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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. What fire-filled thing is likened to moonlight in "Love in Moonlight"?

2. What does the witchgrass say the garden bed is a paradigm of in "Witchgrass"?

3. Who is the speaker in "Matins" (#4)?

4. What does the speaker in "Matins" (#4) say s/he may be better for addressing instead of God?

5. To whom is the speaker of "Wild Iris" speaking?

Short Essay Questions

1. What surprises the snowdrop flower at the end of "Snowdrops"?

2. In "Witchgrass," why does the witchgrass feel humans needed to give them a name?

3. How do the violets refer to the gardener in "Violets"?

4. In "Scilla," what does the scilla say to its human audience that reflects its feeling toward humanity?

5. What does the lamium flower say in regards to the light and sun in "Lamium"?

6. What does the speaker ask God's forgiveness for in "Matins" (#3)?

7. In "April," what does God say to the man and woman in the garden regarding their grief?

8. What pain does the iris describe in "Wild Iris"?

9. Who is speaker in each of the "Matins" poems and who does the speaker address?

10. Why does the hawthorn tree say it does not have to follow the couple to know what they are going through in "Hawthorn Tree"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

God's absence, silence, or potential non-existence is discussed in several of the poems. Choose a minimum of 3 poems and analyze the words, images, and metaphors the poet uses to discuss these themes.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay analyzing how depression is portrayed in Wild Iris. Choose a minimum of 3 poems which show that the poet is depressed. What words, phrases or images are used to show this? Are they effective? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay analyzing the collection as a whole. What themes are evident and what techniques does the poet use to convey these themes? Use textual evidence to support your analysis.

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