View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In context, the literal meaning of the word "rack" in line two is which of the following?
(a) Storm or upheaval.
(b) A thorough sorting or sifting.
(c) Battle or confrontation.
(d) A metal rod used for hanging things.

2. Line 6, "O the bleeding drops of red," is an example of which technique?
(a) Imagery.
(b) Metonymy.
(c) Oxymoron.
(d) Conceit.

3. What feature of the Captain's face does line 17 focus on?
(a) His mouth.
(b) His brow.
(c) His eyes.
(d) His chin.

4. What does it mean that the people are "exulting"?
(a) They are drinking and celebrating.
(b) They are quietly watchful.
(c) They are crying out in grief.
(d) They are cheering excitedly.

5. The list of ways the crowd is celebrating the arrival of the ship in lines 9-12 is an example of which technique?
(a) Understatement.
(b) Periphrasis.
(c) Paraprosdokian.
(d) Accumulation.

6. Which is the best interpretation of line 9, when the speaker urges "O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells"?
(a) The speaker is addressing the captain's spirit or ghost.
(b) The speaker is having trouble accepting what has happened.
(c) The speaker realizes that the captain is not actually dead yet.
(d) The speaker is not yet aware that the captain has died.

7. Which technique is evident in the phrase "for you the flag is flung" (line 10)?
(a) Alliteration.
(b) Assonance.
(c) Sibilance.
(d) Cacophony.

8. Who is the author of "O Captain! my Captain!"?
(a) William Cullen Bryant.
(b) Walt Whitman.
(c) Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
(d) Ralph Waldo Emerson.

9. What does the phrase "swaying mass" refer to (line 12)?
(a) The ship.
(b) The flag.
(c) The captain.
(d) The crowd.

10. By which other term, besides "Captain," does the speaker address the captain of the ship?
(a) Brother.
(b) Leader.
(c) Master.
(d) Father.

11. Line 5, " But O heart! heart! heart!" is an example of which technique?
(a) Aphorism.
(b) Paradox.
(c) Euphemism.
(d) Apostrophe.

12. Which term describes the poem's repeated use of the phrases "O Captain! My Captain!" (lines 1 and 9) and "fallen cold and dead" (lines 8, 16, and 24)?
(a) Chorus.
(b) Verse.
(c) Refrain.
(d) Conceit.

13. The poem's title and first line contain an example of which technique?
(a) Simile.
(b) Synechdoche.
(c) Personification.
(d) Apostrophe.

14. What is a "keel" (line 4)?
(a) A flat structure at the bottom of a ship, designed to add stability.
(b) A part of a ship's steering mechanism, found at the back of the ship.
(c) A measurement of the speed a ship is traveling.
(d) The central and largest sail on a three-masted ship.

15. What is the most common type of metrical foot in "O Captain! My Captain!"?
(a) The iamb.
(b) The spondee.
(c) The dactyl.
(d) The trochee.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the rhyme pattern of the first four lines of each stanza?

2. In the second quatrain of the second stanza, what becomes clear about the speaker's state of mind?

3. In context, the word "fearful" in line 1 indicates that the trip was which of the following?

4. What is the most accurate way to describe the poem's stanza form?

5. What type of rhyme is employed in line 20, "From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won"?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 550 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample