Poetic and Interesting Language

(in-class activity)

"The etymologist finds the deadest word to have been once a brilliant picture. Language is fossil poetry. As the limestone of the continent consists of infinite masses of the shells of animalcules, so language is made up of images, or tropes, which now, in their secondary use, have long ceased to remind us of their poetic origin."

- Ralph Waldo Emerson, from "The Poet" (1844)
Instructions: Complete the activities below. Your responses will be automatically saved as you type. When finished, download your completed worksheet.

Reference Links:
• The Average Fourth Grader Is a Better Poet Than You
• Difficult Words to Translate
1.
Invent two 'difficult to translate words' and provide a definition for both.
Consider how Strange Planet creator Nathan Pyle uses language to make everyday things seem odd or unfamiliar (people who study literature call this 'defamiliarization').
2.
Describe something that you do every day in a defamiliarizing, alien way.
3.
Who was the most memorable stranger you ever met? (Not including celebrities).
Describe what made them memorable in as much detail as possible.