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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. Who does Whitman not want to shut their proud doors to him, as stated in a poem of that same idea?

2. Whitman wonders how the real _______ can ever die and be buried in the end?

3. Who leaves natural breaths, the sounds of rains and winds, calls as the birds and animals in the woods?

4. Whitman finds he is larger and better than he thought. He did not know he held so much ___________.

5. Whitman says that he was offering too long to feed his soul with __________, which was clearly not a good idea..

Short Essay Questions

1. Who are some of the groups for which Whitman seems to have a particular affection in his poems?

2. What does Whitman think about seeing the world through someone else's eyes, even if it is through the eyes of a poet?

3. What is one of the main criticisms of Whitman's poetry, as these graphic images come up in the poems quite frequently?

4. What are some of the poet's feelings about the idea of mortality, according to the poems he writes?

5. Why does Whitman warn the readers about the dangers of religion and those who are enamored of it?

6. What can be determined about Whitman's life experiences by the reading of the many poems which Whitman has crafted about the water?

7. What does Whitman state about the idea of what happens after death, though he is still unsure?

8. What is so strange about the idea that Whitman is so fervently patriotic in the poems he has written? When was Whitman born in relation to the 'birth' of the United States?

9. What are some of the features of the Paumanok area of Long Island which makes the area special to Whitman?

10. How does Whitman describe the touches of the lover as they are making love in the grass with each other?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The poet does not seem to be afraid of mortality, choosing instead to look at it as a mysterious entity.

Part 1: Why do you think Whitman is not afraid of dying as so many other people are?

Part 2: How do you feel about the idea of your own mortality?

Part 3: Do you think that it's better to fear mortality or to embrace this facet of the human existence? Why?

Essay Topic 2

Whitman believes that no matter what science can uncover, the soul will supersede it.

Part 1: Why do you think Whitman believes the soul is the most important part of the world experience?

Part 2: Why can't science be bigger than the experience of the soul?

Part 3: How do you feel about the importance of the soul versus the importance of science?

Essay Topic 3

Whitman is very focused on writing about himself in his poems. He wants to focus on the idea of his observations and the way he interprets his world.

Part 1: Do you think it's limiting to only show the world through one set of eyes?

Part 2: How do you think Whitman could have improved his poems and extended the way he described the world?

Part 3: Why do you think so many writers and poets use only their own experience to write? Is this a good or a bad thing?

(see the answer keys)

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