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

2. Besides that the reaper may be singing about some terrible moment in history, what else does the speaker guess she might be singing about?

3. Which line uses deliberate redundancy for emphasis?

4. What is the meaning of the word "Yon" in line 2, "Yon solitary Highland Lass"?

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

Short Essay Questions

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

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

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 rhyme scheme of "The Solitary Reaper."

6. 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?

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

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

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

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 that makes and defends a claim about the poem's use of caesura in the first and fourth stanzas. Support your assertions with evidence from the text.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay in which you analyze the symbolic value of the nightingale in Wordsworth's poem. Be sure to research how this bird is traditionally used in Western literature, and support your assertions with evidence from the text and from your research. Cite all sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you evaluate how characteristic the language of "The Solitary Reaper" is as an example of Wordsworth's style. Research the elements of style considered typical of Wordsworth's writing and use evidence from this research as well as quoted evidence from the poem itself to support your ideas. Cite all sources in MLA format.

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