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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

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

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

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

4. 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 personal experience.
(d) The reaper's tears.

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

Short Answer Questions

1. 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"?

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

3. What is the stanzaic form of "The Solitary Reaper"?

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

5. Where in the Highlands is the field where the woman is standing?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the speaker's line 26 description of the reaper singing "As if her song could have no ending" reinforce the meaning of the poem's ending?

2. What are the names of the two forms of poetry that are combined in this poem, and how are they combined?

3. To which two birds does the speaker compare the reaper, and what area of the world does the speaker associate with each?

4. Explain how the mention of "spring-time" in line 14's description of the cuckoo enhances the contrast between this image and the image of the nightingale.

5. Describe the tense shift in "The Solitary Reaper" and explain what it reveals about the poem's narrative present.

6. Describe the meter of "The Solitary Reaper."

7. In what way do the places associated with the two birds create a dramatic contrast with one another?

8. Summarize the action of "The Solitary Reaper."

9. Describe the rhyme scheme of "The Solitary Reaper."

10. What question does the speaker ask in the third stanza, and what two contrasting answers does he speculate about?

(see the answer keys)

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