Preview
Copywork
About This Passage
Montgomery makes Matthew's moral crisis visceral through a farm metaphor that would feel natural to his own consciousness. The word 'murdering' — not 'disappointing' or 'hurting' — elevates a social awkwardness into an ethical catastrophe. The dash introduces the comparison almost as an afterthought, as though Matthew himself is surprised by the intensity of his own feeling. The passage models how metaphor can carry moral weight.
When he thought of that rapt light being quenched in her eyes he had an uncomfortable feeling that he was going to assist at murdering something — much the same feeling that came over him when he had ...
Full copywork activity with handwriting lines available in the complete study guide.
Discussion Questions
Narration Prompt
Summarize this chapter, then explain what you think the author most wanted the reader to notice or feel. What techniques did the author use?
Discussion Questions
- Montgomery describes Anne through two lenses — the 'ordinary observer' who sees ugliness and the 'extraordinary observer' who sees spirit. This is not a neutral description; the author is telling us HOW to read her protagonist. What are the implications of Montgomery instructing the reader this explicitly, and does this technique strengthen or weaken the characterization?
- Anne says the Avenue was 'the first thing I ever saw that couldn't be improved upon by imagination.' If Anne's entire identity is built on the power of imagination to transform reality, what does it mean when reality finally surpasses imagination? Is this a triumph or a crisis for Anne's worldview?
+ 3 more questions in the complete study guide
Vocabulary Builder
Item 1
Spirited, energetic liveliness that radiates from a person's presence — the quality the 'extraordinary observer' detects in Anne's eyes
Item 2
With a feeling of ecstatic joy that removes one temporarily from ordinary consciousness
Item 3
With reluctant acceptance of something painful — surrendering to a reality one cannot change
+ 5 more vocabulary words in the complete study guide
Critical Thinking
+ 6 more questions in the complete study guide
Get the complete study guide — free
Sign up and get your first book with every chapter included. Copywork, discussion questions, vocabulary, and critical thinking.
Sign up free