View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What poem personifies death as a hurried traveler?
(a) "The Other."
(b) "The Assassin."
(c) "The Hex."
(d) "Going Gone."

2. "The Hex" describes the connection between the speaker's inability to appreciate happiness and her relationship to who?
(a) Her sister.
(b) Her mother.
(c) Her husband.
(d) Her grandmother.

3. How many poems are in the collection "O Ye Tongues"?
(a) Ten.
(b) Nine.
(c) Fifteen.
(d) Five.

4. Who is The Book of Folly dedicated to?
(a) Joy.
(b) Gregor.
(c) Phillip.
(d) Linda.

5. Who saves the fiddler in "The Wonderful Musician"?
(a) The fox.
(b) The mouse.
(c) The milkmaid.
(d) The woodcutter.

Short Answer Questions

1. In "The Earth Falls Down," what is the speaker trying to place blame for?

2. What does the building represent in "Riding the Elevator Into the Sky"?

3. What building is in "Riding the Elevator Into the Sky"?

4. What theme is explored in "The Frog Prince"?

5. What is the title of the first part of The Book of Folly?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does The Awful Rowing Toward God begin with the poem "Rowing"?

2. Why does Sexton end The Awful Rowing Toward God with the poem "The Rowing Endeth"?

3. Explain Sexton's revision of "Rapunzel."

4. Explain "The Death Baby." What does this poem say about Sexton's view of death?

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

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

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

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)

This section contains 830 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample