View a FREE sample

This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through The Solitary Reaper.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. From context, what is is likely meaning of "single" in line 1, "Behold her, single in the field"?
(a) Unmarried.
(b) Honest.
(c) Simple.
(d) Alone.

2. What technique is used in the line "A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard" (line 13)?
(a) Contraction.
(b) Litotes.
(c) Paradox.
(d) Verbal irony.

3. What is the stanzaic form of "The Solitary Reaper"?
(a) Ballade.
(b) Octet.
(c) Ottava rima.
(d) Octave.

4. What is the "sickle" in line 28?
(a) A handle used to pull a cart.
(b) A mark dyed into wool to track sheep.
(c) A tied sheaf of grain.
(d) A sharp cutting tool.

5. How does line 3, "Reaping and singing by herself," interrupt the poem's dominant metrical pattern?
(a) It ends with a spondee.
(b) It ends with a trochee.
(c) It begins with a trochee.
(d) It begins with a spondee.

Short Answer Questions

1. Besides that the reaper may be singing about some terrible moment in history, what else does the speaker guess she might be singing about?

2. What technique is evident in the poem's opening line, "Behold her, single in the field" (line 1)?

3. Which line uses deliberate redundancy for emphasis?

4. In the second stanza, to whom is the nightingale depicted singing?

5. In line 4, "Stop here, or gently pass!" what is the grammatical mood of the words "stop" and "pass"?

(see the answer key)

This section contains 248 words (approx. 1 page at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample