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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 pulls the mushrooms in 'Mushrooms' from the ground?

2. What does the narrator want to do to the stranger in 'Flying'?

3. Where does the snake hide when the rain comes in 'Rain in Ohio'?

4. What kind of home does the blue heron leave to find in 'A Poem For the Blue Heron'?

5. What does the narrator say man has a secret love for in 'Cold Poem'?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the narrator feel as she drives to the White Forest in 'The Bobcat'?

2. What do the Sioux say about ghosts in the poem 'Ghosts'?

3. How do most people feel about vultures according to the narrator of 'Vultures'?

4. What does the alligator in 'Postcard From Flamingo' do?

5. What kind of annoyances does the narrator of 'Egrets' face while going to see the egrets?

6. What does the narrator's companion tell her over and over while at the hospital in 'University Hospital, Boston'?

7. What chafes the narrator in 'Fall Song'?

8. What is the ironic idea included in 'Mushrooms'?

9. What does the narrator of 'Egrets' say allows them to step without fear?

10. What does the person in 'Skunk Cabbage' love about the woods?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Many of these poems dealt with Oliver's thoughts about the treatment of Indians. What are some of the main incidents of this, and how was her tone and opinion presented in these poems?

Essay Topic 2

In 'Crossing the Swamp' Oliver talks about how trials and hardships have shaped her life. What are some of the ways her life was shaped by these things, and how did she present these ideas in this poem.

Essay Topic 3

Many mother and daughter relationships were described in this collection of poems. What were some of these highlighted relationships, and how did they affect Oliver and her writing?

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