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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 7 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.
Short Answer Questions
1. What words create a refrain in the final two stanzas of the poem?
2. What techniques are used in line 19, "’Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines"?
3. How does the speaker characterize herself in line 4?
4. Which is the most logical description of who "You" is in line 1?
5. What technique is used in lines 7 and 8, "’Cause I walk like I've got oil wells/ Pumping in my living room"?
Short Essay Questions
1. Describe the pattern that stanzas 2, 4, 5, and 7 have in common.
2. Why is the poem titled "Still I Rise" and not just "I Rise"--what additional idea does the word "Still" convey?
3. What oppressive actions does the speaker suggest "you" might take, and how does she say she will respond?
4. 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?
5. Describe how the final two stanzas of the poem differ from the first seven stazas.
6. What do all of the questions the speaker asks have in common?
7. In the final stanza, what metaphor does the speaker use, and what does it signify?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
In "Still I Rise," how does the speaker's voice impact the reader? How does Angelou manage to create a friendly, humorous tone for her speaker despite the serious and challenging message the speaker is issuing? How is the speaker's voice confident and authoritative without becoming condescending or elitist? How do the poem's diction, details, figurative language, musical devices, and rhythm work together to create this engaging voice? Write an essay in which you analyze the speaker's voice and its impact on the reader, commenting on Angelou's likely purpose in creating such an engaging voice. Support your analysis with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from throughout the poem, and be sure to cite quoted evidence in MLA format.
Essay Topic 2
How does Angelou's use of rhyme in "Still I Rise" relate to the broader question of how she employs musical devices in this poem? What are the purposes of the rhyme scheme? How does it group and emphasize ideas, create pace and flow, and contribute to tone? How does Angelou use other musical devices, such as rhythm and repetition, (of sounds, words and phrases, grammatical patterns, and so on), to accomplish these same objectives? Write an essay in which you demonstrate how the poem's rhyme scheme and its other musical devices work together to accomplish similar objectives. Support your analysis with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from throughout the poem, and be sure to cite quoted evidence in MLA format.
Essay Topic 3
Among Maya Angelou's many contributions to American literature and culture are her inspirational speeches and interviews. Choose and watch one of her speeches or interviews from the dozens available online. What are the key ideas that she expresses in the video? What rhetorical strategies does she use to make her ideas appealing and memorable? How does this compare to the ideas she expresses in "Still I Rise"? Do you see any strategies in common between the prose in the video and the poetry of "Still I Rise"? Write an essay in which you compare and contrast the content and style of her remarks in the video you chose with the content and style of "Still I Rise." Support your observations with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from both sources, and be sure to cite borrowed language in MLA format.
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This section contains 925 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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