In this session, we will be bringing you the updated answers for CommonLit Funeral topic.
Table of Contents
Funeral CommonLit Answer Key
Let us first read Funeral passage and will answer at the end.
Note: Feel free to skip reading the below passage if you are here to get just answers. Both the questions and answers are shared below.
FUNERAL
by Ralph Fletcher, who is an American writer known for his children’s picture books, adult fiction, and poetry. In this excerpt from his memoir, the author describes taking a trip into the forest with his friends.
On our last morning in Marshfield, the doorbell rang at nine o’clock. When I opened it I saw Andy, Steve, and Larry standing together. I was surprised to see them.
“C’mon, we’re taking you to the woods,” Larry said.
Dad came downstairs carrying two suitcases.
“Can I go into the woods?” I asked Dad. He shook his head.
“We’re leaving in less than an hour.”
“Please, Dad,” I pleaded.
“Just one last time?”
“All right, but we’re leaving at 10 o’clock sharp,” he said. “When you hear me beep the horn, you come right away, okay?”
“Okay,” I promised and followed my friends outside. They were walking in a funny way, the way you do when you’re hiding a secret.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“We’re having a funeral,” Andy replied with a solemn face.
“For who?”
“You,” Steve explained.
“A funeral!” I laughed. “Hey, I’m moving. I’m not dead!”
“You’ll be dead to us,” Larry pointed out.
We entered Ale’s Woods on a path I’d run down thousands of times. I knew every rock and mushroom and pine tree by heart. In the middle of the woods, my friends stopped.
“There!” Steve said, pointing to a small indentation on the forest floor. “Lie down, dead man!”
I lay down. The ground was thick with pine needles and soft. My friends picked up
big clumps of pine needles and started sprinkling them over my body.
“Hey!” I protested.
“Be quiet,” Larry ordered. “You’re dead, remember? Keep your eyes closed.”
“Just don’t get it on my face,” I muttered. They kept sprinkling the pine needles on me until my limbs and body were covered, and I could feel them, like a lightweight blanket.
hug
“Should an acquaintance be forgotten —,” Steve sang.
“You don’t sing that at a funeral,” Larry interrupted. “You sing that on New Year’s Eve!”
Andy loudly cleared his throat. “Hear ye, hear ye, hear ye,” he announced.
“We have gathered here to lay to rest the soul of our departed friend, Ralph Fletcher. Would anyone like to speak?”
“I would,” Steve said. “Ralph Fletcher was a good friend. Last year I had to do summer school. He came by every day to walk me home.”
“He was a good friend,” Larry agreed. “About a month ago, John Berkowitz tried to beat me up, and Ralph told John, ‘You’ll have to beat me up first.’ So, John Berkowitz punched him instead. He was a brave friend. Stupid, but brave!”
Everyone laughed, including me.
“He was a good friend,” Andy began, then stopped. I lay on the pine needles, eyes shut, smelling the mix of the piney smell and the good… [CONTINUE READING FROM MAIN SITE ITSELF]
Let us now discuss CommonLit Funeral answers to the questions asked:
Q1. Which two phrases or sentences from the text support the main character’s point of view?
Ans:
-> “Usually I hated it when my friends ditched me, but this time it felt different.” (paragraph 33)
-> “Ralph Fletcher was a good friend. Last year I had to do summer school. He came by every day to walk me home.” (paragraph 25)
Q2. PART A: How does Ralph’s funeral contribute to the development of the story’s plot?
Ans: It emphasizes how much Ralph meant to the boys as a friend.
Q3. PART B: Which detail from the text best supports the answer to Part A?
Ans: “Then he whispered: ‘He was the brother I never had.’ (Paragraph 29)
Q4. Part A: What effect does the following sentence have on the overall structure? “My eyes started to water. I tilted my head so they wouldn’t notice, and stayed quiet. Nobody spoke. I thought of all the things I’d done with these guys.” (Paragraph 32)
Ans: The figurative language used sets the tone that finalizes the resolution.
Q5. Part B: What effect does the sentence have on the meaning of the text?
Ans: It develops the theme, “Goodbyes can be hard, but they help us appreciate our friendships.”
Q6. Select two lines from the passage that illustrate information the reader would likely miss if the story were written from a different point of view.
Ans:
-> “Usually I hated it when my friends ditched me, but this time it felt different. In a strange way, I was glad they were gone.”
-> “Okay,” I promised, and followed my friends outside. They were walking in a funny way, the way you do when you’re hiding a secret.”
Q7. What is the impact of the author’s use of imagery on tone in the following lines from paragraph 33? “In a strange way, I was glad they were gone. For a while I just laid there, looking up at the trees. I heard a car horn beeping.”
Ans: The imagery of “looking up” demonstrates the lost mood of the speaker.
Q8. How does the phrase “stepped into my new life” contribute to the meaning of the text? “Then I stood up and stepped into my new life, whatever that might be.” (Paragraph 35)
Ans: It reveals that he is accepting of the move and the new things that will come with it.
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Hope you got the correct Funeral CommonLit Answer Key which is shared above.
WPFaspe, the prolific author behind the enlightening works housed within Faspe, passionately contributes to the educational haven as a beacon for educators, parents, and students. With a resolute commitment to nurturing the unfolding journey of education, WPFaspe’s writing encapsulates a dedication to fostering growth, curiosity, and learning at every step, embodying the fundamental belief that education is a perpetual voyage rather than a mere destination.
