Chapter 19 · A Poem

Exiled

A homesick heart, a longed-for coastline, and a city that never feels like home

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Tec — The Education Consultancy | Grade 8 English Lesson & Worksheet

Searching my heart for its true sorrow,
This is the thing I find to be:
That I am weary of words and people,
Sick of the city, wanting the sea;

Wanting the sticky, salty sweetness
Of the strong wind and shattered spray;
Wanting the loud sound and the soft sound
Of the big surf that breaks all day.

Always before about my dooryard,
Marking the reach of the winter sea,
Rooted in sand and dragging drift-wood,
Straggled the purple wild sweet-pea;

Always I climbed the wave at morning,
Shook the sand from my shoes at night,
That now am caught beneath great buildings,
Stricken with noise, confused with light.

If I could hear the green piles groaning
Under the windy wooden piers,
See once again the bobbing barrels,
And the black sticks that fence the weirs,

If I could see the weedy mussels
Crusting the wrecked and rotting hulls,
Hear once again the hungry crying
Overhead, of the wheeling gulls,

Feel once again the shanty straining
Under the turning of the tide,
Fear once again the rising freshet,
Dread the bell in the fog outside,—

I should be happy,—that was happy
All day long on the coast of Maine!
I have a need to hold and handle
Shells and anchors and ships again!

I should be happy, that am happy
Never at all since I came here.
I am too long away from water.
I have a need of water near.

— Edna St. Vincent Millay

About the Poet: Edna St. Vincent Millay (1892–1950) was an American lyric poet and playwright, widely celebrated for the emotional intensity and technical skill of her verse. Born in Rockland, Maine — a state whose rocky coastline deeply shaped her imagination — she went on to become one of the most admired and widely read American poets of the early twentieth century, and was the third woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry.

Vocabulary

piles — heavy posts driven vertically into the sea bed to support a large structure, such as a pier

weirs — an enclosure of stakes set in a stream as a trap for fish

mussels — small, orange sea creatures that live inside a black oval shell made of two parts that close tightly together, and anchor themselves to hard surfaces

shanty — a small, roughly built hut or shack, often near the shore

freshet — a sudden rise in the level of a stream, often caused by heavy rain or melting snow

dooryard — the yard in front of the door of a house

straggled — grew or spread in an untidy, scattered way

stricken — badly affected or overwhelmed by something distressing

Worksheet — Exiled

Comprehension · Vocabulary · Poetic Appreciation — Grade 8

Name:

Class:

Date:

Score:

A. Questions

1. What "true sorrow" does the poet discover when she searches her heart?

She discovers that she is weary of words and people, and sick of city life, longing instead for the sea.

2. What details from her past life by the sea does the poet recall with longing?

She recalls the salty wind and spray, the sound of the surf, the wild sweet-pea by her dooryard, climbing waves each morning, groaning piers, bobbing barrels, mussels, gulls, and the fear of fog and rising tides.

3. How does the poet describe her current life in the city?

She describes herself as caught beneath great buildings, "stricken with noise" and "confused with light," suggesting she feels overwhelmed and out of place.

4. What is the poet's final, direct statement about her need?

She states plainly that she has been too long away from water and has a genuine need of water near her.

B. Multiple Choice Questions

1.What does the poet say she is "sick of"?

The sea

The city✓

Her old home

Writing poetry

2.What flower does the poet recall growing near her old dooryard?

Roses

Purple wild sweet-pea✓

Daisies

Tulips

3.What US state's coast does the poet mention by name?

California

Maine✓

Florida

Oregon

4.How does the poet describe her feelings in the city, in terms of noise and light?

Calm and peaceful

Stricken with noise, confused with light✓

Excited and thrilled

Bored and sleepy

5.What does the poet say she has a need to "hold and handle" again?

Books and pens

Shells, anchors, and ships✓

City lights

Flowers and vines

6.Who wrote the poem "Exiled"?

Emily Dickinson

Edna St. Vincent Millay✓

Eleanor Farjeon

Walter de la Mare

C. True or False

1. The poet feels a deep sorrow rooted in missing the sea.
TrueFalse
2. The poet feels completely at home and content in the city.
TrueFalse
3. The poet recalls climbing waves and shaking sand from her shoes in her old life.
TrueFalse
4. The poet describes even fearful sea memories, like fog and rising tides, with longing.
TrueFalse
5. The poem ends with the poet deciding to remain in the city permanently, fully satisfied.
TrueFalse
6. The poet states she has been happy every day since moving to the city.
TrueFalse

D. Match the Words with Their Meanings

1. piles → (c)

2. weirs → (a)

3. freshet → (d)

4. dooryard → (b)

5. stricken → (e)

a. an enclosure of stakes set in a stream as a trap for fish

b. the yard in front of the door of a house

c. heavy posts driven into the sea bed to support a structure

d. a sudden rise in the level of a stream

e. badly affected or overwhelmed by something distressing

E. Theme

1. What is the central theme of "Exiled"?

The poem explores homesickness and a deep longing for one's true, natural home — showing how the noise and artificiality of city life can leave a person feeling disconnected and incomplete when separated from a landscape they love.

2. Why do you think the poet chose to title the poem "Exiled" rather than something like "Homesick"?

Open-ended — accept answers noting that "exiled" suggests a forced, more painful separation, as though she has been cast out or cut off from where she truly belongs, which is a stronger and more dramatic word than simple homesickness.

F. Figurative Language

1. The poet describes herself as "caught beneath great buildings, / Stricken with noise, confused with light." What effect does this imagery create?

This vivid sensory imagery conveys a feeling of being trapped and overwhelmed, contrasting sharply with the open, natural freedom of her memories of the sea.

2. The poem repeats the word "Wanting" at the start of several lines in the second stanza. What is this technique called, and what effect does it create?

This is anaphora (repetition at the start of successive lines) — it builds a rising, insistent rhythm that mirrors the intensity and urgency of the poet's longing for the sea.

3. "I have a need of water near." Why might this closing line be considered especially powerful, despite its simple wording?

Open-ended — accept answers noting that its plain, direct language delivers the poem's emotional core with striking simplicity, letting the raw honesty of her need speak for itself after the vivid, detailed imagery that came before it.

G. Critical Thinking

1. Do you think a person's sense of "home" is tied more to a specific place, or to the people and life they build there? Use the poem to support your answer.

Open-ended — accept a reasoned personal opinion, ideally referencing how the poem focuses almost entirely on landscape and sensory memory rather than people, suggesting that for this poet, a specific physical place is central to her sense of belonging.

2. Have you ever felt "exiled" from a place, activity, or way of life you loved? Describe the feeling in your own words.

Open-ended — accept any honest, reflective personal response connecting to the poem's theme of longing for a lost or distant place. (Teacher's discretion.)