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This test consists of 5 short answer questions and 1 (of 3) essay topics.
Short Answer Questions
1. Where does the poem's first (or only) speaker have power in A Bruised Reed Shall He Not Break?
2. When did the speaker of No Thank You, John love John?
3. Into which color do all colors turn in Sweet Death?
4. By what is man "tossed to and fro" in The One Certainty?
5. The first thing wondered by the poem's speaker in the first stanza of The First Spring Day is what?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Throughout a great deal of Rossetti's poetry, there is a connection drawn between life and love, between living and loving. This can be seen in At Home, A Triad, A Birthday, After Death, An End, and many others. Explicate in a thoroughly-developed analytical essay the significance of this connection. In what way are the two states or actions comparable? Why would one be linked with the other? What makes the two similar? How is this demonstrated in the various poems of Christina Rossetti? What does this connection reveal about human nature?
Essay Topic 2
Many of the poems in the collection, from The Convent Threshold through The World, deal with explicitly religious themes. Analyze the overall portrayal of religion in these poems in a thoughtful and insightful essay. How is religion portrayed in each individual poem? How is religion portrayed overall? With what sort of imagery and beliefs is religious practice associated? What do the poems indicate about religious belief? How do the speakers interact with religion? What does religion provide the speakers? What does faith provide?
Essay Topic 3
A constant theme in Rossetti's poetry is the struggle of a speaker against despair. Compose an analytical essay which examines this theme overall. How is it portrayed in individual poems? How is it portrayed overall? What shapes does the struggle take? What prompts the feelings of despair? In what ways, if any, is the despair overcome? With what does the speaker struggle against despair; in other words, how does she try to conquer it? Give specific examples.
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This section contains 391 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) |
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