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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 7 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which is the best interpretation of lines 30-31, "And passing even into my purer mind/ With tranquil restoration"?

2. The word "murmur" in line 4 is an example of which technique?

3. What sets line 22, "The Hermit sits alone," apart from the preceding 21 lines?

4. What kind of confusion does the speaker find himself able to shrug off when he remembers the landscape?

5. What kind of building is an abbey?

Short Essay Questions

1. Where has the speaker been for the past five years, and how has the memory of this landscape impacted him?

2. What two elements does the first stanza mention that contribute to the sense that the scene is unbroken and whole?

3. What literal and philosophical impact do the cliffs have on the landscape the speaker is viewing?

4. What does the speaker mean in line 47 when he talks about becoming "a living soul"?

5. Describe the landscape that the speaker sees.

6. What does the speaker say about the hedge-rows, and what does this reveal about his perspective on the scene?

7. What are two possibilities that the speaker imagines as the origin of the smoke he sees?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay that examines "Tintern Abbey" as a loco-descriptive poem. Define the genre and then explain the elements of this specific poem that make it an example of the genre. Finally, offer insight into how Wordsworth uses this genre to express ideas characteristic of British Romanticism. Support your claims with evidence from the poem. Be sure to cite any outside sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay that considers how the speaker's elevation above the valley both obscures and reveals important aspects of the scene. Think about what he chooses to describe and how he describes it as well as what he chooses to leave out of his description of the scene. Consider how his elevation changes his perspective, leaves certain things in doubt, and clarifies other things. Connect your observations to the thematic motifs of unity and the sublime. Support your claims with evidence from the poem. Be sure to cite any outside sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

In the final section of "Tintern Abbey," the speaker talks about a spiritual presence that moves through everything that observes and is observed. Write an essay that analyzes how Wordsworth uses polysyndeton, imagery, and diction to create a sense that everything is connected; explain how this sense of connectedness supports the poem's thematic concern with the spiritual unity of the world. Provide both quoted and paraphrased evidence to support your observations.

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