English 8 – June Review
Date ___________
Name __________________________________
Period _______
Read the following poem and answer the questions that follow.
Identity
Let them be as flowers,
always watered, fed, guarded, admired,
but harnessed to a pot of dirt.
I'd rather be a tall, ugly weed,
clinging on cliffs, like an eagle
wind-wavering above high, jagged rocks.
To have broken through the surface of stone
to live, to feel exposed to the madness
of the vast, eternal sky.
To be swayed by the breezes of an ancient sea,
carrying my soul, my seed beyond the mountains of time
or into the abyss of the bizarre.
5
10
I'd rather be unseen, and if,
then shunned by everyone
than to be a pleasant-smelling flower,
growing in clusters in the fertile valley
where they're praised, handled, and plucked
by greedy, human hands.
15
I'd rather smell of musty, green stench
than of sweet, fragrant lilac.
If I could stand alone, strong and free, I'd rather be a tall, ugly weed.
~ Julio Noboa Polance
English 8 – June Review
Date ___________
Name __________________________________
Period _______
1. Line 1 “Let them be as flowers,” is an example of
A. simile
B. metaphor
C. personification
D. imagery
2. Line 4 “I'd rather be a tall, ugly weed,” is an example of
A. simile
C. personification
B. metaphor
D. imagery
3. Which of the following is an example of personification?
A. “clinging on cliffs….wind-wavering above high jagged rocks”
B. “clinging on cliffs like an eagle”
C. “Let them be as flowers”
D. “the clouds’ tears blanketed the earth with her sorrow”
4. Which of the following is an example of alliteration?
A. “clinging on cliffs….wind-wavering above high jagged rocks”
B. “clinging on cliffs like an eagle”
C. “Let them be as flowers”
D. “the clouds’ tears blanketed the earth with her sorrow”
5. Which of the following is an example of simile?
A. “clinging on cliffs….wind-wavering above high jagged rocks”
B. “clinging on cliffs like an eagle”
C. “Let them be as flowers”
D. “the clouds’ tears blanketed the earth with her sorrow”
6. Why does the speaker in "Identity" choose to be a weed?
A. He thinks weeds are a more natural kind of beauty.
B. He wants to live his life wild and free.
C. He is not afraid of heights and cliffs.
D. He thinks weeds smell better than most flowers.
7. What do the weeds and flower represent?
A. Wild animals are the weeds and pets are the flowers.
B. They are both comparisons for ways to live your life.
C. They are metaphors for nature and the sky.
D. They are not metaphors; they are literal.
8. What does the word shunned mean in line 14?
A. Avoided.
B. Worshiped.
C. Rewarded.
D. Liked.
English 8 – June Review
Date ___________
Name __________________________________
Period _______
9. If the speaker in this poem was able to make the choices he describes in this poem, what word
would most likely characterize him?
A. Lonely.
B. Angry.
C. Free-spirited.
D. Athletic.
10. What do lines 17 and 18 reveal about the speaker’s attitude towards mankind?
A. He thinks that mankind is generous and thoughtful.
B. He thinks that mankind is an important part of nature.
C. He thinks that mankind is supportive and loving.
D. He thinks that mankind is greedy and self-destructive.
Read each question. Underline the reference to the definition of a literary element to help
you answer the question. Choose the term that BEST answers each question.
1. In the story “Raymond’s Run,” the narrator says the “the big kids call me Mercury cause I’m the swiftest thing in the
neighborhood.” This reference to Roman mythology is an example of
a. a simile.
c. an allusion.
b. irony.
d. personification.
2. In the story “The Medicine Bag,” Martin returns to the reservation to put a piece of sacred sage inside the bag. The sage
represents the land of his ancestors. This is the literary element of
a. simile.
c. foreshadowing.
b. symbol.
d. denouement.
3. In the story “Thank You M’am,” the protagonist Roger learns from Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones that there are
honest ways to get what you want. This central message or the lesson to be learned is
a. the theme.
c. figurative language.
b. symbolism.
d. climax.
4. In “The Tell-Tale Heart,” the narrator believes that he is not crazy and tries to prove it to the reader. This type of conflict is
a. man vs. man.
c. man vs. self.
b. man vs. reader.
d. man vs. society.
5. In the short story “Flowers for Algernon,” Charlie Gordon is excited to find out that he has been chosen for the operation.
He says, “They are going to use me!” This use of words that say one thing, but also means another is an example of
a. situational irony.
c. verbal irony.
b. dramatic irony.
d. figurative language.
English 8 – June Review
Date ___________
Name __________________________________
Period _______
At the beginning of “The Treasure of Lemon Brown,” Greg Ridley’s goal is to play ball for the
Scorpions. However, his father will not allow this because Greg is failing math.
6. In this short story, Greg would be considered
a. the protagonist.
b. the antagonist.
c. the first-person point of view
d. a third-person omniscient point of view.
7. In this short story, his father would be considered
a. the protagonist.
b. the antagonist.
c. the first-person point of view
d. a third-person omniscient point of view.
8. The main conflict in “The Treasure of Lemon Brown” would be
a. man vs. self.
c. man vs. man.
b. man vs. nature.
d. man vs. society.
“The boy was small but with tough, stringy muscles standing out on his neck and forearms.
Childhood lingered in his features, but when he paused to rest; his fingers went hopefully to the
silky beginnings of sideburns and a moustache.”
9. This quote from “The Kid Nobody Could Handle” is an example of
a. direct characterization.
c. tone.
b. indirect characterization.
d. mood.
10. At the beginning of the short story “The Tell-Tale Heart,” the narrator believes that he is not crazy. In the end, his
opinion has not changed. Because he has stayed the same throughout the story, he would be considered a
a. static character.
c. a third-person limited point of view.
b. dynamic character.
d. a third-person omniscient point of view.
“The gray coldness of Fear slipped into the driver’s seat. Grady sucked air into his lungs in big
gulps, feeling out of control. Fear moved his foot to the gas pedal, careening the bus into
oncoming traffic. Headlights. A truck. Fear made Grady hit the brakes. The back of the bus went
into a sliding spin, slamming into a tree. Grady’s stomach was crushed against the steering wheel,
rupturing his liver and spleen.”
11. The mood of this passage can best be described as
a. calm.
b. excited.
c. panicked.
d. sorrowful.
12. Which literary device is being used in the description of “Fear” in this passage?
a. simile
c. personification
b. metaphor
d. imagery
13. The word careening as used in this passage means
a. moving at slow pace.
b. moving without control.
c. moving quickly but in one direction.
d. moving with complete control.
English 8 – June Review
Date ___________
Name __________________________________
Period _______
14. As Hana Omiya travels across the ocean in “Tear of Autumn,” the author brings the reader back to the past through her
memories of how she came to be moving to the United States. This interruption in the sequence of the plot and returning to
an earlier point is known as
a. foreshadowing.
c. allusion.
b. symbolism.
d. flashback.
15. Early in the novel The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton uses the allusion “Nothing Gold Can Stay” to give a hint or a clue that
Johnny Cade will die. This hint or clue is an example of
a. foreshadowing.
c. allusion.
b. symbolism.
d. flashback.
Questions 16 -18:
Read the following:
In the short story “Raymond’s Run” the protagonist, Squeaky, says “I continue with my breathing
exercises…with not a care in the world cause I am Miss Quicksilver herself.”
16. This comparison is an example of a
a. simile.
b. metaphor.
c. personification.
d. imagery.
17. Using the reference to “Quicksilver” as part of this comparison makes it also an
a. symbol.
c. memoir.
b. allusion.
d. irony.
18. What do the protagonist’s words and tone reveal about her?
a. She is a nervous person.
c. She is an arrogant person.
b. She is an angry person.
d. She is a bashful person.
Questions: Use the following questions to answer questions 19-23.
Match each description with the correct story.
A. “You could not do this and you could not do that. They forced Father out of his business. We had to wear yellow stars. I
had to turn in my bike…I couldn’t go to the movies, or ride in an automobile, or even on a streetcar, and a million other
things.”
B. “In 1930 there were fewer and fewer hours of work each for day; in 1932 he lost his job completely. With that loss, with
the loss of his savings when the bank closed, maybe the loss of being the proud man he’d once been, Dad’s attitude toward
me grew less and less like that of a father who loves his son.”
C.”We walked to the shopping district, where the big stores were. Except some of them were not so big now; the
bombardment had left them in crumples of brick. Looking down the street, I saw spaces where stores should be. Like
broken teeth.”
_______ 19. Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli
_______ 20. The Diary of Anne Frank by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett
_______ 21. No Promises in the Wind by Irene Hunt
English 8 – June Review
Date ___________
Name __________________________________
Period _______
22. Which aspect of the plot is revealed in each description?
a. Nothing.
b. It gives the reader details about the setting of each story.
c. It provides a description of the characters and their personality traits.
d. It establishes the conflict.
23. These quotations from each novel would most likely appear in the
a. exposition.
b. climax.
c. falling action.
d. denouement.
24. In the novel Milkweed, Janina blows open a milkweed pod beside her mother’s grave to represent her mother’s spirit
leaving the world. This is the literary technique of
a. symbol.
c. memoir.
b. allusion.
d. irony.
25. Which is an example of a simile?
a. The rain danced across the windshield.
b. The song was an invitation to my memory.
c. My backpack weighs a thousand pounds.
d. The laughter was like a disease.
26. Which is NOT an example of a metaphor?
a. “One picture puzzle piece
Lyin’ on the sidewalk,”
b. “It might be the shadowy trace
Of a tear that runs down an angel’s face.”
c. “It might be an enchanted bean,
Or a fold in the red…”
d. “It might be the veil of a bride
Or a bottle with some evil genie inside.”
Read the following stanza:
Bruised and battered
By the dark silent hammers of the night,
The day creeps
Slowly
From the tired room.
27. Which poetic device is used in line 1? _____________________________
28. Which poetic device is used in lines 3-5? __________________________
29. Which adjective best describes the tone of the stanza?
a. dignified
b. indifferent
c. ominous
d. exhilarated
(5)