1. Invictus by Willaim Ernest Henley Title is Latin for unconquerable 1. read poem aloud 2. Number the stanzas and lines 3. analyze true meaning by cracking the code of figurative language

2. Stanza One What is night a metaphor for in line 1? Suffering of any kind How is this metaphor part of a simile/hyperbole in line 2? Compares darkness of suffering to blackness of hellish pit (simile) stretching from the north pole to the south pole (hyperbole) In line 3 and 4, does the speaker believe in afterlife? Why? No…death cannot even conquer his/her soul In line 4, how does unconquerable establish the theme? Invictus means unconquerable in Latin, so the speaker will not be defeated by any hardship that arises no matter how horrible

3. Stanza Two How does the stanza begin with a metaphor? What is being compared? Comparing circumstance to a creature with a deadly grip (fell clutch) How is alliteration used in this stanza? Clutch/circumstance/cried….not/nor…bloody/unbowed/but

4. Stanza Three In line 10, shade is a metaphor. What is being compared? Shade and death In this same line, what does horror suggest? That the speaker does believes in an afterlife even though it seems contradictory from the third line in first stanza. What is menace of the years a metaphor for? Old age

5. Stanza Four What does strait mean? Narrow/restricted What must the speaker do to overcome the obstacles of “the fell clutch of circumstance” and “bludgeoning’s of chance”? Pass through a narrow gate What does the speaker believe he/she can do? He can get through any tight spot or negative situation in spite of the punishments/consequences of fate because his/her Will/motivation/will-power/determiniation will not allow him/her to bend/give up