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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. What is the meaning of the word "Yon" in line 2, "Yon solitary Highland Lass"?
3. Who is the author of "The Solitary Reaper"?
4. What is the young woman doing in the field?
5. What is the "sickle" in line 28?
Short Essay Questions
1. What question does the speaker ask in the third stanza, and what two contrasting answers does he speculate about?
2. 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?
3. Describe the tense shift in "The Solitary Reaper" and explain what it reveals about the poem's narrative present.
4. In what way do the places associated with the two birds create a dramatic contrast with one another?
5. To which two birds does the speaker compare the reaper, and what area of the world does the speaker associate with each?
6. 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.
7. What are the names of the two forms of poetry that are combined in this poem, and how are they combined?
8. Describe the rhyme scheme of "The Solitary Reaper."
9. Describe the meter of "The Solitary Reaper."
10. Summarize the action of "The Solitary Reaper."
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Write an essay in which you make and defend a claim about the relationship of past and present in "The Solitary Reaper." Be sure to defend your assertions with evidence from the text.
Essay Topic 2
Write an essay that makes and defends a claim about the portrayal of the feminine in "The Solitary Reaper." Defend your assertions with textual evidence.
Essay Topic 3
Write an essay that makes and defends a claim about the significance of the action of "reaping" in "The Solitary Reaper." Support your assertions with evidence from the text.
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This section contains 922 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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