs broke out of the boxes hunting
- — congress of stinks
which line best supports the theme that “life can be found in supposedly lifeless places”
nothing would sleep in that cellar, dank as a ditch
which of the following phrases is used to describe the cellar
dank as a ditch
what dark imagery does the author use to contrast with the imagery of life in the cellar
hung down long yellow evil necks, like tropical snakes
the line “nothing would sleep” at the beginning of the poem sets up the readers for what near the end of this poem
the shift – “nothing would give up life”
“life is determined to continue, even in a dark, disgusting place”
nothing would sleep in that cellar, dank as a ditch
answers
- the “grossness” of the place contrasts with the power of life and its ability to push through
- the resilience of life
- life is determined to continue, even in a dark, disgusting place
life is determined to grow
bulbs broke out of boxes hunting for chinks in the dark
connotation of the word cellar
a scary place
