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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.
Short Answer Questions
1. What technique is used in the line "A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard" (line 13)?
2. What is the meaning of the word "lay" in the line "Or is it some more humble lay" (line 21)?
3. What technique is used in phrases like "the Vale profound" (line 7) and "A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard" (line 13)?
4. Which line uses deliberate redundancy for emphasis?
5. What is the meaning of the word "Yon" in line 2, "Yon solitary Highland Lass"?
Short Essay Questions
1. Explain how the mention of "spring-time" in line 14's description of the cuckoo enhances the contrast between this image and the image of the nightingale.
2. How does the speaker's line 26 description of the reaper singing "As if her song could have no ending" reinforce the meaning of the poem's ending?
3. Describe the rhyme scheme of "The Solitary Reaper."
4. Summarize the action of "The Solitary Reaper."
5. Describe the meter of "The Solitary Reaper."
6. To which two birds does the speaker compare the reaper, and what area of the world does the speaker associate with each?
7. What question does the speaker ask in the third stanza, and what two contrasting answers does he speculate about?
8. What are the names of the two forms of poetry that are combined in this poem, and how are they combined?
9. Describe the tense shift in "The Solitary Reaper" and explain what it reveals about the poem's narrative present.
10. In what way do the places associated with the two birds create a dramatic contrast with one another?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Write an essay in which you respond analytically to the following question: why is the reaper's song so sad? Be sure to support your claims with textual evidence.
Essay Topic 2
Wordsworth wrote in Preface to the Lyrical Ballads that poetry emerges from the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" that are "recollected in tranquility." Write an essay that demonstrates how these ideas are reflected in "The Solitary Reaper." Be sure to support your claims with evidence from the text.
Essay Topic 3
Write an essay in which you make and defend a claim about how the rhyme scheme of "The Solitary Reaper" supports the poem's meaning. Use quoted textual evidence to defend your assertions.
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This section contains 946 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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