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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. In Poem 377, loss of faith turns the being into something of a _________.

2. Emily attempts to convince the man that being single is _________ in Poem 1?

3. Poem 561 is a poem about grief and hurt. To what does Emily compare the grief of each grieving person she meets?

4. Poem 254 presents a beautiful picture of the idea of hope. In this poem Emily portrays hope as a _______.

5. Poem 351 brings forth the image of a person being able to examine their life manually as one might examine ____________.

Short Essay Questions

1. How is the reality of death described in Poem 389?

2. Discuss the self-view of Poem 351.

3. Discuss some of the Biblical imagery in the first poems of the book.

4. How does Dickinson compare herself to David of David and Goliath in Poem 540?

5. How does the poet describe doom in Poem 475?

6. In Poem 377, how does the poet compare faith and money?

7. What does Emily write to her friend whom she longs for in Poem 511?

8. What does Emily Dickinson relate about life after death in Poem 234?

9. How does Emily describe her feelings of grief in Poem 561?

10. In Poem 199, describe the transitions of womanhood the poet writes about.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the themes, imagery, and personification of Poem 1374, which describes the world through the eyes of a squirrel. What comparisons are used in this poem?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the author's use of Biblical allusion in her poems. What is the poet's view of Christianity? How do we know this from the text?

Essay Topic 3

In Poem 386, Dickinson writes for "July" to answer her queries. In Poem 382, she refers to what Death will buy. Describe this technique and why the poet uses it. What is the opposite technique?

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