Storm on the Island Quizzes

Storm on the Island Quiz Storm on the Island

1 Which phrase is an example of alliteration?
"space is a salvo"

"can raise a tragic refrain"

"listen to the thing"

"the wizened earth has never"
2 What do the poem's houses symbolize?
The talent and artistry of Irish people

The culture of the people who live in them

The oppressiveness of education

The strength of the storm
3 To which animal does Heaney compare the storm?
A wolf

A cat

A lizard

A lion
4 Which best describes the speaker's tone at the beginning of the poem?
Furious

Imploring

Sarcastic

Confident
5 Which best describes the speaker's tone at the end of the poem?
Thoughtful

Protective

Comic

Brash
6 What is this poem's meter?
Dactylic pentameter

The poem lacks a consistent meter

Iambic pentameter

Iambic hexameter
7 Which word from "Storm on the Island" is the clearest instance of onomatpoeia?
"salvo"

"wizened"

"fear"

"blast"
8 Which real event may the poem's storm refer to?
The 1918 Russian Revolution

The toppling of the Hawaiian monarchy

The American invasion of Iraq

The Troubles in Ireland
9 What best describes the poem's central contradiction or paradox?
The islanders pray for rain, though storms cause them harm

The islanders build low houses, even though they flood with every storm

The islanders fear the storm, though it is made of air

The islanders choose to remain on a dangerous island
10 What does the speaker articulate about the relationship between the sea and the storm?
The sea is a frightening place to be in the storm, more so than on land

The storm turns the sea into a dangerous force

The sea helps slow the storm's winds as they approach the island

The storm whips up the sea and scares the fish
11 Which of the following is a motif in this poem?
War

The theater

Clocks

Tourism
12 What does the word "salvo," as used in line 17, refer to?
A large ceramic bowl

A type of medicine used for burns

A discharge of gunfire

A Catholic ceremony
13 What does the word "stooks," as used in line 5, refer to?
A leather belt

An arrangement of grain

A bird of prey

A test taken by Irish schoolchildren
14 Who is the poem's speaker?
A child who likes to pretend to live on an island

A resident, or group of residents, on the island

A visitor to the island

An anthropologist studying the island
15 The "ai" sounds in the phrase "raise a tragic refrain" create which of the following?
Rhyme

Assonance

Alliteration

Anaphora
16 The phrase "spits like a tamed cat / Turned savage" makes use of:
Enjambment

Onomatopoeia

Rhyme

Hyperbole
17 Which phrase is an example of assonance?
"there are no stacks / or stooks"

"the very windows, / spits like a tame cat"

"the empty air, / strange"

"We are prepared"
18 What poetic form does "Storm on the Island" follow?
Heroic couplet

None

Sonnet

Villanelle
19 Which word best describes the island residents?
Tasteful

Creative

Silly

Stoic
20 How many lines are in this poem?
20

12

19

15
21 What is the primary effect of the "K" and "T" sounds in the poem's first lines?
Mimicking the sound of falling rain

Making the islanders' language sound foreign and strange

Revealing that the speaker is a young child

Showing the speaker's practical, efficient attitude
22 The phrase "the wizened earth has never troubled us" is an example of which device?
Understatement

Simile

Metonymy

Personification
23 In which lines does the poem's only use of end-rhyme occur?
18-19

11-12

1-2

14-15
24 Which theme is NOT extensively explored in this poem?
Science and technology

Community and Solidarity

Nature

Fear
25 What does the word "strafe" implicitly compare the wind to?
A canoe used in Ireland

A small sailboat

A carriage pulled by four horses

A military aircraft

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Storm on the Island study guide contains a biography of Seamus Heaney, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

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