Pilate’s Wife Quizzes

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Pilate's Wife Quiz Literary Devices and Themes

1 What is the poem's meter?

Free verse

Trochaic pentameter

Iambic tetrameter

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

Mary

Abraham

Moses

Jesus
3 Which is the definition of the word "indolent"?

Sweet

Musical

Indecisive

Idle
4 Which of the following is an instance of simile?

"like shells from Galilee"

"each tough palm was skewered"

"They seized the prophet then and dragged him out"

"clutched the bridle of an ass"
5 What is the poem's rhyme scheme?

It has no consistent rhyme scheme

ABBACDDC

ABABCDECDE

ABAB
6 Which theme do the actions of the crowd most clearly relate to?

Gender

Fatherhood

The role of bystanders

Art
7 Which of the following lines displays alliteration?

"The crowd was baying for Barabbas."

"rough men shouldering a pathway to the gates."

"His face? Ugly. Talented."

"Firstly, his hands - a woman's."
8 Who is the poem's speaker?

A politician's wife in 1960s California

A female mystic in medieval France

The wife of the biblical figure Pontius Pilate

An unnamed soldier in World War II
9 Which is the poem's most prominent symbol?

Skulls

Thorns

Hands

Donkeys
10 What is the best description of the speaker's relationship to her maid?

The two do not know one another well, but Duffy hints that they will grow closer over time

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
11 Who is the poem's antagonist?

The maid

Pilate

The Emperor

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

Gender

The destruction of nature

Racism

Food
13 In which poetry collection did this first appear?

The World's Wife

Mean Time

Little Red Cap

Standing Female Nude
14 What is the closest synonym of the word "baying"?

Howling

Resting

Gossiping

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

Twigs

Books

Mice

Moths
16 Which line uses assonance most extensively?

"Their pale, mothy touch made me flinch."

"His brown hands touched me."

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

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

Pragmatic

Inquisitive

Lamenting

Humorous
18 In which year was this poem first published?

1978

2005

1999

2012
19 Pilate displays many traits associated with femininity, despite his power as a man. This is an instance of what?

Situational Irony

Paradox

Dramatic Irony

Verbal Irony
20 What is the poem's setting?

Fifteenth-century Europe

Eighteenth-century India

First-century Jerusalem

Twentieth-century Los Angeles
21 What stanza type is used in this poem?

Quintains

Quatrains

Tercets

Sestets
22 Which contains is an example of sibilance?

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

"His eyes were eyes to die for."

"bored stiff, disguised"

"Leave him alone."
23 What does the word "Galilee" refer to?

A silent movie

A type of headdress

A sea

A temple in ancient Jerusalem
24 Who is Barabbas?

A priest who leaves the church after a scandal

The man who is pardoned instead of Jesus

The speaker's late first husband

The speaker's maid
25 Which theme is the most prominent in this work?

Desire

Imagination

Class

Childhood and coming of age

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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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