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Difficulty: MediumSymbolism and Motifs

Read the following poem carefully before choosing your answer.

The Hearth-Stone

Upon the cold and silent hearth-stone lies
A single ember, wrapped in greyest ash,
That neither flares to meet the winter skies
Nor fades beneath the rain’s persistent lash.
For years the ashes grew, a heavy shroud (5)
To keep the spark from blowing into flame,
While outside, winds of summer cried aloud
And seasons went as quickly as they came.
It is no spark to warm a drafty room,
Nor beacon lit to guide a traveler home; (10)
It is a secret kept against the gloom,
A quiet fire that burns to burn alone.

In the context of the poem as a whole, the "single ember, wrapped in greyest ash" (line 2) functions primarily as a symbol of which of the following?

  1. A
    a conventional literary sign of physical decay and impending mortality
  2. B
    the literal residue of a neglected fireplace in an abandoned residence
  3. the speaker's preserved but deliberately guarded capacity for emotionAnswer
  4. D
    the poet's biographical isolation from contemporary artistic movements
  5. E
    an alliterative device that draws attention to the sound of the line rather than conveying symbolic meaning

Answer

the speaker's preserved but deliberately guarded capacity for emotion
The correct option is correct because the poem details how the ember is protected by a "heavy shroud" of ash and characterizes it as "a secret kept against the gloom" and "a quiet fire that burns to burn alone." This indicates that the ember represents the speaker's internal, guarded capacity for feeling, memory, or passion, preserved in isolation from the external world.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the description of the "ember" and "ash" in the first stanza.
The ember is "wrapped in greyest ash" and neither flares nor fades, suggesting a state of stasis and preservation.
To understand the physical attributes of the symbol before determining its figurative meaning.
2
Examine the second and third stanzas for the function and purpose of this ember.
The ash is a "heavy shroud" to keep it from blowing into flame, and the final lines describe it as a "secret kept" and a "quiet fire that burns to burn alone."
To trace how the meaning of the symbol is developed through the speaker's explanation of its purpose.
3
Synthesize these findings to identify the symbolic value of the ember.
The ember represents the speaker's internal, protected emotional capacity or memory, which they deliberately shield from the outside world.
To select the option that accurately reflects this interpretation without falling into literal reading, biographical conflation, or cliché symbolism.

Key Concept

Symbolism and Motifs
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Topics

Symbolism and Motifs

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