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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 7 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What words create a refrain in the final two stanzas of the poem?
(a) "Still I rise."
(b) "I rise."
(c) "Again I rise."
(d) "I rise and rise."

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

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

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

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

Short Answer Questions

1. Which is the most logical description of who "You" is in line 1?

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

3. In line 17, what kind of a person is described by the word "haughtiness"?

4. What techniques are used in line 19, "’Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines"?

5. In the fourth stanza, what kind of person does the speaker ask if "you" want her to be?

Short Essay Questions

1. What oppressive actions does the speaker suggest "you" might take, and how does she say she will respond?

2. Why is the poem titled "Still I Rise" and not just "I Rise"--what additional idea does the word "Still" convey?

3. Describe how the final two stanzas of the poem differ from the first seven stazas.

4. What specific historical phenomenon does the speaker talk about rising above in the final two stanzas, and what allusion does she use to introduce the topic?

5. What do all of the questions the speaker asks have in common?

6. In the final stanza, what metaphor does the speaker use, and what does it signify?

7. Describe the pattern that stanzas 2, 4, 5, and 7 have in common.

(see the answer keys)

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