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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. Which is the best definition of "beset" in line 6?
2. What is the rhyme scheme of the first seven stanzas?
3. Which technique is used in line 9, "Just like moons and like suns"?
4. What technique does the first line of the poem, "You may write me down in history," introduce?
5. Which is the first stanza of the poem that is longer than four lines?
Short Essay Questions
1. What do all of the questions the speaker asks 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 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. What oppressive actions does the speaker suggest "you" might take, and how does she say she will respond?
6. In the final stanza, what metaphor does the speaker use, and what does it signify?
7. Describe how the final two stanzas of the poem differ from the first seven stazas.
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Read Lucille Clifton's poem "won't you celebrate with me" (available online). What does Clifton mean by "babylon," in line 4? What claim is she making about oppression and triumph? How does she also use natural resources in her poem? Is her speaker's voice similar to or different from the speaker in "Still I Rise"? Why? Write an essay in which you discuss similarities and differences in the way Clifton and Angelou approach the theme of survival against oppression. Support your analysis with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from throughout both poems, and be sure to cite quoted evidence in MLA format.
Essay Topic 2
Read Maya Angelou's poem "The Mothering Blackness" (available online). How does Angelou use repetition in this poem? How is it similar to and different from the way she uses repetition in "Still I Rise"? Consider the various forms of repetition in both poems as well as the purposes repetition serves. Write an essay in which you compare and contrast the use of repetition in "The Mothering Blackness" and "Still I Rise." Support your analysis with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from throughout both poems, and be sure to cite quoted evidence in MLA format.
Essay Topic 3
How does Angelou use the rhythm of her poem to create tone and shifts in tone? How does she use meter to emphasize ideas and support the poem's overall meaning? Write an essay in which you explicate and analyze the poem's rhythm. Describe how the initial meter is established and then note where this dominant meter changes. Comment on the possible purposes of both the poem's dominant meter and any changes to new metrical patterns. Support your explication and analysis with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from throughout the poem, and be sure to cite quoted evidence in MLA format.
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This section contains 802 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) |
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