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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.
Short Answer Questions
1. In the lines "Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow / For old, unhappy, far-off things," what does "plaintive numbers" refer to (lines 18-19)?
2. Where are "the farthest Hebrides" (line 16)?
3. From context, what is is likely meaning of "single" in line 1, "Behold her, single in the field"?
4. Which stanza could be reasonably called the most positive in tone?
5. In the fourth stanza, when the speaker finally places himself in the scene, what is it clear he is there to do?
Short Essay Questions
1. 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.
2. Summarize the action of "The Solitary Reaper."
3. To which two birds does the speaker compare the reaper, and what area of the world does the speaker associate with each?
4. What question does the speaker ask in the third stanza, and what two contrasting answers does he speculate about?
5. Describe the tense shift in "The Solitary Reaper" and explain what it reveals about the poem's narrative present.
6. Describe the rhyme scheme of "The Solitary Reaper."
7. In what way do the places associated with the two birds create a dramatic contrast with one another?
8. 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?
9. What are the names of the two forms of poetry that are combined in this poem, and how are they combined?
10. Describe the meter of "The Solitary Reaper."
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Write an essay in which you use evidence from the poem to affirm, refute, or qualify the following statement: Wordsworth's 'The Solitary Reaper' would be a less effective poem if the reader were aware of the specific song the reaper sings.
Essay Topic 2
Wordsworth wrote in Preface to the Lyrical Ballads that poetry emerges from the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" that are "recollected in tranquility." Write an essay that demonstrates how these ideas are reflected in "The Solitary Reaper." Be sure to support your claims with evidence from the text.
Essay Topic 3
Write an essay in which you respond analytically to the following question: why is the reaper's song so sad? Be sure to support your claims with textual evidence.
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This section contains 950 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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