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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

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

2. Where are "the farthest Hebrides" (line 16)?
(a) Russia.
(b) Scotland.
(c) Chile.
(d) Australia.

3. Besides that the reaper may be singing about some terrible moment in history, what else does the speaker guess she might be singing about?
(a) Ordinary, everyday troubles.
(b) The beauty of the Highlands.
(c) Love and romance.
(d) Modern political events.

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

5. Where in the Highlands is the field where the woman is standing?
(a) By a river in the foothills.
(b) In a valley.
(c) At the top of a mountain.
(d) On the hillside.

6. 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 song.
(c) The reaper's tears.
(d) The reaper's personal experience.

7. In which stanza does the speaker make it clear that this event happened some time in the past?
(a) The second.
(b) The first.
(c) The fourth.
(d) The third.

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

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

10. What do the metaphors in lines 9-12 and 13-16 have in common?
(a) The both compare music to a geographical location.
(b) They both compare the reaper to a bird.
(c) They both compare the speaker to a traveler.
(d) They both compare traveling to a specific time of year.

11. What technique is employed in lines 7 and 8, "O listen! for the Vale profound / Is overflowing with the sound"?
(a) Cacophony.
(b) Antanaclasis.
(c) Metonymy.
(d) Hyperbole.

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

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

14. In the fourth stanza, when the speaker finally places himself in the scene, what is it clear he is there to do?
(a) He is there to confess his love for the woman.
(b) He is out walking.
(c) He is delivering supplies.
(d) He is working on a farm.

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

Short Answer Questions

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

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

3. What reasonable inference can be made about the reaper from line 17, "Will no one tell me what she sings?"?

4. From context, what is is likely meaning of "single" in line 1, "Behold her, single in the field"?

5. What technique is used in the line "A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard" (line 13)?

(see the answer keys)

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