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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In the lines "Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow / For old, unhappy, far-off things," what does "plaintive numbers" refer to (lines 18-19)?
(a) Time and history.
(b) The reaper's tears.
(c) The song.
(d) The reaper's personal experience.

2. What is the meaning of the word "lay" in the line "Or is it some more humble lay" (line 21)?
(a) A narrative poem written in couplets.
(b) Tune or song.
(c) A reclining position.
(d) A plan or pattern.

3. Who is the author of "The Solitary Reaper"?
(a) William Wordsworth.
(b) John Keats.
(c) William Blake.
(d) Percy Shelley.

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

5. In line 4, "Stop here, or gently pass!" what is the grammatical mood of the words "stop" and "pass"?
(a) Imperative.
(b) Subjunctive.
(c) Indicative.
(d) Interrogative.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the meaning of the word "Yon" in line 2, "Yon solitary Highland Lass"?

2. How does line 3, "Reaping and singing by herself," interrupt the poem's dominant metrical pattern?

3. What is subtly appropriate about the meter in lines 25 and 26, "Whate'er the theme, the Maiden sang / As if her song could have no ending"?

4. Which stanza could be reasonably called the most positive in tone?

5. The characterization of the woman as a "Highland Lass" indicates that she is a young woman from what area?

(see the answer key)

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