Pilate’s Wife Quizzes

Pilate's Wife Quiz Literary Devices and Themes

1 What is the poem's meter?
Free verse

Iambic pentameter

Trochaic pentameter

Iambic tetrameter
2 To whom does the phrase "The Nazarene" refer?
Moses

Jesus

Mary

Abraham
3 Which is the definition of the word "indolent"?
Indecisive

Musical

Idle

Sweet
4 Which of the following is an instance of simile?
"They seized the prophet then and dragged him out"

"like shells from Galilee"

"clutched the bridle of an ass"

"each tough palm was skewered"
5 What is the poem's rhyme scheme?
It has no consistent rhyme scheme

ABAB

ABBACDDC

ABABCDECDE
6 Which theme do the actions of the crowd most clearly relate to?
The role of bystanders

Art

Gender

Fatherhood
7 Which of the following lines displays alliteration?
"The crowd was baying for Barabbas."

"rough men shouldering a pathway to the gates."

"Firstly, his hands - a woman's."

"His face? Ugly. Talented."
8 Who is the poem's speaker?
An unnamed soldier in World War II

A politician's wife in 1960s California

The wife of the biblical figure Pontius Pilate

A female mystic in medieval France
9 Which is the poem's most prominent symbol?
Donkeys

Hands

Thorns

Skulls
10 What is the best description of the speaker's relationship to her maid?
The two are faithful companions and friends

The speaker does not trust her maid and keeps her actions secret from her

The speaker regards her maid maternally, teaching and advising her

The two do not know one another well, but Duffy hints that they will grow closer over time
11 Who is the poem's antagonist?
Pilate

The speaker

The maid

The Emperor
12 Which of the following is a major theme of the poem?
Racism

Food

Gender

The destruction of nature
13 In which poetry collection did this first appear?
Little Red Cap

Standing Female Nude

Mean Time

The World's Wife
14 What is the closest synonym of the word "baying"?
Howling

Gossiping

Resting

Weeping
15 The speaker compares her husband's hands to which of the following?
Books

Moths

Twigs

Mice
16 Which line uses assonance most extensively?
"Their pale, mothy touch made me flinch."

"I longed for Rome, home, someone else."

"His brown hands touched me."

"the Nazarene was crowned with thorns."
17 Which best describes the poem's tone?
Humorous

Inquisitive

Lamenting

Pragmatic
18 In which year was this poem first published?
1978

1999

2012

2005
19 Pilate displays many traits associated with femininity, despite his power as a man. This is an instance of what?
Dramatic Irony

Situational Irony

Verbal Irony

Paradox
20 What is the poem's setting?
Twentieth-century Los Angeles

First-century Jerusalem

Eighteenth-century India

Fifteenth-century Europe
21 What stanza type is used in this poem?
Sestets

Quintains

Tercets

Quatrains
22 Which contains is an example of sibilance?
"His eyes were eyes to die for."

"I woke up, sweating, sexual, terrified."

"bored stiff, disguised"

"Leave him alone."
23 What does the word "Galilee" refer to?
A type of headdress

A silent movie

A temple in ancient Jerusalem

A sea
24 Who is Barabbas?
The speaker's maid

The man who is pardoned instead of Jesus

The speaker's late first husband

A priest who leaves the church after a scandal
25 Which theme is the most prominent in this work?
Desire

Class

Childhood and coming of age

Imagination

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Study Guide for Pilate’s Wife

Pilate's Wife study guide contains a biography of Carol Ann Duffy, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

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