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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In the simile discussing the impact of an earthquake on a king's subjects, what does the speaker say causes earthquakes?
(a) God's wrath.
(b) Shifting tectonic plates.
(c) Wind trapped in the ground.
(d) Disturbed rotation of the earth.

2. What bird's song heralds the approach of morning?
(a) The robin.
(b) The sparrow.
(c) The lark.
(d) The thrush.

3. How does Venus know that the dogs are barking at a boar, bear, or lion?
(a) The dogs sound excited and frightened.
(b) She cannot hear the sound of anything running through the brush.
(c) She hears the excited cries of the hunters with the dogs.
(d) The sound of their barking is stationary.

4. To what does Venus compare the fear of a person in love?
(a) The fear of a person carrying treasure who is surrounded by thieves.
(b) The fear of a shepherd seeing his flock beset by wolves.
(c) The fear of a monarch whose castle is besieged by enemies.
(d) The fear of a mother holding a newborn during a rising flood.

5. What technique is used in lines 629 and 630, "The thorny brambles and embracing bushes/ As fearful of him, part"?
(a) Allusion.
(b) Personification.
(c) Symbolism.
(d) Metaphor.

6. What is the best definition of "eyne" in line 633, "Nor thy soft hands, sweet lips, and crystal eyne"?
(a) Voice.
(b) Breath.
(c) Skin.
(d) Eyes.

7. What techniques are used in lines 1015 and 1016, "“O love!” quoth she, “how much a fool was I,/ To be of such a weak and silly mind"?
(a) Euphemism and apostrophe.
(b) Parallelism and euphemism.
(c) Apostrophe and inversion.
(d) Inversion and parallelism.

8. What does Adonis tell Venus he primarily objects to about her professions of love?
(a) They are unfeminine.
(b) They are callous.
(c) They are embarrassing.
(d) They are dishonest.

9. What characteristic of the boar does Venus's description primarily stress?
(a) It is cunning and deceptive.
(b) It is divinely protected.
(c) It is ugly inside and out.
(d) It is well-armed for battle.

10. How does Venus characterize animals like the lion, tiger, and wolf when in Adonis's presence?
(a) Jealous.
(b) Fearful.
(c) Predatory.
(d) Tame.

11. Where does Venus go first thing in the morning?
(a) A copse of oaks.
(b) A mossy hillock.
(c) A myrtle grove.
(d) A garden pond.

12. What is Venus saying when she asks the world "what canst thou boast/ Of things long since, or anything ensuing" (lines 1077 and 1078)?
(a) Any time before Adonis's birth or after his death is worthless.
(b) The world has no right to brag about itself if it would allow Adonis to die.
(c) The world is a cruel place that does not allow love to grow naturally.
(d) The relationship between the past and the present is not as clear as people pretend.

13. In line 868, "She hearkens for his hounds and for his horn," which technique best conveys Venus's straining to hear a quiet, far-off sound?
(a) Alliteration.
(b) Tone.
(c) Diction.
(d) Imagery.

14. What does Venus tell Adonis will be the cause of him tripping and falling?
(a) One of the gods is jealous.
(b) Earth wants to kiss him.
(c) He is distracted by love.
(d) It is dark and cloudy.

15. What are the various forms of repetition in lines 833 and 834, "'Ay me!' she cries, and twenty times, 'Woe, woe!'/ And twenty echoes twenty times cry so," meant to convey?
(a) The repetition mimics the way Venus keeps running back and forth looking for Adonis.
(b) The repetition highlights the difference between Venus's display of grief and the shallowness of her real feelings.
(c) The repetition stresses Venus's passion and mimics the sound of echoing.
(d) The repetition demonstrates that Venus's lust has become genuine love.

Short Answer Questions

1. Besides being goddess of the moon and the hunt, what significant power was Cynthia believed to possess?

2. What technique is used in line 1141, "It shall be fickle, false and full of fraud"?

3. What technique is used in lines 815 and 816, "Look how a bright star shooteth from the sky,/ So glides he in the night from Venus’ eye"?

4. What do Venus's descriptions of the rabbit, fox, and deer have in common?

5. For what reason does Venus suggest the sun and wind took pity on Adonis's tears?

(see the answer keys)

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