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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which technique is employed in line 64, "While here I stand, not only with the sense"?
(a) Inversion.
(b) Platitude.
(c) Paraprosdokian.
(d) Isocolon.

2. How did the speaker primarily relate to nature when he was younger?
(a) Through his mind.
(b) Through his spirit.
(c) Through his senses.
(d) Through his actions.

3. Which technique is used in the line 70 phrase "I bounded o'er the mountains"?
(a) Platitude.
(b) Alliteration.
(c) Euphemism.
(d) Elision.

4. Which technique is used in the phrase "the fever of the world" in line 55?
(a) Simile.
(b) Metaphor.
(c) Metonymy.
(d) Synecdoche.

5. Which sound device is used in line 56, "Have hung upon the beatings of my heart"?
(a) Sibilance.
(b) Cacophony.
(c) Elision.
(d) Alliteration.

6. What is the primary rhetorical function of the alliteration in line 65, "Of present pleasure, but with pleasing thoughts"?
(a) It distinguishes between the poet's senses and thoughts.
(b) It stresses the speaker's serene state of mind.
(c) It creates a rhythmic tone that mimics footsteps.
(d) It connects the present to the future.

7. Which is the best definition of the word "vain" in the context of line 52?
(a) Changeable, wavering.
(b) Conceited, proud.
(c) Unsuccessful, doomed to failure.
(d) Foolish, worthless.

8. How do the speaker's present emotions compare with his past emotions?
(a) His emotions are now less concealed and secretive.
(b) His emotions are now more muted and controlled.
(c) His emotions are now deeper and more overwhelming.
(d) His emotions are now less complicated and confusing.

9. What technique is used in lines 100-101: "And the round ocean and the living air,/ And the blue sky, and in the mind of man"?
(a) Chiasmus.
(b) Epizeuxis.
(c) Polysyndeton.
(d) Caesura.

10. What is emphasized by the diction "appetite" and "feeling" in line 82?
(a) Passionate emotion.
(b) Physical sensations.
(c) Youthful vitality.
(d) Unthinking selfishness.

11. What do lines 60 and 61 describe with expressions like "recognitions dim and faint"?
(a) Fading memories.
(b) Failing vision.
(c) Misunderstandings.
(d) Shallow relationships.

12. How does the speaker characterize the daytime activities of humans in the city?
(a) They are panicked.
(b) They are reckless.
(c) They are dangerous.
(d) They are pointless.

13. What techniques are evidence in line 88's phrase "nor mourn nor murmur"?
(a) Antithesis and cacophony.
(b) Cacophony and parallelism.
(c) Parallelism and consonance.
(d) Consonance and antithesis.

14. What idea is conveyed by the details listed toward the end of the fourth verse paragraph?
(a) It is natural for people to get more philosophical and less emotional as they age.
(b) All things are unified and guided by a single spiritual force.
(c) Although essentially amoral, nature can still teach humans important lessons.
(d) Nature is far more mysterious than most people understand.

15. Which is the best definition of "perplexity" in the context of line 62?
(a) Intuition.
(b) Confusion.
(c) Complication.
(d) Melancholy.

Short Answer Questions

1. In line 75, what word does the speaker use to characterize his boyhood pleasures?

2. What "still sad music" does the speaker hear when he looks at the landscape (93)?

3. What is emphasized by the unusual word order in line 78's "What then I was"?

4. What is the best definition of "cataract" in the context of line 78?

5. What technique is employed when the speaker says he cannot "paint" the person he used to be?

(see the answer keys)

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