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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When did the poet say the animal in The Measure had began her journey?
(a) When she was first born.
(b) In the early morning.
(c) In the middle of the night.
(d) Shortly before she appeared.

2. In Everything, what are we told to do in order to truly grasp the idea of poetry?
(a) The temporary.
(b) The unimportant.
(c) Everything.
(d) The singular.

3. What kind of citizen did the poet call the animal in The Measure?
(a) Elderly.
(b) Voracious.
(c) Unknown.
(d) Shy.

4. What does Oliver say is NOT praying in The Real Prayers are Not the Words, but the Attention that comes First?
(a) Witnessing with the eyes.
(b) Observing.
(c) Seeing and noticing.
(d) Seeing what has not been seen.

5. What belongs to the animal in The Real Prayers are Not the Words, but the Attention that comes First?
(a) The heavens.
(b) The life it has claimed.
(c) The earth and sky.
(d) The water.

6. What style is Work Sometimes written in?
(a) Conversational.
(b) First Person.
(c) Omniscient.
(d) Second Person.

7. In Everything, what are we told to look to for examination?
(a) Our surroundings.
(b) Our God.
(c) Ourselves.
(d) Our goals.

8. What else does the editor say there is an absence of in the first section of poems?
(a) Personification.
(b) Allusions.
(c) Confusing similes.
(d) Obscure references.

9. How are the poems in this book grouped together?
(a) By subject matter.
(b) By length.
(c) By random order.
(d) By publishing date.

10. What does the editor say new readers of Oliver will feel when they read the first section?
(a) They will feel like they have always known her.
(b) They will be eased into the style.
(c) They will get sucked in right away.
(d) They are in for a surprise.

11. In The Measure, what does the author say we must do to fully experience life?
(a) Think of new directions.
(b) Discard safety.
(c) Help one another.
(d) Give it a trial.

12. What tone does Oliver take on at the end of Work Sometimes?
(a) Self-referencing.
(b) Omniscient.
(c) Frantic.
(d) Relaxing.

13. What does Oliver try to provide multiple avenues for in her poems?
(a) Modality.
(b) Thought provocation.
(c) Tonality.
(d) Interpretation.

14. What were the eyes of the animal compared to in The Real Prayers are Not the Words, but the Attention that comes First?
(a) Glass.
(b) Water.
(c) Microscopes.
(d) Worlds.

15. What does the editor say Oliver is NOT trying to do with the poems in the first section?
(a) Observe humanity.
(b) Surprise the reader.
(c) Observe nature.
(d) Make the reader think.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Oliver's most commonly used literary device in these poems?

2. How is the pond in Mysteries, Four of the Simple Ones described?

3. What does Oliver say about our lives in The Measure?

4. What is Oliver trying to establish an intimacy with in Work Sometimes?

5. What does using nature in her poems allow Oliver to do?

(see the answer keys)

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