Basket of Figs Quizzes

Basket of Figs Quiz

1 What collection was "Basket of Figs" published in?
Like a Beggar

Mules of Love

Indigo

The Human Line
2 When was this poem (and the collection it comes from) published?
1998

2001

2002

2013
3 What kind of relationship is portrayed in "Basket of Figs"?
A mother and daughter relationship

A loving lesbian relationship

A relationship between friends

A loving heterosexual relationship
4 What award did the collection as a whole receive?
The National Book Award

Griffin Poetry Prize

Lambda Literary Award honoring the book as an important LGBTQ work

Lambda Literary Award honoring the book as an important Jewish work
5 From whose perspective is the poem written?
Third-person speaker addressing her friend in the second-person

Third-person speaker addressing her lover in the third-person

Omniscient divine voice

First-person speaker addressing her lover in the second-person
6 Describe the form and meter.
Two quatrains and three tercets written in free verse.

Three quatrains and two tercets written in free verse.

Three quatrains and two tercets written in iambic pentameter.

Two quatrains and three tercets written in blank verse.
7 What is a quatrain?
A stanza with four lines

A line that gets repeated throughout the poem

A stanza with three lines

A refrain
8 Which food item is not a metaphor for the lover's pain?
Warm eggs

Basket of figs

Pomegranate seed

Milk and honey
9 Which material is not a metaphor for the lover's pain?
Fine rugs

A flower vase

Silk sashes

Gold jewelry
10 What is burlap?
A smooth natural material made from fibers

A smooth material made in a factory

The way a baby burps after eating

Coarse canvas woven from jute, hemp, or a similar fiber, used especially for sacking
11 Which is an example of alliteration?
silk sashes

basket of figs

spill your wine

intricate embroidery
12 What is alliteration?
A beautiful image

Repetition of vowel sounds in words that are close together in a sentence or verse

Repetition of the same sound at the start of a series of words in succession

Figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one kind of object or idea is used in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them
13 What is the tone of the poem?
Pensive, Calm, Loving

Passionate, Direct, Controlling

Angry, Disillusioned

Firm, Tender, Loving, Erotic
14 What is the implication of the lines "the hem stitched the way you were taught, / pricking just a thread, almost invisible"?
The lover had a hand in creating her pain, and she seeks to hide her pain from the world by making it "almost invisible."

The speaker tries to hide her pain from her lover.

Other people forced the speaker's lover to learn how to sew as a child.

The speaker makes detailed and intricate embroidery.
15 Which sense is NOT engaged by "cinnamon / and cloves"?
Visual

Auditory

Olfactory

Gustatory
16 What does the olfactory sense refer to?
Sight

Smell

Taste

Hearing
17 Which line is best characterized as erotic?
"That hard nugget of pain, I would suck it,"

"Unclasp it like jewels"

"Spread / it out like fine rugs"

"I would lift it // tenderly"
18 Which of the following best characterizes the speaker?
A confident authority figure who is capable of providing stability and love for her partner

A middle-aged woman coming to terms with aging

A domineering partner who manipulates her lover by writing about her lover's pain

A woman exploring her sexuality
19 Which of the following is not a symbol in the poem?
Persimmon pit

Clothing and jewelry

The mouth

Food
20 Which of the following is not a theme in the poem?
Vulnerability and Surrender

Community Love

Sensual Celebration

Unconditional Love
21 What acts does the line about the "hard nugget of pain" imply?
Eating and Sex

Touching and Sex

Eating and Talking

Reflecting and Acting
22 What does the mention of animal behavior in the final stanza do in the poem?
It evokes the animal-like instinct in the speaker to consume her partner.

It portrays the speaker and her partner as cats.

It suggests that the speaker is following her natural instincts to care for her partner.

There is no mention of animals in the poem.
23 Finish this quote: "Unclasp it like jewels, the gold___"
matching your eyes

still hot from my body

melting into your skin

/ still hot from your body
24 Why does the speaker tell her partner to empty a basket of figs?
The speaker wants her partner to lose weight.

The speaker wants her partner to eat more fruits and vegetables.

The speaker wants her partner not to waste food.

The speaker wants her lover to relish the sweetness of life.
25 Why might the speaker tell her partner to spill her wine?
The speaker doesn't want her partner to drink a whole glass.

The speaker wants her partner to drink less.

The speaker wants her partner to embarrass herself.

The speaker doesn't want her partner to act perfectly polite all the time.

Basket of Figs Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Basket of Figs is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Ask Your Own Question

Study Guide for Basket of Figs

Basket of Figs study guide contains a biography of Ellen Bass, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

Read the Study Guide for Basket of Figs…