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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following does Rilke use in his elegies to move readers?
(a) Irony.
(b) Emotive language.
(c) Metonymy.
(d) Illustrations.

2. What does Rilke refer to as "pampered favorites"?
(a) Genuine emotions.
(b) Children who attend private school.
(c) Women who can work from home.
(d) Scenes of the natural world.

3. In Rilke's description of supplication, from whom does the man expect to receive assistance?
(a) An ancient Greek god.
(b) A mysterious woman.
(c) An angry god.
(d) Sent angels.

4. What is "For the Sake of a Single Poem" about?
(a) Poetry.
(b) Wisdom.
(c) Women.
(d) Animals.

5. Which of the following is contained in the appendix of Book 1, Chapter 7?
(a) A glossary and a map.
(b) An index of themes in the elegies.
(c) Enitrely new poems.
(d) Original drafts.

6. In the third poem in "Sonnet to Orpheus," who are the three basic characters?
(a) The god, the man, the animal.
(b) The song, the god, the mortal man.
(c) The diaphonous girl, the god, the song.
(d) The animal, the song, the mortal man.

7. In "To Holderlin," which of the following is referenced in the first stanza?
(a) Speed and motion.
(b) Space and stars.
(c) Physics and chemistry.
(d) Love and how long it lasts.

8. In the poem where the narrator is lying in bed, which item describes the narrator's day?
(a) A bird with one leg.
(b) An animal with no home.
(c) A door with no knob.
(d) A clock-face with no hands.

9. How is "To Music" written?
(a) In brief phrases.
(b) In long paragraphs.
(c) In short paragraphs.
(d) In one-word lines.

10. In the first elegy, what happens to the images as the poem continues?
(a) They become more reluctant to reveal information to the reader.
(b) They grow more spacious and remain descriptive.
(c) They become less descriptive.
(d) They become more confusing and deluded.

11. In the poem about faces, what do vast numbers of things appear to be?
(a) Infinite.
(b) Shallow.
(c) Light.
(d) Heavy.

12. Which of the following best describes the "diaphonous girl"?
(a) A symbol of speech.
(b) A symbol of sight.
(c) A symbol of knowledge.
(d) A symbol of listening.

13. What marks each section of poems in "Uncollected Poems"?
(a) Roman numerals.
(b) Words.
(c) Numbers.
(d) Letters.

14. How many elegies are contained in Chapter 7?
(a) 8.
(b) 14.
(c) 10.
(d) 4.

15. What is the name of the poem that suggests that even going back to ancient times, there was hustle and bustle?
(a) "Straining so hard...."
(b) "To Holderlin."
(c) "Ariel."
(d) "To Music."

Short Answer Questions

1. How are the poems in "Sonnets to Orpheus" (Book 1, Chapter 8) named?

2. According to Rilke's suggestion, which of the following should be used to remember Orpheus?

3. In Book 1, Chapter 5, what does Rilke intentionally use to describe a short scene from real life?

4. In "Ariel" which stanza is the longest?

5. Which of the following is the title of a poem in "Uncollected Poems"?

(see the answer keys)

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