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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 does Venus tell Adonis is his "duty" (line 168)?

2. Which is the best interpretation of line 600, in which Venus is said "To clip Elysium and to lack her joy"?

3. When Adonis tells Venus "Remove your siege from my unyielding heart," what metaphor used earlier in the poem does this recall (line 423)?

4. Which is the most reasonable interpretation of Venus's characterization of Adonis as having a "mermaid's voice" (line 429)?

5. In lines 79-84, what bargain does Venus try to strike with Adonis?

Short Essay Questions

1. Explain the comparison made between Adonis's mouth and a "red morn" (line 453).

2. In lines 131 and 132, what does Venus mean when she tells Adonis that "Fair flowers that are not gather’d in their prime/ Rot, and consume themselves in little time"?

3. Throughout the first 36 stanzas, how is Adonis depicted?

4. How do Venus and Adonis end up on the ground together?

5. What happens when Adonis tries to get back on his horse and leave?

6. What point is Adonis making with the metaphor "Who plucks the bud before one leaf put forth?" (line 416)?

7. How does Adonis eventually end up kissing Venus?

8. Explain the epic simile about an eagle in lines 55-60.

9. What does Venus tell Adonis he can learn from his horse?

10. Explain the conceit that Venus uses when she compares herself to a park.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

A year after he published Venus and Adonis, Shakespeare published his only other epyllion, The Rape of Lucrece. Does this poem seem as heavily influenced by drama as Venus and Adonis? Read enough of this second epyllion to have a sense of its style. Then, write an essay that compares and contrasts these two mini-epics, focusing your analysis on the extent to which the poems emphasize dialogue and immediate action. Support your assertions with evidence drawn from both poems, and cite any quoted language in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

Of the several forms of figurative language Shakespeare employs in Venus and Adonis, metaphors and similes are by far the most frequent. What about this is typical of an epic? Why do epics use so many figures of comparison? Are Shakespeare's metaphors and similes employed in similar ways to those typically found in classical epics, or does he seem to have other purposes in mind? Write an essay that establishes how and why similes and metaphors are commonly used in epic poetry and then compares and contrasts the ways that these figures of comparison are used in Venus and Adonis. Support your arguments with both quoted and paraphrased evidence from throughout the poem, making sure to cite any quoted language in MLA format.

Essay Topic 3

How does the stanzaic structure of Venus and Adonis support the poem's tone and meaning? What is the relationship between the couplets and the quatrains within each stanza? How does this relationship impact the poem's tone? When the couplets become aphorisms or epigrams, what contribution does this make to tone? How does this packaging of ideas contribute to the poem's wit and the speaker's authority? Write an essay in which you make and defend a claim about the contribution that the stanzaic form of Venus and Adonis makes to the poem's tone and overall impact. Show how this helps the poem convey one or more ideas. Support your assertions with both quoted and paraphrased evidence drawn from throughout the poem; cite quoted evidence in MLA format.

(see the answer keys)

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