Mrs Midas Quizzes

Mrs Midas Quiz

1 Where is the speaker in the first stanza?
The garden

The kitchen

The caravan

The bedroom
2 What bothers Mrs Midas the most about her husband's wish?
His lack of forethought

His greed

His selfishness

His idiocy
3 Which foods are referenced in the poem?
Pears, corn, fast food, trout, and apples.

Pears, corn, cod, steak, and buttermilk.

Apples, trout, bread, hamburgers, and chocolate.

Hamburgers, french fries, apples, and salmon.
4 Which of the following is an example of personification in the poem?
I gazed, entranced, / as the blue flame played on its luteous stem. (Lines 34-35)

we grew Fondante d’Automne – / and it sat in his palm, like a lightbulb. (Lines 10-11)

Within seconds he was spitting out the teeth of the rich. (Line 20)

The kitchen filled with the smell of itself, relaxed, its steamy breath / gently blanching the windows (Lines 2 - 3)
5 "Mrs Midas" appears in which of Carol Ann Duffy's collections?
Standing Female Nude (1985)

Selling Manhattan (1987)

The World's Wife (1999)

Rapture (2003)
6 What does Mrs Midas dream about the night after her husband's wish comes true?
Giving birth to a golden child

Her husband's embrace

The music of Pan

A bowl of apples
7 Which best describes Mrs Midas's attitude toward her husband?
Exasperated but accepting

Angry and mournful

Loving and supportive

Cold and uncaring
8 What does "halcyon" mean in Line 41?
A type of gold

A golden, glowing light

Chaotically passionate

A past time that was idyllic and peaceful
9 How many lines does each stanza have?
7

6

4

5
10 Which is an example of simile in the poem?
But now I feared his honeyed embrace, / the kiss that would turn my lips to a work of art. (Lines 41-42)

The kitchen filled with the smell of itself, relaxed, its steamy breath / gently blanching the windows (Lines 2 - 3)

We’d a caravan in the wilds, in a glade of its own (Lines 49-50)

its little tongue / like a precious latch (Lines 45-46)
11 Which perspective is the poem told from?
Limited third-person

Second person

First person

Omniscient third-person
12 What does the word "luteous" mean in Line 35?
Yellow tinged with green or brown

A faint glow

A flower stem

Solid gold
13 What does "a beautiful lemon mistake" (Line 57) refer to in the poem?
Midas's footprints

The golden trout in the river

The hare that Midas attempted to touch

The golden table after Midas touched it
14 In which month is the poem set?
September

October

June

August
15 What does Midas do after making his wish?
Laugh

Ask for wine

Enter the house

All of the above
16 Which is an example of alliteration used in the poem?
then with my fingers wiped the other’s glass like a brow (Line 5)

a hare hung from a larch (Line 58)

under the cover of dark (Line 53)

its perfect ore limbs, its little tongue (Line 50)
17 Which Greek god is EXPLICITLY referenced in the poem?
Pan

Zeus

Demeter

Dionysus
18 What is an allegory?
A traditional story, especially one concerning the early history of a people or explaining some natural or social phenomenon, and typically involving supernatural beings or events.

A figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.

An expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference.

A story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one.
19 What does the word "caravan" mean in Line 49?
A vehicle equipped for living in, typically a trailer towed by a car and used when traveling for recreation.

A group of people, especially traders or pilgrims, traveling together across a desert in Asia or North Africa.

A covered horse-drawn wagon.

Any large group of people, typically with vehicles or animals, traveling together in single file.
20 Which of the following describes the relationship between the myth of Midas and the poem "Mrs Midas?"
Mrs Midas alludes to the myth, but is actually about the Field of the Cloth of Gold.

Mrs Midas is a translation of the myth.

Mrs Midas is a creative retelling of the myth through a feminist lens.

Mrs Midas is an ironic commentary on the myth.
21 What does Mrs Midas NOT do in response to Midas's ability to turn everything he touches into gold?
Lock the cat in the cellar.

Wear protective gloves before touching him.

Demand that he move out.

Put a chair in front of her bedroom door.
22 Which of the following animals is NOT referenced in the poem?
Deer

Flies

Hare

Trout
23 Which of the following is NOT alluded to in the poem?
the Bible

the Greek god Pan

Miss Macready

the Field of the Cloth of Gold
24 What "stopped" Mrs Midas "dead" due to memories of her husband (Line 65)?
A dream about their baby

Hearing the music of Pan

Golden trout

A bowl of apples
25 Which of the following is NOT a theme in the poem?
mortality

marriage and relationships

the trauma of war

greed and masculinity

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