33 pages 1 hour read

Pablo Neruda

A Dog Has Died

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1999

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Literary Device Questions

1. What literary device is exemplified by Neruda’s use of a repeated phrase (or phrases) within his poem? (short answer)

2. Which of these is an example of parallelism in the poem?

A) “I believe in a heaven I’ll never enter. / Yes, I believe in a heaven for all dogdom”

B) “Ai, I'll not speak of sadness here on earth, / of having lost a companion”

C) “No, my dog used to gaze at me, / paying me the attention I need”

D) “with his golden tail held high, / face to face with the ocean's spray.”

3. Which of these is an example of repetition?

A)  “. . . of their shameless spirit”

B)  “Joyful, joyful, joyful”

C) “There are no goodbyes for my dog who has died”

D) “. . . all his sweet and shaggy life”

4. What does the sea symbolize in the poem?

A) boundless freedom and in-the-moment joy

B) danger and the possibility of death

C) fear of a vast, unknown expanse

D) the energetic possibility of life still to come

blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
Unlock IconUnlock all 33 pages of this Study Guide
Plus, gain access to 8,400+ more expert-written Study Guides.
Including features:
+ Mobile App
+ Printable PDF
+ Literary AI Tools