Gretel in Darkness Quizzes

Gretel in Darkness Quiz

1 Which of the following is NOT a major theme of this poem?
Trauma

Justice

Sexuality

Gender
2 Which sounds are prominently used in the poem's closing lines?
J, G, and Sh sounds, which mimic the sound of flowing water

R, L, and M sounds, which create a sense of calm and luxuriousness

K and T sounds, which evoke harsh, staccato conversation

S, F, and L sounds, which mimic sinister whispers
3 Where does the speaker live while narrating the poem?
Her father's house

The witch's house

Boarding school

The woods
4 Who is the poem's speaker?
The father

Gretel

Hansel

The witch
5 Which best describes the speaker's conflict regarding gender?
The male speaker harbors misogynistic beliefs, but can't reconcile them with his love for his daughter

The female speaker hates other women because they have harmed her in the past

The female speaker believes that her male family members are forcing her into dangerous situations

The female speaker is technically protected by men, but feels a certain fascination with her female enemies
6 Which best describes the role of irony in this poem?
The poem subverts our expectations of how a happy or victorious ending should feel

The poem has an unexpected happy ending after a dark beginning

The poem satirically, sarcastically asserts that women need men to protect them

The poem uses dramatic irony to let the reader, but not the speaker, see that the speaker is in danger
7 Why does the speaker experience guilt?
Because she abandoned her brother with the witch

Because she thinks her family would be safer if she had not angered the witch

Because she believes that she put her brother in danger

Because of the pain she has inflicted in self-defense
8 Who is the poem's antagonist?
The speaker's brother

The speaker's trauma

The woods

The speaker's father
9 On which fairytale is this poem based?
Each stanza responds to a different tale

Jack and the Beanstalk

Cinderella

Hansel and Gretel
10 Why are this poem's images so vivid when describing the past, but muted when describing the present?
The speaker is very old and senile, and believes that she is still young

The speaker is asleep and is dreaming about the past

The speaker's trauma causes her to vividly re-experience the past

The speaker is distracting her child from the threats of the present with stories of the past
11 Which best describes the metaphor "the spires of that gleaming kiln"?
It compares the oven to a church, making it seem imposing and linked to divine justice

It compares the potter's wheel to a tall building, examining the relationship between types of craft

It compares the campfire to a church, showing how everyday community can be spiritual

It compares fire to a rooftop, remarking upon how easily nature can destroy human structures
12 Why is the speaker upset with her brother?
She realizes that he is jealous of her victory over the witch

She feels that he is disrespectful to their father

She thinks that he feels too much guilt about the witch's death

She believes that he has forgotten their past
13 Which best describes the poem's tone?
Nostalgic

Nightmarish

Cerebral

Light
14 What relationship do the words "still" and "real" in the poem's final stanza have to one another?
They are alliterative

They are rhymes

They are contrasts

They are slant rhymes
15 How many stanzas comprise this poem?
8

3

4

2
16 The phrase "far from women's arms" uses one body part to represent the women generally, in an instance of which?
Hyperbole

Understatement

Synecdoche

Simile
17 What does fire most closely symbolize?
Warmth and safety in the father's house

Hope

The speaker's guilt

The speaker's indomitable spirit
18 Which of these objects are personified in the poem?
Candy

Guns

Doors

Trees
19 Which sounds in the phrase "the black forest and the fire in earnest" are alliterative?
The "K"s

The "B"s

The "F"s

The "S"s
20 The phrase "this is the world we wanted" contains which of the following?
Understatement

Assonance

Alliteration

Anaphora
21 What is the poem's rhyme scheme?
The poem has no regular rhyme scheme

ABAB

ABBAC

ABCBC
22 What does the father's house symbolize?
Physical safety

Inheritance

Hard work

Emotional care
23 What type of stanzas make up this poem?
Tercets

Quatrains

Sestets

Couplets
24 When does the poem's climax occur?
In the final stanza, when the speaker finally kills the witch

In the third stanza, when the speaker accuses her father of endangering her

In the final stanza, when the speaker becomes totally immersed in her memories

In the final stanza, when the speaker abruptly returns to her awareness of reality
25 Which best describes the poem's setting?
Colonial America

Preindustrial or rural Europe

Contemporary New England

Revolutionary France

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