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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Section 1: "O Captain! My Captain!" lines 1-24.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What is the most accurate way to describe the poem's stanza form?
(a) Double quatrain.
(b) Octave.
(c) Sestet.
(d) Double tercet.

2. What is a "keel" (line 4)?
(a) A part of a ship's steering mechanism, found at the back of the ship.
(b) The central and largest sail on a three-masted ship.
(c) A measurement of the speed a ship is traveling.
(d) A flat structure at the bottom of a ship, designed to add stability.

3. In context, the word "fearful" in line 1 indicates that the trip was which of the following?
(a) A bad idea from the beginning.
(b) Full of frightening obstacles.
(c) A metaphor for an internal struggle.
(d) The cause of the captain's death.

4. The poem's title and first line contain an example of which technique?
(a) Simile.
(b) Apostrophe.
(c) Synechdoche.
(d) Personification.

5. Which technique is evident in the phrase "for you the flag is flung" (line 10)?
(a) Sibilance.
(b) Assonance.
(c) Cacophony.
(d) Alliteration.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does the phrase "swaying mass" refer to (line 12)?

2. Which details in the second stanza evoke a patriotic occasion?

3. In context, the literal meaning of the word "rack" in line two is which of the following?

4. What is the most common type of metrical foot in "O Captain! My Captain!"?

5. Who is the speaker of the poem?

(see the answer key)

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