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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 5 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

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

2. Where is the ship in the beginning of the poem?

3. What is the rhyme pattern of the first four lines of each stanza?

4. What is the most accurate way to describe the poem's stanza form?

5. The poem's title and first line contain an example of which technique?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the form of "O Captain! My Captain!"

2. What evidence is there that the speaker is struggling to understand and process the captain's death?

3. Explain the allegorical nature of the poem's central conceit.

4. What ironic contrast do the poem's images highlight?

5. What elements of the poem's diction establish a warm and personal relationship between the speaker and the captain?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does Whitman's use of musical devices support the poem's theme? Write an essay that identifies where Whitman uses assonance, consonance, and alliteration and explains the effect these devices create. Then, tie Whitman's use of these devices to the poem's larger thematic concerns.

Essay Topic 2

How do the metrical and rhyme schemes of "O Captain! My Captain!" support the poem's larger thematic concerns? Write an essay that describes the rhyme and meter used in the poem. Then, tie these choices to Whitman's larger thematic concerns in this poem.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you propose and defend a statement of theme for "O Captain! My Captain!" that takes into account key features of the poem: the celebration of Lincoln and grief over his death, the interrelated nature of victory and loss, and the relationship between the individual and the group. Offer both quoted and paraphrased evidence from the poem in support of your claims.

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