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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How does the speaker characterize herself in line 4?
(a) Lighthearted and silly.
(b) Brave and perseverent.
(c) Lively and confident.
(d) Intelligent and curious.

2. In line 17, what kind of a person is described by the word "haughtiness"?
(a) Strange and eccentric.
(b) Sneaky and dishonest.
(c) Mean-spirited and petty.
(d) Arrogant and proud.

3. In the fourth stanza, what kind of person does the speaker ask if "you" want her to be?
(a) Tired and distracted.
(b) Angry and afraid.
(c) Distant and uninvolved.
(d) Sad and meek.

4. Which is the best definition of "beset" in line 6?
(a) Decorated.
(b) Inspired.
(c) Troubled.
(d) Cradled.

5. Which two things does the final stanza use to represent the past and present?
(a) Night and daybreak.
(b) Gathering clouds and rain.
(c) A seed and a sprout.
(d) The directions east and west.

6. What body of water does the speaker claim to be in the eighth stanza?
(a) An ocean.
(b) A river.
(c) A lake.
(d) A stream.

7. Which is the most logical description of who "You" is in line 1?
(a) An unnamed oppressor.
(b) A romantic partner.
(c) People of the past.
(d) Scholars and critics.

8. Which technique is used in line 9, "Just like moons and like suns"?
(a) Euphemism.
(b) Allusion.
(c) Parallelism.
(d) Dialect.

9. Why is the speaker's past "rooted in pain" (line 32)?
(a) Because of bigotry and discrimination.
(b) Because she has been abandoned by someone she loves.
(c) Because no one appreciates her value.
(d) Because of the death of a loved one.

10. Which technique is frequently used at the beginnings of stanzas?
(a) Rhetorical question.
(b) Internal rhyme.
(c) Cacophony.
(d) Onomatopoeia.

11. Which is the best definition for "trod" in the context of line 3?
(a) Press down with the foot.
(b) Drag along the floor or earth.
(c) Throw or hurl downward.
(d) The sound of footsteps.

12. Where does the speaker say she obtained her gifts?
(a) From effort and hard work.
(b) From well-chosen friends.
(c) From the passage of time.
(d) From her ancestors.

13. What technique is used in line 29, "Out of the huts of history’s shame"?
(a) Allusion.
(b) Juxtaposition.
(c) Oxymoron.
(d) Allegory.

14. What precious stones does the speaker use to evoke beauty and value in the simile in line 27?
(a) Sapphires.
(b) Rubies.
(c) Diamonds.
(d) Emeralds.

15. What techniques are used in line 19, "’Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines"?
(a) Sibilance and onomatopoeia.
(b) Alliteration and assonance.
(c) Onomatopoeia and alliteration.
(d) Assonance and sibilance.

Short Answer Questions

1. What technique is used in lines 7 and 8, "’Cause I walk like I've got oil wells/ Pumping in my living room"?

2. What is the primary quality that the speaker's stanza eight description of a body of water is intended to convey?

3. Which is the first stanza of the poem that is longer than four lines?

4. What words create a refrain in the final two stanzas of the poem?

5. What is the rhyme scheme of the first seven stanzas?

(see the answer keys)

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