Poem- The Courage That My Mother Had

The Courage That My Mother Had

The courage that my mother had

Went with her, and is with her still;

Rock and New England quarried;

Now granite in a granite hill.

The golden brooch my mother wore

She left behind for me to wear;

I have nothing I treasure more;

Yet, it is something I could spare.

Oh, if instead she’d left to me

The thing she took into the gravel!

The courage like a rock, which she

Has no more need of, and I have.

(Had – Edna St. Vincent Millay)

1. a) Briefly explain how the poem is about.                                                                                  (4 marks)
2. b) Is the speaker male or female? How do you know?                                                               (2 marks)
3. c) What does the speaker wish the mother had left behind? Why can’t the wish be fulfilled?           (3 marks)
4. d) Describe the character trait of the mother in the poem.                                                          (2 marks)
5. e) Identify and illustrate the imagery used in the poem.                                                            (4 marks)
6. f) What is the speaker’s attitude towards the mother and the golden brooch in the poem.     (3 marks)
7. g) Rewrite the following in your own words:                                                                             (2 marks)

“Has no more need of, and I have”