Student Question
Explain "The Pedlar's Caravan" by W.B. Rands using terms like simile and metaphor.
Quick answer:
"The Pedlar's Caravan" by W.B. Rands uses onomatopoeia to depict the caravan's movement with phrases like "Rumble and splash." The poem also employs a simile in the final line, comparing the speaker's future book to the travels of Captain Cook, highlighting the dream of adventure and exploration. The imagery of the horse-drawn wagon enhances the idealized view of the pedlar's life.
Rands' poem about wishing to join a pedlar's caravan is about the dream of traveling the world. The speaker of the poem views the life as ideal because the pedlar takes his home and family with him on his journeys. To improve on these desires, the poem describes the horse-drawn wagon that has two windows and a chimney of tin. To further show how fun it would be, Rands uses onomatopoeia to describe the caravan bouncing along roads and through water when he writes, "The world is round and he can ride,/Rumble and splash to the other side! (15-16). At the end of the poem, the speaker says that when he gets back home, he will write a book about is journeys around the world and everyone would read it, "Just like the travels of Captain Cook" (20). The last line is a simile comparing his book and travels to the popularity of those of Captain Cook.
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