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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 does the plastic "rock" look like in "Plasticene Suite"?

2. What is one thing that has been done with old plastics in "Plasticene Suite"?

3. What do the humans wonder about the siren in the poem "Siren Brooding on Her Eggs"?

4. Why does the spider dislike the floor in "Spider Signatures"?

5. What do women not say on this side of the table in "At the Translation Conference"?

Short Essay Questions

1. What can one tell by a wolf's ears in the poem "Short Takes on Wolves"?

2. What does the siren wonder about in the poem "Siren Brooding on Her Eggs"?

3. What have many humans lost, according to the speaker in "Improvisation on a First Line by Yeats"?

4. What does the speaker in the poem "Little Robot" worry the robot might do?

5. In the poem "Fatal Light Awareness," what do we know that the birds do not?

6. What does the speaker think about the world in the poem "Walking in the Madman's Wood"?

7. What tense does not exist at the conference in the poem "At the Translation Conference" and why?

8. How does the speaker in the poem "Feather" make sure not to waste?

9. What are the advantages of having a spider in the house in the poem "Spider Signatures"?

10. What is the problem in the old story of the Sorcerer's Apprentice in the poem by the same name?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How does the last poem in the collection, "Blackberries," embody several of the themes and the overall tone of this entire collection? Write an essay explaining your answers.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay exploring the different ways Atwood uses various birds as symbols throughout this collection, citing specific references to the text to help support your answers.

Essay Topic 3

What dual meanings and symbolism does Atwood assign to souvenirs in the poem in Part I by that title? Write an essay explaining your answers.

(see the answer keys)

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