View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which word best describes Rilke in the second stanza of "I am the Anxious One'?

2. In which poem is it relevant that religion has changed since Greek mythology?

3. What of the following are not themes in Rilke's poems in Book 1, Chapter 2?

4. Which of the following is different between Book 1, Chapters 1 and 2?

5. How does Rilke feel at the beginning of "I am the Anxious One"?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the author change from the first stanza to the second in "I am the Anxious One"?

2. What is the tone of the poem, "Archaic Torso of Apollo"?

3. How does Rilke honor ancient Greeks?

4. How does Rilke describe the gazelle in the poem in which it is the subject?

5. What is the significance of the women standing in their doorways in "Requiem for a Friend"?

6. What is the significance of the title "Requiem for a Friend"?

7. What is the classical theme that Rilke presents in both "Alcestis" and "Archaic Torso of Apollo"?

8. How is the panther portrayed in the poem in which it is the subject?

9. What is the tone of "Requiem for a Friend"?

10. Why is it important to know background information about Rainer Marie Rilke before reading the poems?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is Rilke's voice? How does he achieve this voice using literary devices and subjects? Describe the voice in one of Rilke's poems and how he achieves it specifically.

Essay Topic 2

Of the poems in the book, which is your favorite? Why? What literary devices set the tone for that poem? Why is this pleasing?

Essay Topic 3

What is the significance of rhyme scheme in a poem? What effect does translation have on rhyming in this book of poems? What is your opinion of the rhyming pattern of the poems?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 713 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample