1 Who or what is Cerberus? Son of the witch Sycorax in Shakespeare’s The Tempest The multi-headed dog that guards the gates of the underworld The brightest star in the night sky The first son of Adam and Eve 2 What is an “aguey tendon”? Broken sinew Anguished tendency Feverish muscle Blood-red muscle 3 What does it mean that the smelled of a snuffed candle is “indelible”? It is indistinct and hard to recognize It is recognizable and long-lasting It is distasteful and unappetizing It is delightful and appetizing 4 What does the “smoke” which rolls from the speaker “like Isadora’s scarves” signify? Fear An embrace Rebirth Death 5 In regards to the “Hothouse baby” in the seventh stanza, what is one way of interpreting the word “hothouse” here? Incubated Resuscitated Red-cheeked Raised in a brothel 6 How might we interpret the “you” in the line “Your body / Hurts me as the world hurts God”? As signifying her husband, whose sexual infidelity betrayed their marriage As signifying her own body, whose illness betrayed her As signifying Cerberus, who is incapable of cleansing her of sin As signifying the devil, who is putting her through hellish suffering 7 Why is it significant that she can be “a huge camellia” “all by [herself]”? Because camellias always grow in pairs on the same stem Because camellias signify the union or commitment between two people Because “huge” camellias are usually the “male” flowers Because camellias are difficult to grow and require much nourishment 8 What is acetylene, as in the line “I / Am a pure acetylene / Virgin”? A drug used to treat mild to moderate pain and aches C2H2, a colorless and flammable gas unstable in its pure form A psychedelic that causes hallucinations A salt formed by the combination of acetic acid with a base 9 What are cherubim? Winged angels which attend on God, often depicted as chubby winged children Small red stone fruits Supernatural creatures in early Islamic mythology Demons featured in the 1940 film Fantasia 10 How many of the poems included in Plath’s posthumously published book Ariel were written, like this one, in the month of October 1962? 41 7 12 26 11 What is one way that Plath defies the usual definition of a “confessional” poet? The frequent engagement with historic and political metaphor in her poetry The frequent reference to an ambiguous “you” The vivid fictive imagination of many of her poems The fact that she was a young woman 12 Which of the following images in the poem subtly imply the physical fragility of the feverish speaker? All of the answers "I / Am a pure acetylene / Virgin / Attended by roses” “I am a lantern— / My head a moon / Of Japanese paper” “Water, water make me retch” 13 Which meaning(s) of “flush” is or are operative in the line “Glowing and coming and going, flush on flush”? Tinged red; blushing A transitory sensation of extreme heat Sudden and abundant growth All of the answers 14 Which of the following lines portray a volatile, unstable constitution of the self? "I / Am a pure acetylene / Virgin" "All by myself I am a huge camellia / Glowing and coming and going" "(My selves dissolving, old whore petticoats)" All of the answers 15 Which of the following pairs of lines marks the biggest transition in the poem? “The sin. The sin. / Darling, all night” All of the answers “flush on flush. / I think I am going up,” “Water, water make me retch. / I am too pure for you or anyone.” 16 Which of the following seem to be prerequisites for “rising” in this poem? Suffering All of the answers Emptiness Purity 17 Which of the following is NOT a tone this poem takes? Condemnatory Frightened Resigned Amazed 18 Which spiritual tradition was Sylvia Plath immersed in reading about, though not an adherent of, in her later years of life? Hinduism Daoism Protestantism Catholicism 19 In which context of Sylvia Plath’s life was this poem written? Healthy, living alone in an attic room in London Sick, recently separated and returned to live with friends in Boston Sick, recently separated, a single parent to two children in London Sick, on her honeymoon in Ireland 20 When and where was this poem first published? In 1965 in Ariel, years after her death In 1963 in the magazine Poetry, months after her death In a reprint of Ariel in the 1990s when a number of lost poems were discovered In 1962 in the magazine Poetry, weeks before her death 21 Which feeling is most frequently associated with sexuality in this poem? Desire Nostalgia Hatred Betrayal 22 Which pink flower doesn't appear in this poem? Orchids Tulips Camellias Roses 23 Which color isn’t overtly named in the poem, but remains the most prominent in its visual landscape? White Pink Red Yellow 24 Which mythological tradition isn’t referenced in this poem? Christian mythology Hindu mythology None of the answers Greek mythology 25 Which of the following is the best example of alliteration? My head a moon / Of Japanese paper Love, love, the low smokes roll Attended by roses, / By kisses, by cherubim I have been flickering, off, on, off, on