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

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

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

4. In the second stanza, to whom is the nightingale depicted singing?
(a) Shepherds.
(b) The reaper.
(c) The speaker.
(d) Travelers.

5. 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 working on a farm.
(d) He is delivering supplies.

Short Answer Questions

1. What do the metaphors in lines 9-12 and 13-16 have in common?

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

3. What technique is employed in lines 7 and 8, "O listen! for the Vale profound / Is overflowing with the sound"?

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

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

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. 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.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

(see the answer keys)

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