Acc. English III
Name ________________________
The Modern Period
Date _________________________
____ 1. In “Design,” the overall imagery suggests that
a. the moth is not actually dead
b. evil may masquerade as innocence
c. the spider is aware of the speaker
d. all of nature is beautiful
____ 2. The gold in “Nothing Gold Can Stay” is a symbol of
a. the magnificence of autumn leaves
c. human greed and selfishness
b. sunrise in the Garden of Eden
d. fleeting beauty and perfection
____ 3. According to Frost, the boy who swings on birch trees experiences
a. a frightening near-death vision
b. the pleasures of both heaven and earth
c. the wrath of an indignant landowner
d. a variety of minor injuries
____ 4. Which of the following best describes blank verse?
a. rhymed iambic pentameter
b. unrhymed iambic pentameter
c. free verse with occasional internal rhyme
d. iambic pentameter with irregular line breaks
____ 5. Frost uses which of the following two meters?
a. trochaic tetrameter and anapestic monometer
b. iambic hexameter and dactylic dimeter
c. strict iambic and loose iambic
d. loose heptameter and strict dimeter
____ 6. In “The Death of the Hired Man,” the characters’ feelings are revealed by
a. how the characters react to death
b. the characters’ different definitions of work
c. the observations of the third-person narrator
d. what the characters say to one another
____ 7. In “The Death of the Hired Man,” one can infer that Silas hopes to maintain dignity
because he
a. leaves his former employers alone
b. asks for money only from people who can afford to help him
c. claims to have come to do some tasks
d. stays with his brother rather than with friends
____ 8. Why does Frost use blank verse in “The Death of the Hired Man”?
a. to prove that blank verse is better than free verse
b. to make the dialogue sound natural
c. to avoid iambic pentameter and strict rhyme schemes
d. to use complicated end rhymes
“A Worn Path”
____ 9. On her journey, Phoenix encounters
a. an old woman with a cane
b. a hunter and his dog
c. a young girl with a plate
d. an alligator under a log
____ 10. The incidents with the thorn bush and the scarecrow indicate that Phoenix
a. has trouble seeing
b. fears nothing
c. has trouble walking
d. drifts in and out of consciousness
____11. Throughout her journey, Phoenix
a. wants to turn back
b. tries to remember where she is going
c. is determined to keep going
d. thinks only of her grandson
____ 12. How is Phoenix able to remember the way to the doctor’s office?
a. After many trips to the doctor, her feet remember where to take her.
b. She asks many helpful people for directions.
c. She is able to find her way with the help of some schoolchildren.
d. She is able to find her way with the help of a large black dog.
____13. When Phoenix arrives at the doctor’s office, what does the attendant think?
a. She thinks that Phoenix is in the wrong building.
b. She thinks that Phoenix is insane.
c. She supposes that Phoenix is from the country.
d. She supposes that Phoenix is a “charity case.”
____ 14. Phoenix is going to use her two nickels to buy
a. a paper windmill
b. some throat medicine
c. a new dress
d. a new cane
____ 15. Phoenix imagines that she sees
a. a buzzard in a cornfield
b. a log across the creek
c. her dress caught in a bush
d. a boy with a slice of marble cake
____ 16. The main theme of “A Worn Path” can best be described as the
a. The persistent temptation to steal is a test of faith.
b. Incredible physical strength can result from age and wisdom.
c. An overwhelming presence of nature can threaten human lives.
d. Strong devotion helps people continue on a difficult journey.
____ 17. The main theme of the story can best be compared to
a. an endless road to nowhere
b. a long trail with obstacles and challenges
c. a high-speed chase down a freeway
d. a bumpy dirt road through a wheat field
____18. The main theme of “A Worn Path” can best be described as the
a. The persistent temptation to steal is a test of faith.
b. Incredible physical strength can result from age and wisdom.
c. An overwhelming presence of nature can threaten human lives.
d. Strong devotion helps people continue on a difficult journey.
____19. The main theme of the story can best be compared to
a. an endless road to nowhere
b. a long trail with obstacles and challenges
c. a high-speed chase down a freeway
d. a bumpy dirt road through a wheat field
“Richard Cory” & “Miniver Cheevy”
____ 20. To comfort himself, Cheevy
a. writes about knighthood
b. dresses in regal clothing
c. teaches Greek history
d. relies on alcohol
____ 21. Richard Cory and Miniver Cheevy are most alike in that they both have
a. secret miseries
b. antisocial attitudes
c. slim physiques
d. comfortable homes
“Richard Bone” “Butch Weldy” “Fiddler Jones” “Petit, the Poet” “Mrs. George Reece”
____ 22. Richard Bone describes himself as a hypocrite because he continued working at a job
that required him to
a. report history
c. support the war
b. praise the rich
d. write lies
____ 23. Richard Bone implies that he carved what he was told to because
a. he was paid to carve whatever people wanted
b. he does not want to hurt people’s feelings
c. he knew the people who had died
d. printers write what they are told
____ 24. At the end of “Richard Bone,” Bone compares himself to the
a. undertaker
c. preacher
b. historian
d. newspaper editor
____ 25. The first line of the poem “‘Butch’ Weldy,” which states that “Butch” settled down and
“got religion,” refers to
a. “Butch’s” life before he caused Fiddler Jones’s death
b. a time after Fiddler Jones’s death when “Butch” stopped drinking
c. the time after “Butch’s” accident
d. “Butch’s” being drunk for most of his life
____ 26. The trial in “‘Butch’ Weldy” is
a. “Butch’s” trial for causing Fiddler Jones’s death
b. Old Rhodes’s son being tried for causing Fiddler Jones’s death
c. “Butch’s” suit against Rhodes to get compensation for his accident
d. the “trial” his life has become since his injuries in the explosion at work
____ 27. When “Butch”Weldy says,“I didn’t know him at all,” he refers to
a. Old Rhodes
b. Old Rhodes’s son
c. the man who left the blow-fire burning
d. the Circuit Judge
____ 28. In “Fiddler Jones,” Fiddler Jones
a. cannot resist dancing
b. does not like the way his life has gone
c. carves cemetery headstones for a living
d. has trouble getting his farming done
____ 29. Fiddler Jones
a. did not know how to farm
b. heard music in everything
c. was lazy at heart
d. resented “Butch”Weldy for causing his death
____ 30. Fiddler Jones
a. never got richer
b. envied Cooney Potter’s success
c. lost his forty acres
d. died a broken man
____ 31. In “Petit, the Poet,” Petit does not pay attention to
a. life in the village
c. triolets, villanelles, and rondels
b. the poets Homer and Whitman
d. the pines in the wood
____ 32. To Petit, seed pods represent
a. rebirth
b. nature and growth
c. the people of the village
d. his work and his life
____ 33. Petit is preoccupied with
a. rhythm and rhyme
b. symphonies
c. weaving
d. the woodlands
____ 34. “Butch” Weldy and George Reece both suffer at the hands of
a. their defense attorney
c. the bank president
b. Jack the Fiddler
d. the tank yard owner
____ 35. In “Mrs. George Reece,” Mrs. Reece recommends
a. living life to the fullest
c. going to school
b. saving money
d. memorizing a verse
____ 36. Mrs. Reece
a. finds excuses for her behavior
b. takes responsibilities seriously
c. seeks revenge
d. tutors students
“The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”
____ 37. Which of the following statements best describes Mrs. Mitty?
a. She does all the shopping for the household.
b. She cannot make decisions.
c. She is always working.
d. She constantly tells Walter what to do.
____ 38. When Walter imagines that he is on the witness stand, he
a. brilliantly argues for his innocence in the murder of Gregory Fitzhurst
b. proudly admits that he could have killed Gregory Fitzhurst with his left hand
c. successfully demonstrates that the district attorney murdered Gregory Fitzhurst
d. acts as his own lawyer in the trial for the murder of Gregory Fitzhurst
____ 39. Walter imagines that he fixes an anesthetizer machine in the operating room using
a. a fountain pen
c. a puppy biscuit
b. a glove
d. a pencil
____ 40. In all of his fantasies,Walter imagines that he is
a. an outlaw narrowly escaping from the authorities
b. a man who shows control in difficult situations
c. a person who knows exactly how to follow orders
d. a hero who saves lives
____ 41. When Walter is questioned about the gun, his attitude can best be described as
a. arrogant and fearless
b. frightened and intimidated
c. confused and depressed
d. excited and hysterical
____ 42. The use of cause and effect in “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” is unusual because
a. Walter’s wife is often the cause
b. the effects often come before the causes
c. the effects are wild fantasies and the causes are mundane
d. Walter is not a realistic human being
____ 43. Walter’s courtroom drama is triggered by
a. his sudden recollection of what he needs at the A & P
b. his overhearing a newsboy talking about a trial
c. an article he reads in the hairdresser’s shop
d. something that goes wrong during surgery
____ 44. James Thurber’s descriptions of Walter’s fantasies can be seen as parodies because they
a. humorously imitate real life
b. humorously imitate action-adventure stories
c. seriously imitate twentieth-century drama
d. seriously imitate mystery novels
____ 45. Which of the following details is part of one parody in the story?
a. Walter waits for his wife to get her hair done.
b. Walter hits the district attorney.
c. Walter attempts to take the chains off his car.
d. Walter asks for puppy biscuits at the A & P.
“A Worn Path”
____ 46. On her journey, Phoenix encounters
a. an old woman with a cane
b. a hunter and his dog
c. a young girl with a plate
d. an alligator under a log
____ 47. The incidents with the thorn bush and the scarecrow indicate that Phoenix
a. has trouble seeing
b. fears nothing
c. has trouble walking
d. drifts in and out of consciousness
____ 48. Throughout her journey, Phoenix
a. wants to turn back
b. tries to remember where she is going
c. is determined to keep going
d. thinks only of her grandson
____ 49. How is Phoenix able to remember the way to the doctor’s office?
a. After many trips to the doctor, her feet remember where to take her.
b. She asks many helpful people for directions.
c. She is able to find her way with the help of some schoolchildren.
d. She is able to find her way with the help of a large black dog.
____ 50. When Phoenix arrives at the doctor’s office, what does the attendant think?
a. She thinks that Phoenix is in the wrong building.
b. She thinks that Phoenix is insane.
c. She supposes that Phoenix is from the country.
d. She supposes that Phoenix is a “charity case.”
____ 51. Phoenix is going to use her two nickels to buy
a. a paper windmill
b. some throat medicine
c. a new dress
d. a new cane
____ 52. Phoenix imagines that she sees
a. a buzzard in a cornfield
b. a log across the creek
c. her dress caught in a bush
d. a boy with a slice of marble cake
____ 53. The main theme of “A Worn Path” can best be described as the
a. The persistent temptation to steal is a test of faith.
b. Incredible physical strength can result from age and wisdom.
c. An overwhelming presence of nature can threaten human lives.
d. Strong devotion helps people continue on a difficult journey.
____ 54. The main theme of the story can best be compared to
a. an endless road to nowhere
b. a long trail with obstacles and challenges
c. a high-speed chase down a freeway
d. a bumpy dirt road through a wheat field
____55. By leaving the story open to interpretation, Welt intends to
a. turn Phoenix into a caricature of senility
b. leave the reader in a state of meaningless confusion
c. more realistically portray the hardship of Phoenix’s life
d. recreate for the reader the cloudy state of Phoenix’s mind
____56. Which literary technique is most instrumental in conveying the story’s ambiguity?
a. limited third-person narration
b. visual description
c. foreshadowing
d. indirect characterization
____57. In what way does the title “A Worn Path” clearly represent the focus of the story?
a. It symbolizes the great weariness Phoenix feels as she ages.
b. It points to the gradual wearing away of Phoenix’s vitality and wits.
c. It illustrates the repetitiveness of an old person’s life.
d. It emphasizes Phoenix’s sense of purpose and resolve.
Historical Period
____ 69. Until the beginning of the twentieth century, all of the following were part of the
American dream except a
a. respect for the mysterious workings of the subconscious mind
b. belief that the country’s abundance and bounty were limitless
c. trust in the ultimate triumph of any self-reliant individual
d. faith in America’s progress toward prosperity
____ 70. After World War I, American writers began to
a. try to tighten their connections with the past
b. grow cynical about traditional authority and values
c. urge the country to build economic opportunities
d. abandon their art and find new ways of making a living
____ 71. The modernist movement challenged American writers to
a. adopt Marxism as a philosophical basis for their work
b. set their stories and poems in the South or Midwest
c. find new themes, subjects, and styles for their work
d. avoid the influences and ideas of European writers
____72. A growing interest in psychoanalysis led writers to
a. doubt the value and sincerity of their work
b. rely on doctors to help them find meaning in life
c. criticize works that described characters’ feelings
d. try to capture their characters’ thought processes
____ 73. During the Jazz Age, many American writers and artists
a. supported Prohibition in their work
b. openly criticized the music of the period
c. lived as expatriates in France
d. embraced the idea of America as Eden
____ 74. Ernest Hemingway created major characters who
a. express themselves in flamboyant ways
b. avoid the challenges of day-to-day life
c. are willing to do anything to achieve their goals
d. behave honorably in a world without purpose
____ 75. Some American poets were inspired by modernist European painters and began to use
their imagery and symbolism, while others looked to
a. American painters for style and subjects
b. traditional forms and ordinary speech
c. ancient Greek and Roman myths for themes
d. forms they admired in modern British drama
____ 76. Poets of the Harlem Renaissance wrote American poetry that involved
a. traditional verse forms
b. ghetto speech and rhythms from jazz and blues
c. references to ancient African forms of poetry
d. discussions of the decline of American cities
____ 77. Many American modernist writers
a. maintained a vision of America as Eden
b. embraced the boundless optimism of earlier times
c. believed nature had outlived its usefulness
d. focused on obscure questions and issues
____ 78. American modernist writers managed to
a. avoid fundamental questions asked by writers of the past
b. destroy our illusions about American dreams and ideals
c. create a literature that reflects many American voices
d. focus only on the positive aspects of American culture
Short Answer:
1. Two selections were sonnets. Which two poems were identified as sonnets?
a. ____________________________________
b. ____________________________________
2.
Define sonnet: ________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
3.
a.
The two types of sonnets are ______________________ and ____________________
b.
Describe each—include stanza forms, rhyme schemes
IN Frost’s “Design” what color are all the “characters”? __________________________
a. What does the color symbolize? _______________________________________
4.
The theme of “nothing Gold Can Stay” is ______________________________________
5. Define Blank Verse: ________________________________________________________
6. What is symbolic about Phoenix Jackson’s name (A Worn Path) ______________________
__________________________________________________________________________
7.
What ambiguity exists in “A Worn Path”? _______________________________________
8. How is the word charity used in this story? ________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
9.
Edgar Lee Masters poems are actually what? ________________________________________
10. What are epitaphs? _____________________________________________________________
11. These poems are found in what collection? __________________________________________
12. In Faulkner’s Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, Faulkner says writers should write about
____________________________________________________________________________
13. Faulkner also says that man will not simply ____________________, he will ________________
14. What event changed the voice of American fiction? _______________________________
15. During the Depression, towns made of tents were called ___________________________
16. Name one famous structure built during the Depression. ___________________________
17. What the most popular form of entertainment during the 1930s? ____________________
18. In what country did communists topple the government? _____________________________
19. Who was the founder of psychoanalysis? __________________________________________
20. What narrative technique was a result of this new interest in the psyche?
_____________________________________________________________________
Who was the master of this technique?___________________________________________
21. Name the group of writer who left the United States __________________________________
BONUS: (5 pts)
Other than Faulkner, name a Nobel Prize winning writer from the United States.