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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 season is recalled in Prose Poem 1?

2. In Seven White Butterflies, what does Oliver compare butterfly wings to?

3. What do the bees in May do?

4. In While I Am Writing a Poem to Celebrate Summer, the Meadowlark Begins to Sing, what is the song of the bird called?

5. What is the first animal Oliver talks about in Spring?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Mindful, what does Oliver say she sees everyday?

2. What is the overall feeling in Prose Poem 1?

3. What does Oliver say the owl is symbolic of in At Round Pond?

4. Which authors does Oliver mention in Seven White Butterflies, and why?

5. What are some of the questions asked in How Would You Live Then?

6. In Mindful, what does Oliver say she was born to do?

7. In Mindful, where does Oliver say she gets all of her teaching?

8. In Grass, what does Oliver say humans could learn from inanimate objects?

9. What is the main message of Daisies?

10. What are the two extremes Oliver describes about her life in Long Afternoon at the Edge of Sister Pond?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What are some of the main examples of irony from these poems? How do these moments of irony change the tone of those poems?

Essay Topic 2

Mary Oliver has an incredible gift for creating touching analogies. What are some of the analogies shared in these poems, and what are their deeper meanings?

Essay Topic 3

What was the overall message being sent in Seven White Butterflies, and how was this theme presented?

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