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

Multiple Choice Questions

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

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

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

4. Who is the author of "Still I Rise"?
(a) Nikki Giovanni.
(b) Toni Morrison.
(c) Maya Angelou.
(d) Alice Walker.

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

6. Which is the first stanza of the poem that is longer than four lines?
(a) 7.
(b) 8.
(c) 9.
(d) 6.

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

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

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

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

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

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

13. What technique is used in line 21, "You may shoot me with your words"?
(a) Simile.
(b) Kenning.
(c) Innuendo.
(d) Metaphor.

14. What is the primary quality that the speaker's stanza eight description of a body of water is intended to convey?
(a) Power.
(b) Endurance.
(c) Independence.
(d) Persistence.

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

Short Answer Questions

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

2. What precious stones does the speaker use to evoke beauty and value in the simile in line 27?

3. What technique does the first line of the poem, "You may write me down in history," introduce?

4. In the final quatrain, what does the speaker wonder about upsetting "you" with?

5. How does the speaker characterize herself in line 4?

(see the answer keys)

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