View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following most clearly communicates the speaker's admiration for the reaper's singing ability?
(a) The poem's elevated diction.
(b) The poem's nature imagery.
(c) The repeated use of exclamation points.
(d) The metaphors in the second stanza.

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) Simile.
(c) Imagery.
(d) Symbolism.

3. Which is the best interpretation of line 6's reference to "a melancholy strain"?
(a) A sad song.
(b) Persistent pain.
(c) Hard work.
(d) A difficult burden.

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

5. What technique is evident in the line "Breaking the silence of the seas" (line 15)?
(a) Sibilance.
(b) Aphorismus.
(c) Onomatopoeia.
(d) Synesthesia.

Short Answer Questions

1. What do all three sentences in the third stanza have in common?

2. In the fourth stanza, when the speaker finally places himself in the scene, what is it clear he is there to do?

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

4. What is the young woman doing in the field?

5. In which stanza does the speaker make it clear that this event happened some time in the past?

(see the answer key)

This section contains 344 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample