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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which stanza could be reasonably called the most positive in tone?
(a) The fourth.
(b) The third.
(c) The first.
(d) The second.

2. What technique is evident in the poem's opening line, "Behold her, single in the field" (line 1)?
(a) Analogy.
(b) Apology.
(c) Apostrophe.
(d) Allusion.

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

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

5. 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) Wales.
(d) Ireland.

6. 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 delivering supplies.
(b) He is out walking.
(c) He is working on a farm.
(d) He is there to confess his love for the woman.

7. Which line uses deliberate redundancy for emphasis?
(a) "Stop here, or gently pass" (line 4).
(b) "I listened, motionless and still" (line 29).
(c) "Behold her, single in the field" (line 1).
(d) "For old, unhappy, far-off things" (line 19).

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

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

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

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

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

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

14. 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) Modern political events.
(b) The beauty of the Highlands.
(c) Love and romance.
(d) Ordinary, everyday troubles.

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

Short Answer Questions

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

2. 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"?

3. What is the meaning of the word "lay" in the line "Or is it some more humble lay" (line 21)?

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

5. What technique is used in phrases like "the Vale profound" (line 7) and "A voice so thrilling ne'er was heard" (line 13)?

(see the answer keys)

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