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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Sonnet XXXII, what starts the morning with "its truths scrambled" and that "drifts like a poor little boat?"
(a) The sea.
(b) The city.
(c) The sun.
(d) The house.

2. In Sonnet XIX, what image does Neruda NOT use to describe the insect he watches?
(a) An airplane.
(b) A thief.
(c) A spike.
(d) A needle.

3. In Sonnet I, what image does Neruda NOT use to describe Matilde's name?
(a) A castle.
(b) A plant.
(c) A rock.
(d) A wine.

4. In Sonnet XXX, Neruda says that Matilde has hair as thick as what kind of tree?
(a) A banyan.
(b) An oak.
(c) A larch.
(d) A pine.

5. In Sonnet X, what object does Neruda NOT use as a metaphor for Matilde's beauty?
(a) Wind.
(b) Wood.
(c) Peaches.
(d) Wheat.

Short Answer Questions

1. In Sonnet XXI, what does Neruda tell Matilde is the reason he cries in his sleep?

2. What color is a prominent motif in Sonnet XXIV?

3. In Sonnet XXXIII, where are Neruda and Matilde going when they traverse "the crackling sea?"

4. In Sonnet XXII, what image does Neruda NOT use to describe Matilde?

5. In Sonnet VII, what does Neruda say he can see in Matilde's life?

Short Essay Questions

1. What imagery does Neruda use to compare Matilde to bread in Sonnet XIII?

2. Explain how Matilde acts as a healer and protector in Sonnet XXIII.

3. What is Matilde's role in the "miniature empire" Neruda describes in Sonnet XXXVI?

4. In Sonnet XI, Neruda is starving and is prowling for sustenance. What "food" is he looking for?

5. In Sonnet XXIX, why does Neruda say he chose Matilde? How does her background influence his decision?

6. In his dedication, how does Neruda compare his poems to those of other poets?

7. How does Neruda describe Matilde's hands in Sonnet XL?

8. What obstacles does Neruda and Matilde's love face in Sonnet XXVIII? Does their love survive?

9. In Sonnet VII, what causes Neruda's emotions to burst forth like "geysers flooding from deep in its vault?"

10. Neruda says that "everything alive has its two sides," including love. In Sonnet XLIV, what are the two sides of Neruda's love for Matilde? Why are both sides important?

(see the answer keys)

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