Question

Lesson 2 Worksheet: Syntax & Poetic Technique
Part 1: Opening – Syntax Makeover
Rewrite the plain sentence THREE different ways by changing syntax.
Plain sentence: I walked into school today feeling the same as always.
Rewrite 1: ________________________________________________
Rewrite 2: ________________________________________________
Rewrite 3: ________________________________________________
Part 2: Mini-Lesson Notes
Stanza structure:
Rhyme scheme:
Repetition:
Imagery:
Figurative language:
Rhythm & pacing:
Syntax in poetry (line breaks, punctuation):
Part 3: Annotation Practice – We Wear the Mask
Identify one example of figurative language:
__________________________________________________________
Describe imagery you notice:
__________________________________________________________
Identify the tone of the stanza:
__________________________________________________________
What structural choice stands out (syntax, stanza, rhyme)?
__________________________________________________________














Part 4: Closing Question
How does the poet’s choice of syntax shape the speaker’s voice? Provide evidence from the
poem:
__________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________

Answer 1

Part 1: Opening – Syntax Makeover
Plain sentence: I walked into school today feeling the same as always.

Rewrite 1: Today I walked into school, feeling the same as always.
Rewrite 2: Feeling the same as always, I walked into school today.
Rewrite 3: Into school I walked today, feeling no different than usual.

Part 2: Mini-Lesson Notes
- Stanza structure: Stanzas are grouped lines that organize a poem’s ideas. Dunbar’s poem is divided into short stanzas that isolate images and reinforce the repeated idea (the mask).
- Rhyme scheme: End rhymes appear regularly and create closure and musicality; Dunbar uses consistent rhyme patterns within stanzas and a repeating refrain to unify the poem.
- Repetition: Repeated words/lines (especially the refrain “We wear the mask”) emphasize the central theme and produce a chant-like, communal voice.
- Imagery: Concrete sensory details (e.g., “cheeks,” “eyes,” “torn and bleeding hearts”) create vivid visual and emotional pictures for the reader.
- Figurative language: Metaphor and personification dominate (the “mask” stands for false appearances; the mask “grins and lies”), and paradox (smiling while bleeding) highlights inner conflict.
- Rhythm & pacing: Short lines, regular rhyme, and pauses (commas, dashes) control speed—often steady, restrained, and somber; enjambment can push the reader forward or delay resolution.
- Syntax in poetry (line breaks, punctuation): Line breaks and punctuation determine emphasis and rhythm; fronted phrases or inversion can spotlight feelings, and dashes/caesuras create hesitation or measured restraint.

Part 3: Annotation Practice – We Wear the Mask
- Example of figurative language:
“We wear the mask that grins and lies.” (metaphor + personification: the mask both stands for concealment and is given human actions)
- Describe imagery you notice:
Visual and visceral images: hidden cheeks and shaded eyes, “torn and bleeding hearts,” forced smiles—images of physical wounding and concealment that make inner pain visible.
- Identify the tone of the stanza:
Mournful and bitterly resigned / ironic — sorrow over suffering coupled with weary acceptance of the need to hide it.
- What structural choice stands out (syntax, stanza, rhyme)?
The repeated refrain “We wear the mask” and the fronted phrase “With torn and bleeding hearts we smile” stand out. The refrain creates a collective, ritual tone; the fronted prepositional phrase emphasizes inner pain before the action of smiling.

Part 4: Closing Question
How does the poet’s choice of syntax shape the speaker’s voice? Provide evidence from the poem:

- Use of “we” (collective subject) creates a communal voice—this is not an individual complaint but a shared, enforced behavior: “We wear the mask…”
- Fronting and inversion place emotional images before actions, which highlights internal suffering: “With torn and bleeding hearts we smile” foregrounds the wound and then shows the forced response (smile), making the voice feel burdened and disciplined.
- Short declarative lines, repeated refrain, and strategic pauses (commas/dashes) produce a measured, controlled tone—the voice is restrained, hiding anguish behind an outward calm. Evidence: the recurring line “We wear the mask” and the pause after “It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes,—” (the dash creates a withheld beat) both reinforce the speaker’s suppressed emotion and weary resolve.