I, Being Born a Woman and Distressed Quizzes

I, Being Born a Woman and Distressed Quiz

1 Which of the following is true of the poem's theme of rationality?

The speaker describes her sexual desires as contradictory to her rationality

The speaker believes objectivity and rationality to be nonexistent and impossible

The speaker thinks of herself as rational, but is clearly irrational

The speaker admires her lover's ability to behave rationally
2 What does the phrase "fume of life" refer to?

Sexual desire

Cigar smoke

Food and water

The holy spirit
3 Which assumption does the speaker attempt to dismantle?

That her love means she consents to sex

That her physical attraction is a sign of love

That her physical attraction is a sign that she is impure or sexually experienced

That her lack of interest in conversation means she is not attracted to her listener
4 What function does the poem's opening word serve?

It tells us that the speaker is taking on a false identity

It hints at the speaker's self-assurance

It lets us know that the speaker has never met her listener

It tells us that the speaker is writing a letter
5 Which of the following is used as a metonymic representation of rationality?

The book

The fume

The brain

The blood
6 What is the rhyme scheme of the poem's first half?

ABA ABA ABA

ABBA ABBA

AABB AABB

ABAB ABAB
7 How does the poem present the relationship between love and lust?

Love and lust are portrayed as being distinct and independent

Lust is portrayed as a force tarnishing the purity of love

Love is portrayed as inevitably resulting from lust and attraction

Love is portrayed as the domain of women and lust as the domain of men
8 What does "zest" mean in the poem's context?

Desire

Revulsion

Pain

Citrus rind
9 Where is the poem's volta?

After line 4

After line 8

After line 12

After line 7
10 Which social norms does the poem interrogate?

The norms surrounding division of labor in the Edwardian household

The norms of politeness and veiled language predominant in Victorian society

The labor structures and inequalities of the gilded age

The sexual and gender norms of the early twentieth century
11 Which of the following is true of the addressee?

We know nothing of the addressee except that the speaker dislikes them

They are a young man

They are an older man

They are a young woman
12 Which of the following does "blood" symbolize?

Sexual desire

Revolution

Familial relationship

Violence
13 What is this poem's form?

Sestina

English sonnet

Ghazal

Italian sonnet
14 Which of the following is an example of personification?

distressed / By all the needs and notions of my kind

feel a certain zest / To bear your body’s weight

season / My scorn with pity

the poor treason / Of my stout blood
15 Which line contains alliterative N sounds?

And leave me once again undone, possessed.

Your person fair, and feel a certain zest

By all the needs and notions of my kind,

My scorn with pity,—let me make it plain:
16 What does "stout" mean in the context of this poem?

Fat

Sturdy

Small

Loud
17 Which phrase contains alliterative I sounds?

undone, possessed

life designed

my stout blood

weight upon my breast
18 In which poetry collection did this work first appear?

Aria da Capo

A Few Figs and Thistles

The Harp-Weaver and Other Poems

Renascence and Other Poems
19 What is the poem's primary meter?

Iambic trimeter

Trochaic trimeter

Trochaic pentameter

Iambic pentameter
20 Which line contains alliterative B sounds?

I find this frenzy insufficient reason

To bear your body’s weight upon my breast:

Am urged by your propinquity to find

I shall remember you with love, or season
21 Which verb is metaphorically used to describe the mixing of emotions?

Season

Blend

Breed

Flavor
22 Which best describes the poem's tone?

Ironic

Apathetic

Gentle

Passionate
23 What does the word "propinquity" mean?

Proximity

Cleverness

Boldness

Sarcasm
24 Which best describes the speaker?

Frightened young girl

Wise mother

Self-possessed woman

Mysterious, disembodied spirit
25 What is the rhyme scheme of the poem's second half?

CDCDCD

CD CE CD CE

CDECDE

CDED CDED

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