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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 7 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Where does the speaker say she obtained her gifts?
(a) From well-chosen friends.
(b) From effort and hard work.
(c) From the passage of time.
(d) From her ancestors.

2. Which is the most logical description of who "You" is in line 1?
(a) Scholars and critics.
(b) An unnamed oppressor.
(c) People of the past.
(d) A romantic partner.

3. Which two things does the final stanza use to represent the past and present?
(a) Gathering clouds and rain.
(b) The directions east and west.
(c) A seed and a sprout.
(d) Night and daybreak.

4. Why is the speaker's past "rooted in pain" (line 32)?
(a) Because of the death of a loved one.
(b) Because she has been abandoned by someone she loves.
(c) Because no one appreciates her value.
(d) Because of bigotry and discrimination.

5. What technique is used in lines 7 and 8, "’Cause I walk like I've got oil wells/ Pumping in my living room"?
(a) Metaphor.
(b) Juxtaposition.
(c) Simile.
(d) Personification.

Short Answer Questions

1. What body of water does the speaker claim to be in the eighth stanza?

2. Which technique is frequently used at the beginnings of stanzas?

3. In line 17, what kind of a person is described by the word "haughtiness"?

4. Which is the first stanza of the poem that is longer than four lines?

5. Who is the author of "Still I Rise"?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe how the final two stanzas of the poem differ from the first seven stazas.

2. In the final stanza, what metaphor does the speaker use, and what does it signify?

3. What specific historical phenomenon does the speaker talk about rising above in the final two stanzas, and what allusion does she use to introduce the topic?

4. Describe the pattern that stanzas 2, 4, 5, and 7 have in common.

5. Why is the poem titled "Still I Rise" and not just "I Rise"--what additional idea does the word "Still" convey?

6. What oppressive actions does the speaker suggest "you" might take, and how does she say she will respond?

7. What do all of the questions the speaker asks have in common?

(see the answer keys)

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