Q.1
Which of the following words does NOT describe the mood of this poem?
  • Regretful
  • Hopeful
  • Sorrowful
  • Resigned
Q.2
Although the first line of each stanza is a simile, the entire poem is an example of...
  • personification
  • alliteration
  • an extended metaphor
  • iambic pentameter
Q.3
What is the narrator in this poem mourning?
  • A recent disappointment in life
  • The loss of her friends and youthful acquaintances
  • The loss of her home and family
  • The loss of youthful hopes and dreams; the ability to respond emotionally
Q.4
'Once it was soft to every touch' - what is meant by this line?
  • The narrator knew how to stand up for herself in the past
  • The narrator was sensitive and responsive to other people
  • The narrator did not really love anyone when she was younger
  • The narrator's heart was physically healthy when she was younger
Q.5
Which line supports the point made in the answer to question 4?
  • 'But now 'tis stern and closely shut'
  • 'I would not have to plead with such'
  • 'Each light-toned voice once cleared my brow'
  • 'But since misfortune's blast hath cut'
Q.6
'The hopes and dreams that filled it when / Life's spring of glory met my view, / Are gone!' What effect do enjambment and caesura achieve in these lines?
  • It emphasizes the surprising shortness of the phrase 'Are gone!'
  • It reproduces the suddenness with which the narrator was robbed of her hopes and dreams
  • It illustrates the way the narrator's dreamy youth gave way sharply to the reality of adulthood
  • All of the above
Q.7
'Where hung the sun-lit fruit, which now / Lies cold, and stiff, and sad, like me!' - What does the poet imply with the words 'cold' and 'stiff'?
  • She is reminding the reader of her heart's withered nature
  • It is as if she were dead
  • She demonstrates that she does not care what others think
  • She cannot afford to heat her house
Q.8
In the first stanza, what language choice provides a contrast to 'withered'?
  • Fresh, spring, swell
  • Shell, breast, joy
  • Rattling, hollow, shrunken
  • Put, dwell, view
Q.9
'You cannot ope my breast...' - this line expresses the narrator's resignation to her state. Which other line reinforces this acceptance of the way life will be for her in future?
  • 'Nought to that fruit can now restore'
  • 'But since misfortune's blast hath cut'
  • 'It hath a dark and mournful hue'
  • 'It once was comely to the view'
Q.10
The movement of the poem is between past and present - what effect do the last two lines have?
  • The narrator looks forward in hope to her life and joy being restored
  • The poet appears to have made a mistake with the tenses
  • The last two lines look ahead to a weary, unchanging future
  • The narrator will remain looking back to the past
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