Louder than a Clap of Thunder
by Jack Prelutsky
The Poem :
"Louder than a clap of thunder;
louder than an eagle screams,
louder than a dragon blunders,
or a dozen football teams,
louder than a four alarmer,
or a rushing waterfall,
louder than a knight in armour
jumping from a ten-foot wall.
Louder than an earthquake rumbles,
louder than a tidal wave,
louder than an ogre grumbles
as he stumbles through his cave,
louder than stampeding cattle,
louder than a cannon roars,
louder than a giant's rattle,
that's how loud my father SNORES!"
Summary of the Poem :
We hear many types of sounds all the day. In this poem the poet Jack Prelutsky very humorously compares the sound of his father's snoring with various kind of sounds. At the end of the poem he says that the snoring of his father is louder than all those sounds.
At the first stanza, the poet refers to the sounds of - a clap of thunder; the screaming of an eagle; the blunders of a dragon; a dozen of football teams, four alarmer of the fire brigade, rushing of a waterfall; the jumping of a knight in armour from a ten-foot wall. All these are not as loud as the snoring of the father of the poet.
Then in the second stanza, the poet further refers to the sounds of - the rumble of an earthquake; a tidal wave; the grumbles of an ogre as he stumbles through his cave; the sound of the stampeding cattle; the roaring of a cannon; the rattle of a giant. These sounds are also fade in comparison to the snoring of his father.
Making connections
1. Draw lines to match the pictures to the sounds or noisy movements described in the poem.
=
grumbles = Ogre;
rushing = Waterfall;
screams = Eagle;
roars = Cannon;
clap = Thunder;
blunders = Dragon;
2. Read these lines and answer the questions that follow.
a. "louder than a cannon roars,
louder than a giant's rattle,
that's how loud my father SNORES!"
i. What are the two sounds described in these lines?
= The two sounds that are described in these lines are - the roars of a cannon and the rattle of a giant.
ii. Why does the poet list these sounds?
= The poet lists these sounds to compare them with the snoring of his father and to show that his father snores louder than all these sounds.
iii. Which other word in the poem is a synonym for 'giant'?
= The other word in the poem which is a synonym for 'giant' is - ogre.
b. "louder than an ogre grumbles
as he stumbles through his cave,
louder than stampeding cattle,"
i. Which two words in these lines describe movements?
= Two words in these lines which describe movements are - stumbles and stampeding.
ii. Which word best describes the ogre : 'clumsy' or 'sure-footed'?
= The word which best describes the ogre is - 'clumsy'.
iii. Circle the three words that rhyme most closely with 'cattle' and 'rattle'.
[ bottle; battle; kettle; prattle; skittle; wattle; tattle;]
= battle; prattle; and tattle;
3. Of all the sounds listed in the poem, which one do you think would be the loudest? Give a reason for your choice.
= Of all the sounds listed in the poem, I think the grumbles of an ogre would be the loudest.
The ogre is a giant creature found in the fairy tales. As the ogre is the largest thing or creature among all the things described in the poem, so his sound will be the loudest amongst all.
4. What do you think makes this poem humorous?
= I think the last line of the poem makes the poem humorous. The poem has been started in a serious tone, describing such loud and threatening sounds. The readers must have got an assumption that they are being compared with a much more serious or dangerous sound. But at the end of the poem we come to know that the poem is comparing all those scary sounds with the snoring of his father only. This makes the poem all humorous and enjoyable to read.
About the Poet:
Jack Prelutsky is the author of more than fifty collections of poems. He was named the first Children's Poet Laureate by the Poetry Foundation in 2006.