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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 is described as "the heart's constant backdrop" (27) in "Song"?

2. What does the speaker in "Midsummer" remind humanity they were not intended to be?

3. Why does the speaker say humans suffer at the end of "Early Darkness"?

4. Who or what does the speaker in "Heaven and Earth" observe as wanting it all as s/he stands on the horizon?

5. Who is God speaking to in "Harvest"?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the clover question in regards to people's view of the four leaf clover in "Clover"?

2. "In Doorway," how does the poet describe the late spring?

3. What is different about the way the poet in "Song" sees the rose compared to how her husband sees it?

4. In "Vespers" (#4), where does the poet say she knows God is?

5. Why does God tell humans that they need not fear death in "Harvest"?

6. What does the poet in "Heaven and Earth" question in regards to her husband at the end of the poem?

7. What does the poet say were some of the signs God existed in her youth in "Vespers" (#6)?

8. In what way is the speaker in "Matins" (#6) different from the sick rose?

9. What does the poet express regret for thinking in "Matins" (#7)?

10. In "Vespers" (#3), why does the poet think she is "uniquely/ suited to praise [God]" (38)?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay analyzing the garden as a place of religious reflection. Choose 3 - 5 poem's in which the garden contemplate religion and discuss how the garden and what happens in it is a reflection of this contemplation.

Essay Topic 2

Analyze the difference between the speaker and her husband John in 2 - 3 poems. How are their views different and what techniques does the poet use to convey these differences?

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay analyzing the ways in which the changing seasons represent the poet's emotions and relationship with God. Use textual evidence to support your analysis.

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