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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What was the name of Sylvia Plath's husband?
(a) Warner.
(b) Wakefield.
(c) Hughes.
(d) Milford.

2. Sharon Olds is often labeled as a ______ poet.
(a) Confessional.
(b) Controversial.
(c) Mainstream.
(d) Regressional.

3. In which year did Anne Sexton die?
(a) 1978.
(b) 1974.
(c) 1981.
(d) 1967.

4. Gary Snyder referred to himself as having very ____ values.
(a) Archaic.
(b) Liberal.
(c) Visionary.
(d) Simple.

5. Rita Dove's work often blends history with which type of poetry?
(a) Epigram.
(b) Lyric.
(c) Villanelle.
(d) Quatrain.

Short Answer Questions

1. What award did Yusef Komunyakaa receive for military service?

2. Heather McHugh's work is often compared to the work of ______.

3. Rita Dove was named as the ____ Poet Laureate.

4. Richard Howard worked as a writer and editor of dictionaries. What is the proper name for a person who has that job?

5. Mary Oliver believed that the majority of her poems were ______.

Short Essay Questions

1. List some of Robert Hass' jobs outside of poetry. What topics and/or themes are most common in Hass' work? Who were Hass' influences?

2. Examine Yusef Komunyakaa's background and influences regarding his work.

3. What is Mary Oliver's style? How does Mary Oliver incorporate nature into her work? What unique gift does Oliver have as a poet?

4. Where was Charles Simic born? How did his youth affect his poetry? What themes are often seen in Simic's work? What technique is often used by Simic?

5. What prompted Anne Sexton to begin writing poetry? What was Sexton's style? What are some characteristics of Sexton's style?

6. How does Ellen Bryant Voigt compare poetry to music? Why does Voigt make this comparison? In which part of the poem is the comparison most evident?

7. Discuss Amy Clampitt's early career. What are some of Clampitt's themes?

8. In which regions and countries did Irving Feldman live? What are some of the characteristics of Feldman's work? Name three people that appear in Feldman's poetry.

9. How did Audre Lorde often identify herself? Where was Lorde born? What was Lorde's style?

10. What themes are most often seen in Gary Snyder's work? What does Snyder credit with helping him focus on the inner world?

(see the answer keys)

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