2021 - DSE

ENG LANG Name:

SHORT
STOREIS

Class & No:

HONG KONG DIPLOMA OF SECONDARY EDUCATION 2021

Date:

ENGLISH LANGUAGE

Learning English through Short Stories

Lesson 2
 Figurative Language
 A comparison of two objects
 Simile
 Metaphor
 Symbol
 Alliteration
 Onomatopoeia
 Personification
 Hyperbole

 Practice

 A Woman Like Me – by Xixi

S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 1

Figurative language
Which do you think is the more effective of these examples from a story?
A. It was autumn and the hillside was covered with trees, all with red leaves.
B. It was autumn, and the hillside was aflame with trees.

C. The sight rooted him to the spot.

D. He was so surprised that he could not move.

Like poets, story writers often use different techniques to add depth and power to their writing and enrich the
stories.

1. A comparison of two objects

A. Simile
e.g. As quick as a flash, she skied down the slope.
e.g. She felt so relieved that she cried like a baby.
e.g. He ran like the wind.

B. Metaphor
e.g. My book, that had seemed such a nuisance a while ago, so heavy to carry, my grammar, and my
history of the saints, were old friends now that I couldn’t give up.
(Taken from Alphonse Daudet, The Last Lesson)
e.g. His heart slammed shut from him.
e.g. He had the heart of a lion.

C.

S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 2

 Symbol
A symbol is something which represents a particular idea or quality. It refers to shared knowledge or
understanding, like metaphors and colours, and communicates a deeper meaning to the reader.

1. Underline the symbols in the story outlines and match the description of the symbols with the story
outline:
a. A young man gave his lover a bouquet of _____ A. The emptiness/falsity of their
roses but she was accidentally pricked by relationship
the thorns.
b. A young lady left her boyfriend just as the _____ B. The corruption of the people
sun was setting at the end of the story. there
c. A woman was having an affair with a _____ C. The end of their relationship
married man who gave her a diamond ring
but it was fake.
d. In an area with high crime rates, there was _____ D. The pains and difficulties of
a strong smell of rotting food and the dirt love
on the streets.

2. Some common examples:

Gold - Wealth A crow - Death
Storm - Trouble coming Sunrise - A new beginning, hope
Fire - Enthusiasm A closed door - Rejection, secrecy
Snake - Evil, destruction, death Umbrella - Shelter, protection
Eagle - Victory, speed, freedom, pride Flowing water - The passage of time

3. When we use colours as metaphors, their meanings are known as symbols. A symbol can
represent an idea that we have learned.

Example:
When he saw what had happened he was green with envy. (In English literature, the colour green is
used to signify envy or jealousy.)

S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 3

 Below is a table which shows four colours and what they mean in English. Write down the symbolic
meaning of the colours for the last two and give an example for each.
Colour Symbolic meaning Example
Aggression
Heat
Red Passion
He was red with anger.
Love
Warm
Don't be so yellow. You should fight for what you
Bright
Yellow deserve.
Cowardly
Sunny
Cool
Blue Frozen He was feeling blue because he had lost his love.
Sad
Death
A black cloud hung over the room as we waited for
Mysterious
Black Evil
the bad news.
Threatening

White

Purple

2. Alliteration

e.g. She realized that she was in a strange, slummy, seedy part of the town.
e.g. Whispering wind whooshed wildly.

3.

S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 4

 Onomatopoeia

Onomatopoeia words include sounds that are similar to the noises that the words refer to.
e.g. The thunder cracked suddenly.

Match the onomatopoeic words with the descriptions.

1. Balloon bursting _____ A. Bang
2. Clock _____ B. Boom
3. Bee hunting nectar _____ C. Buzz
4. Sports car roaring past _____ D. Clang
5. The weak sound a baby bird makes _____ E. Hiss
6. An explosion _____ F. Oink
7. Heart beating _____ G. Pop
8. The sound a pig makes _____ H. Thump
9. The sound the bell in a tower makes _____ I. Tick
10. A gunshot _____ J. Tweet
11. The sound that a snake makes _____ K. Vroom

4. Personification

Story writers often give human quality to animals or inanimate objects to inject life into the stories.
e.g. The flowers danced beautifully.
e.g. The breeze brushed the kid’s rosy cheeks gently.

5. Hyperbole

A hyperbole is an exaggerated statement to heighten effects.

e.g. She was annoyed as her mind was occupied by millions of things.
e.g. The pimple on my face was bigger than a golf ball.

S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 5

Practice
I. Read the following extracts and answer the questions.
A. Johnsy’s eyes were wide open. She was looking out the window. She was counting – counting
backward.
‘Twelve,’ she said. Then, a little later, ‘Eleven.’ Next came ten and nine. Finally she said, ‘Eight.’
Sue was worried. She glanced out the window. What was there to count? There was only a bare,
dreary yard to be seen. The yard, and the side of the brick house twenty feet away. An old, old ivy
vine crawled up the brick wall. The cold breath of autumn had touched the vine. Its skeleton
branches were almost bare.
‘What is it, Johnsy?’ asked Sue.
‘Seven,’said Johnsy. She spoke in almost a whisper. ‘They’re falling faster now. Three days ago
there were almost a hundred. It made my head ache to count them. But now it’s easy. There goes
another one. There are only six left now.’
‘Six what, Johnsy? Tell me!’
‘Leaves. On the ivy vine. When the last one flies, I must go, too. I’ve known that for three days.
Didn’t the doctor tell you?’

B. … Her face was white. She lay still as a fallen statue. ‘You see, I want to see that last leaf fall. I’m
tired of waiting. I’m tired of thinking. I want to turn loose my hold on everything. Then I’ll go
sailing down, down. Just like one of those poor, tired leaves.’

C. The night passed slowly. When it was light enough, Johnsy spoke aloud. She order that the shade
be raised.
The ivy leaf was still there.
Johnsy lay for a long time looking at it. Sue finally left for the kitchen. And then Johnsy called to
Sue, who stopped stirring the chicken soup at once.
‘I’ve been a bad girl, Susie,’ Johnsy said. ‘Something has made that last leaf stay there. Why? To
show me how wicked I was. It’s a sin to want to die. You can bring me a little soup now. And
some milk. No! Bring me a hand mirror first. Then pack some pillows behind me. I want to sit
up.’
Adapted from O Henry, The Last Leaf

1. In extract A, find three sentences that use personification to describe the vine and underline them.
Why do you think personification is used here?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________

2. In extract B, find two sentences that use similes and underline them. What ideas are represented in
those similes?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________

3. According to extract C, what does the last leaf mean to Johnsy?

_______________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________

4. The title of this story is The Last Leaf. What do you think the last leaf symbolizes?
_______________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________

S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 6

II. Rewrite the following paragraph using figurative language. Use at least one example of alliteration (A),
simile (S), metaphor (M), hyperbole (H) and onomatopoeia (O). Try to use suitable adjectives to make
the story more interesting. Underline the figurative language in your story and indicate the examples
with letters.

It was a sunny morning. The sun was shining. Eric looked at his canoe. It would be a perfect day
to go sea sailing, Eric thought. He took the canoe to a beach nearby his father’s house. The sea
was calm. He paddled the canoe slowly. The canoe moved forward. Soon he found himself
outside a limestone cave. The opening was not very big but it would be enough for him and his
canoe to go through. He heard birds singing on branches of trees. He paddled his canoe slowly
into a tunnel.

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S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 7

short story: A woman like me
1. Brainstorming

“A woman like me is actually unsuitable for any man’s love.”

What kind of women would be unsuitable for men’s love?

2. About the Author

Xi Xi (b. 1938) is the pen name of Cheung Yin. She was born in Canton, China and moved to Hong Kong in
1950, where she graduated from the Normal College. Xi Xi has worked as a teacher and editor of a literary
magazine. Although she lives in Hong Kong, she publishes most of her work in Taiwan. She has influenced
a number of Taiwan’s contemporary writers. Her publications include the novel The Hunter Who Whistles to
Bait a Deer (1983) and the short-story collection Beard with a Face (1986).

3. The Story

 What kind of job does Xi Xi have?

 Would you mind having a girlfriend/ boyfriend doing this job? Why/ why not?
 How is Xi Xi characterized? What sense(s) has/ have been used in the description?

S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 8

  If you were Xi Xi, would you tell Xia? Why/ Why not? When and how would you tell him?
 “Love is actually extraordinarily fragile and pliable.” Do you agree?

S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 9

  “Men everywhere like women who are gentle, warm, and sweet, and such women are expected to
work at jobs that are intimate, graceful and elegant.” To what extent is it true in society?

4.

S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 10

 Questions for discussion

 Analyze the figurative language used.

 Characterize the character of the narrator.
o Gather details from the story that reveal what she is like.
o How is she like? Explore her positive and negative characteristics, her beliefs and conflicts.

 “Should I keep Xia completely in the dark about it?” If you were the narrator, would you tell Xia that
you worked as a makeup artist for the dead? Give reasons for your answer.

 Predict what you think Xia might do when he finds out what the narrator does for a living.

 Hot seating:

Qualities/ Questions for him/

Characters Possible Answers
Character her

Xi Xi

Xia

5.

S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 11

 Long Writing – Learning English through Short Stories

You are the narrator of the story “A Woman Like Me”. Write your diary/blog entry in 400 words about either
one of the following events.
1) Your monologue when you are doing the cosmetic work on one of the bodies of the deceased.
2) The date you had with Xia on Sunday and what happened after meeting him at the coffee shop.

S5 GE/ Learning English Through Short Stories 02 – Figurative Language 12