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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What is the purpose of the first poem in Transformations?
(a) To share a fairy tale about the author's son.
(b) To act as an introduction and explanation.
(c) To create the author as the wicked witch.
(d) To share a fairy tale about the author's daughter.

2. What type of conflict is present in "The Civil War"?
(a) Person vs. society.
(b) Person vs. self.
(c) Person vs. nature.
(d) Person vs. person.

3. Who interferes with the speaker's prayers in "Praying on a 707"?
(a) The pilot.
(b) Her mother.
(c) The passenger seated next to her.
(d) A flight attendant.

4. What kind of poems are the collection "O Ye Tongues"?
(a) Haiku.
(b) Psalms.
(c) Odes.
(d) Epitaphs.

5. How many sections is "The Death Baby" divided into?
(a) Six.
(b) Ten.
(c) Four.
(d) Five.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "For Mr. Death Who Stands With His Door Open", the speaker personifies ______ and ______.

2. Where is the speaker headed in "Rowing"?

3. Where is the blame assigned in "The Earth Falls Down"?

4. Who is The Book of Folly dedicated to?

5. Whose death does the author recount in "The Death Baby"?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Sexton deal with feminism in Transformations?

2. What inspired The Awful Rowing Toward God?

3. Where does Sexton search for God in The Awful Rowing Toward God? Does she find him?

4. What is the main theme of The Book of Folly? Is the theme of The Book of Folly treated the same as in her other work?

5. Explain the premise of Transformations, and explain the title.

6. What is the source material for "The Jesus Papers?" How does Sexton use this source material?

7. When was The Awful Rowing Toward God published, and how does that affect the poems in it?

8. Compare and contrast "The Death of Fathers" with "Angels of the Love Affair."

9. What does "Mary's Song" say about Sexton?

10. What is the purpose of the poem "The Gold Key"?

(see the answer keys)

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