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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 adjective does the person in "Vespers" (#1) use to describe the peach which grows only in warm climates?

2. How does the speaker in "End of Summer" refer to humanity?

3. In what way does the speaker in "Matins" (#6) feel her affliction is different than the sick rose?

4. What is described as "the heart's constant backdrop" (27) in "Song"?

5. What is blooming at the start of "Song"?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the poppy say about the sun in "The Red Poppy"?

2. "In Doorway," how does the poet describe the late spring?

3. What does the poet express regret for thinking in "Matins" (#7)?

4. What does the poet in "Heaven and Earth" question in regards to her husband at the end of the poem?

5. What does the jacob's ladder plant think may be the reason for the woman's grief in "Jacob's Ladder"?

6. In "The Doorway," how does the poet liken the flowers in spring to a child's behavior?

7. In what way is the speaker in "Matins" (#6) different from the sick rose?

8. What is different about John's peace in comparison to the poet's in "Vespers" (#4)?

9. Why does the poet in "Vespers" (#1) plant a fig tree in Vermont?

10. In "Vespers" (#4), where does the poet say she knows God is?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay analyzing the ways in which the changing seasons represent the poet's emotions and relationship with God. Use textual evidence to support your analysis.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay analyzing the theme of human suffering in Wild Iris. Choosing one poem from God's perspective, one from the poet's and one from nature, analyze the differing views on human suffering.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay analyzing the poet's search for God's existence. How does she search for God? What does she find? How do her moods change in regards to this search? Use evidence from at least 3 poems to support your analysis.

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