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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What do all three sentences in the third stanza have in common?
(a) They are all fragments.
(b) They are all run-ons.
(c) They are all periodic sentences.
(d) They are all questions.

2. What technique is used in phrases like "the Vale profound" (line 7) and "A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard" (line 13)?
(a) Inversion.
(b) Imagery.
(c) Simile.
(d) Symbolism.

3. What is the meaning of the word "Yon" in line 2, "Yon solitary Highland Lass"?
(a) Nearby, this one.
(b) You.
(c) Over there, that one.
(d) My.

4. 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"?
(a) The feminine ending of line 26 emphasizes the idea of something that does not end when it is expected to.
(b) The contraction in line 25 creates a second line of trimeter in this stanza, emphasizing the musicality of the song.
(c) Line 25 begins with a dactyl, emphasizing the importance of the content of the reaper's song.
(d) Line 26 has four metrical feet instead of the expected three, creating a feeling of "lingering."

5. The characterization of the woman as a "Highland Lass" indicates that she is a young woman from what area?
(a) Ireland.
(b) Wales.
(c) The Hebrides.
(d) Scotland.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who is the author of "The Solitary Reaper"?

2. Which is the best interpretation of line 6's reference to "a melancholy strain"?

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

4. Where are "the farthest Hebrides" (line 16)?

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

(see the answer key)

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