1 Which of the following does NOT characterize Thomas Hardy's writing? Country folkways Disillusionment The optimistic view that God will save humanity The difficulties of life 2 What does "Wessex" refer to? Hardy's town of origin Current day South England Ancient Southwestern England Hardy's fictional literary landscape 3 When was Wessex Poems and Other Verses published? 1898 1900 1912 1879 4 Which writer has NOT named Hardy as an influence? Robert Frost George Eliot Philip Larkin W.H. Auden 5 What does the title "Neutral Tones" refer to? The neutral imagery and mood in the poem The speaker's true sense of passivity The ex-lover's quiet and thoughtful nature The speaker's preference for a muted palette 6 Which best characterizes the speaker? The speaker has read Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven." The speaker is finally able to heal from his past relationship and embark on a new one. The speaker suffered more than his partner as a result of the relationship. After breaking up with his ex-partner, the speaker maintains a facade of passivity that does not quite manage to conceal his bitterness. 7 What is true about the speaker's partner? She suffered more than the speaker did. She left a devastating impression on the speaker as a result of the break-up. She has blue eyes. She refers to Thomas Hardy's first wife. 8 Define "rove." (noun) a secret place in a forest (verb) travel constantly without a fixed destination; wander (verb) attempt to plant in starving sod (noun) a grouping of ash trees 9 What could be another word for "ominous"? threatening lucky auspicious futuristic 10 In which season is the poem set? Winter Unspecified Summer Spring 11 Which is NOT a theme in the poem? The Optimism of Love The Persistence of Memories The Facade of Neutrality Love, Loss, and Disillusionment 12 What does God do to the white sun in the first stanza? chides curses conceals casts 13 What does God do to the white sun in the fourth stanza? chides hides curses celebrates 14 What does the starving sod represent? The speaker is starving as a result of the break-up. The lower-class people of Wessex suffered more than the upper-class. Humans don't know how to farm efficiently. The ground of the speaker's relationship to his ex is sterile, as is the speaker's capacity for new love. 15 What does winter symbolize in the poem? Cookies, Santa, and celebration Slowness, tidiness, and introspection Death, hibernation, and endings Cycles, rest, and family 16 What is revealed in the first line? The ending of the relationship The setting and the facade of neutrality The ex-lover's smile The speaker's angry bitterness 17 Define "keen." (adjective) neutral (adjective) disengenuous (noun) a heartfelt cry (adjective) sharp and well-defined 18 What is the poem's rhyme scheme? AABB ABBA ABCD The poem does not rhyme 19 What is the rhyme scheme reminiscent of? None The poetry of Alfred Tennyson The final quatrain of Shakespearean sonnets The first octave of Petrarchan sonnets 20 What does the speaker compare his ex-partner's bitter grin to? An ominous bird taking flight A crow coming home to roost A raven arriving at one's doorstep A blackbird singing in a tree 21 What is the speaker's final perspective on love? Love is capable of harm, but one must choose to risk one's heart. Love is cruel but it pays off. Love is incorrect, unjust, and immoral. Love requires great sacrifice in order to receive its rewards. 22 What is polysyndeton? The bleak despair that demonstrates the speaker's outlook A kind of metaphor A literary device in which one word refers in part to another The purposeful repetition of conjunctions in close succession for emphasis 23 Which is not a symbol in the poem? Winter The yellow sun The white sun The ex-partner's smile 24 Which is NOT a simile in the poem? "Your eyes on me were as eyes that rove / Over tedious riddles of years ago" "And a grin of bitterness swept thereby / Like an ominous bird a-wing" "The change was like the knell" "And the sun was white, as though chidden of God" 25 Which best describes Hardy's religious views? Devout atheist who refuses to discuss God Evangelical Christian Spiritualistic Agnostic, but complexly so