Samuel Pepys: diary-the fire of London 1666

Question 1

when was the extract written?

Answer 1

2 september 1666 (whole diary kept from 1660-1690)

Question 2

first sentence

Answer 2

2nd (Lord’s day)
-Sunday the 2nd of September

Question 3

‘a great fire’

Answer 3

a simple modifier
-more engaging
-size is large
-powerful fire

Question 4

‘thought it to be on the back side of Marke-lane’

‘fish street by London Bridge’

Answer 4

semantic field of geography/places affected by the fire.
-good geographical knowledge
-he is well educated/wealthy

Question 5

‘I thought it far enough off’

Answer 5

prepositional phrase
detached POV-factual

Question 6

‘so to my closet to set things right’

Answer 6

personal housework-sense of vanity-unbothered by the fire

Question 7

‘high places’

Answer 7

vantage point-see the fire from further away

Question 8

‘infinite great fire’

Answer 8

double intensifier

Question 9

‘poor little Michell and our Sarah’

Answer 9

concerned for his friends-sympathetic
however, he is not worried about other people affected by the fire.

Question 10

‘poor people’

Answer 10

modifier-lower class or pitiful

Question 11

‘loth to leave their houses’

Answer 11

archaism-loathe/hate

Question 12

‘in an hour’s time’
‘about twelve o’clock’

Answer 12

time adverbials-chronology

Question 13

‘where people come about me’

Answer 13

prepositional-suggests high social standing

Question 14

‘every creature coming away’

Answer 14

dehumanising the poor

Question 15

‘burning, as pitch and tar, in Thames-street; and warehouses of ole, and wines, and brandy, and other things’

Answer 15

olfactory imagery (smells)
polysyndetic listing

Question 16

‘the churches all filling with goods by people’

Answer 16

on the sabbath-rest-juxtaposition
the church is seen as a place of sanctuary

Question 17

‘extraordinary good dinner, and as merry as at this time as we could be’

Answer 17

not overly concerned about the fire-selfish
positive modifiers ‘good’, ‘merry’ - ironic giving the situation (fire)

Question 18

‘the wind carries it’

Answer 18

wider theme of nature’s power over man-the insignificance of man

Question 19

‘horrid malicious flame’

Answer 19

hyperbole list

Question 20

‘cracking houses at their ruin’

Answer 20

phonology

Question 21

frequent discourse marker ‘so’

Answer 21

(adverb)

piling on of detail. development of the account

Question 22

diary schema

Answer 22

time and place adverbs typical