1. In the 3 stanza of the poem, Ogden writes, "The hangman judged with the yellow
twist/of knotted hemp in his busy fist." What do you think the word "hemp" means?

"Hemp" means the rope which the hangman is carrying. His job is to hang people, so it is just normal that he is carrying it.

Explanation:

"The Hangman" is a poem written by Maurice Ogden. It is used to describe the setting of Germany in the 1930s.

The "hangman" in the poem hanged the people one after the other. People in the society would just watch and find reasons why the hangman was hanging the victims. People here were just "by-standers" waiting to be hanged. They never did anything. The poem is meant to teach people that it is a social responsibility to go against rules which oppresses the society. This is what happened in Germany, especially with what happened during the Holocaust.