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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 7 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.
Short Answer Questions
1. Why is the speaker's past "rooted in pain" (line 32)?
2. What technique does the first line of the poem, "You may write me down in history," introduce?
3. Which two things does the final stanza use to represent the past and present?
4. Which is the best definition of "beset" in line 6?
5. What words create a refrain in the final two stanzas of the poem?
Short Essay Questions
1. Why is the poem titled "Still I Rise" and not just "I Rise"--what additional idea does the word "Still" convey?
2. Describe how the final two stanzas of the poem differ from the first seven stazas.
3. What do all of the questions the speaker asks have in common?
4. What oppressive actions does the speaker suggest "you" might take, and how does she say she will respond?
5. In the final stanza, what metaphor does the speaker use, and what does it signify?
6. 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?
7. Describe the pattern that stanzas 2, 4, 5, and 7 have in common.
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
How is water used symbolically in "Still I Rise"? What forms of water are mentioned? Do they all seem to function in the same way, or is water operating in more than one way in the poem? Which forms of water is the speaker herself compared to? What do these forms of water have in common? How is the idea of "rising" water in this poem contrasted with the "falling" water represented by the image of teardrops? How do common literary meanings of water figure into this poem's symbolism, if at all? Write an essay that takes and defends a position on the symbolic meaning of water in "Still I Rise." Support your analysis with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from throughout the poem, and be sure to cite quoted evidence in MLA format.
Essay Topic 2
Read Lucille Clifton's poem "won't you celebrate with me" (available online). What does Clifton mean by "babylon," in line 4? What claim is she making about oppression and triumph? How does she also use natural resources in her poem? Is her speaker's voice similar to or different from the speaker in "Still I Rise"? Why? Write an essay in which you discuss similarities and differences in the way Clifton and Angelou approach the theme of survival against oppression. Support your analysis with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from throughout both poems, and be sure to cite quoted evidence in MLA format.
Essay Topic 3
Read Maya Angelou's poem "The Mothering Blackness" (available online). How does Angelou use repetition in this poem? How is it similar to and different from the way she uses repetition in "Still I Rise"? Consider the various forms of repetition in both poems as well as the purposes repetition serves. Write an essay in which you compare and contrast the use of repetition in "The Mothering Blackness" and "Still I Rise." Support your analysis with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from throughout both poems, and be sure to cite quoted evidence in MLA format.
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This section contains 885 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) |
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