tonite, thriller was
about an old woman, so vain she
surrounded herself w/
many mirrors
5 it got so bad that finally she
locked herself indoors & her
whole life became the
mirrors
one day the villagers broke
10 into her house, but she was too
swift for them. she disappeared
into a mirror
each tenant who bought the house
after that, lost a loved one to
15 the old woman in the mirror:
first a little girl
then a young woman
then the young woman's husband
the hunger of this poem is legendary
20 it has taken in many victims
back off from this poem
it has drawn in your feet
back off from this poem
it has drawn in your legs
25 back off from this poem
it is a greedy mirror
you are into this poem. from
the waist down
nobody can hear you can they?
30 this poem has had you up to here
belch
this poem aint got no manners
you can't call out from this poem
relax now & go w/ this poem
35 move & roll on to this poem
do not resist this poem
this poem has yr eyes
this poem has his head
this poem has his arms
40 this poem has his fingers
this poem has his fingertips
this poem is the reader & the
reader the poem
statistic: the US bureau of missing persons reports
45 that in 1968 over 100,000 people disappeared
leaving no solid clues
nor trace only
a space in the lives of their friends
Question 1
1.
Question 2
2.
Question 3
3.
Question 4
4.
Question 5
5.
Question 6
6.
Question 7
7.
Question 8
8.
Question 9
9.
Question 10
10.
What does the author, Ishmael Reed, refer to in the opening stanza of the poem?
He refers to the poem’s title and warns his readers not to read the poem.
He mentions a specific creature from a Stephen King novel that stalks humans.
He refers to an episode of the television show Thriller, in which an old woman surrounded herself with mirrors.
He offers a statistic from the U.S. Bureau of Missing Persons.
What happens when the villagers break into the old woman’s house?
The old woman puts a curse on the villagers.
The old woman disappears into the mirror.
The villagers take the old woman to the police for questioning in the disappearance of a community member.
The old woman calls the police and has the villagers arrested.
What happens to the tenants who, over the years, buy the house?
They lose a loved one to the old woman in the mirror.
They become prisoners of the old woman’s spirit.
They move out of the house quickly when they discover it is haunted.
They remove all of the mirrors from the house.
What does the speaker say is “legendary”?
the hunger of this poem
the reader of this poem
the vain woman
the number of missing persons
To what does the speaker compare the poem?
a greedy mirror
a missing person
a reflective pond
a young woman
What does the speaker say happens to the readers of this poem?
They are soothed by the poem’s quiet words and calming rhythm.
They are consumed or swallowed up by the words of the poem.
They appreciate the humorous end rhymes of the poem.
They enjoy the poem’s appeal to the readers’ sense of hearing.
What warning does the speaker give to the readers of this poem?
The speaker tells readers to not resist the power of the poem and to allow themselves to be drawn into its words.
The speaker tells readers to report any missing persons to the police
The speaker warns readers to ignore the words of the poem.
The speaker warns readers to avoid an obsession with vanity by not looking into mirrors.
What are the characteristics of Ishmael Reed’s writing style?
Reed uses quatrains, or four-line stanzas.
Reed uses irregular abbreviations and little punctuation.
Reed uses formal diction and complex vocabulary words.
Reed uses a definite rhyme scheme.
Which of the following literary elements is not used in this poem?
end rhyme
metaphor
repetition
personification
What is the best description of the tone of this poem?