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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 storms in 'May'?

2. What does the narrator of 'Blossom' say death is a state of?

3. How many snakes are seen by the narrator in 'The Snakes'?

4. What chops at people like an iron hoe in 'Blossom'?

5. What does the listener drown in in 'Music'?

Short Essay Questions

1. What do the fish do in the secret pools in 'Climbing the Chagrin River'?

2. What are the snakes compared to in 'Snakes'?

3. What does the narrator of 'Honey at the Table' say the taste of honey is composed of?

4. What is the question asked at the end of 'The Garden'?

5. What sad event happens in the second part of 'Something'?

6. What does the narrator of 'Tecumseh' say is worse than risking death?

7. What does the narrator of 'Crossing the Swamp' find in the swamp?

8. How does the narrator of 'Crossing the Swamp' feel when she gets covered in the mud from the swamp?

9. What do the lovers in 'Something' hear?

10. What is the prayer whispered in 'The Garden', and who is it meant for?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What did Oliver state about happiness in 'The Plum Trees', and how were these ideas substantiated?

Essay Topic 2

Oliver puts a huge emphasis on optimism in many of these poems. Which poems presented this idea, and how did they differ in the way each presented this theme?

Essay Topic 3

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.

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