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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. According to Sonnet LXII, what is the only thing that Neruda and Matilde want and which is overshadowed by others?

2. What is the house in Sonnet LXXV doing when Neruda and Matilde return to it?

3. In Sonnet XCV, what does Neruda describe as "the light that endures," and as a "irrevocable delicate thorn?"

4. In Sonnet LIV, what two things does Neruda describe as being "like two wings?"

5. What does Neruda say in Sonnet XCIV will make him "die a second time?"

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Neruda write are the effects of modern society's infatuation with flying in Sonnet XCVII?

2. Why does Neruda write, "Woe is me, woe is me" at the beginning of Sonnet LXII?

3. How does Matilde's body comfort Neruda in Sonnet LXXXV?

4. In Sonnet LX, what effect do Neruda's trials and sorrows have on Matilde?

5. Where are Neruda and Matilde when they share a kiss in Sonnet C?

6. How does Neruda respond to his critics and those who gossip about him in Sonnet LVII?

7. What does the figurehead in Sonnet LxVIII appear to do that prompts Neruda to write about her?

8. In Sonnet LXXXIX, what does Neruda want Matilde to do when he dies? Why does he want her to do this?

9. How does Neruda feel about himself and his poetry in Sonnet LVIII?

10. In Sonnet XCII, what does Neruda choose to contemplate instead of the inevitable death of either himself or Matilde?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Analyze the importance of Matilde and Neruda's childhoods throughout the 100 Sonnets. What does the author reveal to the reader about the childhood of each individual? What role does each individual's childhood have on them? What role does childhood play in their relationship with each other? Use quotes from the sonnets to back up all arguments.

Essay Topic 2

In many poems, Neruda describes both his and Matilde's homelands. How does Neruda describe his homeland? Matilde's? What can the reader infer about each lover based on the descriptions of their homeland? Use specific examples from the text.

Essay Topic 3

Analyze the various properties of love described in Neruda's sonnets. How does Neruda view love? What properties does he ascribe to that emotion? Use specific examples from the book.

(see the answer keys)

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