Notes

Read this passage from​ Walden. What advice does Henry David Thoreau offer those who live in poverty?
“However mean your life is, meet it and live it; do not shun it and call it hard names. It is not so bad as you are. It looks poorest when you are richest. The faultfinder will find faults even in paradise. Love your life, poor as it is. You may perhaps have some pleasant, thrilling, glorious hours, even in a poorhouse. The setting sun is reflected from the windows of the almshouse as brightly as from the rich man’s abode; the snow melts before its door as early in the spring. I do not see but a quiet mind may live as contentedly there, and have as cheering thoughts, as in a palace.”
They should work hard to achieve greater things.
They should retire into the woods and live in solitude.
They should stop paying taxes in order to get ahead.
They should love life and find the best in it.

Read the passage.
I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world.
The excerpt from “Song of Myself” by Walt Whitman is an example of _____.
anaphora
onomatopoeia
a catalogue
diction

The unique way in which an author puts thoughts into words is called his or her _____.
conversation
tone
metaphor
style

In “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe, the raven flies in and alights in the speaker’s chamber. The speaker begins speaking with the bird. As the poem progresses, what are some ways the speaker refers to the raven?
He calls the raven a prophet, a thing of evil, and a fiend
He calls the raven a terror, a bust of Pallas, and a living human being.
He calls the raven a visitor, a maiden, and a friend.
He calls the raven a saint, a fowl, and a lord.

In what way does “Song of Myself” reflect Whitman’s brand of American epic poetry?
Whitman celebrates only nature.
Whitman features an untouchable hero.
Whitman celebrates the common person.
Whitman celebrates godlike qualities.

“The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe tells the story of a man who has an otherworldly experience. What is the supernatural experience described in the poem?
A man’s grief is made excruciating by the utterances of a bird.
A magical bird is able to explain the story of a lost love.
A man experiences an unusual dream after losing his wife.
A bird’s ability to predict the future comforts a grieving man.

Which of these definitions best describes mood in poetry?
the reason or cause for a character’s actions
the message about life the poet wishes to convey
the emotional quality of a literary work
the attitude with which the poet writes about a topic

What message might Edgar Allan Poe want to convey in “The Fall of the House of Usher?”
Twins have a physical and emotional bond that is extraordinary.
Living in an isolated country setting is unhealthy
Gloom and despair are ever-present dangers.
Being rich is not enough to keep a person healthy.

In Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, why are the Pequod’s planks dented?
because the crew of the ship often drop their tools as they wor
because Ahab’s peg leg makes marks as he walks across them
because severe ocean weather has warped and dented the planks
because accidents aboard the boat have damaged the planks


Read the passage.
Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!
Long has it waved on high,
And many an eye has danced to see
That banner in the sky . . .
What does the first line in this stanza from “Old Ironsides” by Oliver Wendell Holmes tell the reader about the ship?
It is a new ship and is ready for adventure.
It has been boarded by a brand new crew.
It is being christened and sent out to sea.
It has been in service for a long time

In Walden, why did Henry David Thoreau leave the woods to return to civilization?
“I left the woods for as good a reason as I went there. Perhaps it seemed to me that I had several more lives to live, and could not spare any more time for that one. It is remarkable how easily and insensibly we fall into a particular route, and make a beaten track for ourselves.”
He needed to protest the Mexican-American War.
He grew tired of being in nature all the time.
He felt he had spent enough time there.
He had pressing matters to take care of.

In Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s “The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls,” what image in the first verse is used to portray the passing of time?
the town
the tide rising and falling
the damp sand
the curlew calling

Read the passage.
Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak
December;
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost
upon the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow; —vainly I had sought
to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow—sorrow for the
lost Lenore—
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels
name Lenore—
Nameless here for evermore.
In this excerpt from “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe, what has happened to Lenore?
She has moved away.
She has died.
She has suddenly disappeared.
She has left the speaker for another.


How is free verse different from formal verse?
It only rhymes every other line and is metered in a specific way.
It uses slang words and phrases rather than formal English.
It has irregular meter and line length and sounds like natural speech.
It does not employ punctuation marks or other grammatical devices.

Read the passage.
Ye, who love a nation’s legends,
Love the ballads of a people,
That like voices from afar off
Call to us to pause and listen,
Speak in tones so plain and childlike,
Scarcely can the ear distinguish
Whether they are sung or spoken;
Listen to this Indian Legend, To this Song of Hiawatha!
In this stanza from “The Song of Hiawatha,” what does Henry Wadsworth Longfellow reveal about Hiawatha?
He inspires many songs and stories.
He tells stories to the people of his tribe.
He is sacred and not often spoken of.
He is beloved by children and old people alike.

read the passage.
The setting sun is reflected from the windows of the almshouse as brightly as from the rich man’s abode; the snow melts before its door as early in the spring.
What does this passage from Walden by Henry David Thoreau literally mean?
Rich and poor alike can enjoy love and friendship.
Rich and poor alike can enjoy the wonders of nature.
It is better to be rich than to be poor.
People are always where they need to be in life.

Which is the correct definition of the term “foot” as it is used in poetry?
the basic unit of meter in poetry
arrangement of stressed and unstressed words
parts of stressed and unstressed words

When the speaker in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven” hears tapping on his door, he hesitates. Why does he wait before opening the door?
He wants to turn on the light.
He pauses to listen for voices.
He needs to gather his courage.
He decides to look out the window

In Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, who tells Ahab that the white whale’s name is Moby-Dick?
Starbuck
Ishmael
Tashtego
Flask

In “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe, the speaker is full of sorrow because he misses his lost Lenore. What does the speaker mean when he says, “Nameless here for evermore”?
She is no longer on earth.
She does not appear in the poem.
He refuses to say her name.
Only the bird can utter her name.

Why did Henry David Thoreau go to the woods?
to get away from jail
to think about government
to write a novel
to understand life

In Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, what does the final paragraph indicate about the relationship between humanity and nature?
Nature can be subdued through sheer human will.
Nature is morally upright but is stained by humanity.
Nature is malicious, while humanity is well-intentioned.
Nature is indifferent to human suffering.

That the narrator in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” finds himself becoming affected by Usher’s condition is significant in what way?
It suggests that Usher’s illness might have supernatural rather than genetic origins.
It shows that the narrator is as frightened of Madeline’s return as Usher is.
It proves that Usher is actually pretending to be mentally ill
It demonstrates how contagious mental illness can be.

Read the passage.
My tongue, every atom of my blood, formed from this soil, this air,
Born here of parents born here from parents the same, and
their parents the same . . .
In “Song of Myself” by Walt Whitman, from what does the speaker say his tongue and blood are formed?
from the beauty of nature
from the American soil and air
from the fire of poetry

In “The Fall of the House of Usher,” Edgar Allan Poe effectively uses symbols to create meaning. The decay and potential collapse of the house in Poe’s story is meant to represent what other person or thing?
Madeline’s death
Usher’s sensory problems
Usher’s fragile sanity
the narrator’s fear

In Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, which of the following best describes Ahab’s personality?
stubborn and bitter
greedy and dishonest
focused and practical
calm and calculating

In Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, how does Moby-Dick react when the Pequod first approaches his flank?
He surfaces and then disappears.
He rolls over on the harpooning boats.
He remains still.
He circles and then rams the ship.

Read the passage.
Shaking off from my spirit what must have been a dream, I scanned more narrowly the real aspect of the building . . .
In this excerpt from Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher,” how does the statement mirror what happens in the rest of the story?
Poe enjoys creating characters who spend a great deal of time dreaming.
Poe emphasizes the role of dreams through the character of Madeline.
The ending of the story reveals much of the action to have been a dream.
The narrator constantly struggles between a dreamlike state and reality.

For what reason might Edgar Allan Poe have included “The Haunted Palace” in his story about the House of Usher?
It is a story parallel to what is happening in the Usher house.
It is a welcome diversion from the seriousness of the story.
It is a way for the narrator to help Usher recover from his illness.
It is a vehicle through which Usher shows his dramatic abilities.

What is the difference between epic poetry and American epic poetry?
American epic poetry is longer than epic poetry.
Epic poetry celebrates the common person; American epic poetry is about a larger-than-life hero.
Epic poetry is about a larger-than-life hero; American poetry celebrates the common person.
Epic poetry is longer than American epic poetry.