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