Prayer Before Birth Quizzes

Prayer Before Birth Quiz 1

1 Where was Louis MacNeice from?

England

United States

Germany

Ireland
2 What other genre of writing did MacNeice pursue in his lifetime?

Journalism

Speeches

Drama

Novels
3 In what collection was "Prayer Before Birth" published?

Springboard

The Last Ditch

Collected Poems

Holes in the Sky
4 What year was the poem published?

1932

1920

1912

1944
5 What major conflict was happening at the time MacNeice wrote the poem?

The Cold War

The Great Depression

World War II

World War I
6 How old was MacNeice when he died?

38

24

89

55
7 Who is the speaker of the poem?

God

An unborn entity

A soldier

A child
8 Which of these does the speaker not mention in the first stanza of the poem?

Vampires

Rats

Ghouls

Bats
9 What is the speaker afraid of?

Imprisonment

Torture

Drugs

All of these
10 The line, "with strong drugs dope me, with wise lies lure me" contains examples of what poetic device (6)?

Alliteration

Personfiication

Synecdoche

Apostrophe
11 What, according to the speaker, can nurture their growth?

God

Nature

A mother

Love
12 For what does the speaker ask forgiveness?

The mistakes they have made

Their request for death

The thoughts they currently express

The sins they are yet to commit
13 What metaphor does the speaker use to ask for preparation for life on earth?

Learning a language

Rehearsing a play

Reading a pamphlet

Taking a class
14 According to the speaker, what will old men do to them?

Laugh at them

Inspire them

Lecture them

Ridicule them
15 According to the speaker, what will bureaucrats do to them?

Manipulate them

Embarrass them

Hector them

Comfort them
16 According to the speaker, what will lovers do to them?

Save them

Prepare them

Emasculate them

Laugh at them
17 Which of these scenarios does the speaker not imagine encountering on earth?

Falling from a tree

Dying in the desert

Being cursed by their own children

A beggar rejecting their gift
18 According to the speaker, the "man who is beast" also thinks he is what (26)?

The Savior

God

Love

Emperor
19 The term "lethal automaton" (30) is a euphemism for what?

A solider

A machine

A gun

A dictator
20 What is closest in meaning to the word "dragoon" (30)?

Invite

Lure

Coerce

Dragon
21 Which of these images represents manipulation by someone else?

Machines

Hands

Blood-baths

Trees
22 Which two fates does the speaker imagine for people on earth?

Guns and boots

Stones and water

Robots and books

Machines and nature
23 Which of these describes the form of the final lines of the poem?

Tercet

Couplet

Alexandrine

Quatrain
24 What does the speaker ask for as an alternative to being born?

Death

A song

Nurture

God
25 Which of these phrases is repeated throughout the poem?

"I fear"

"Otherwise kill me"

"I am not yet born"

"Spill me"

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Study Guide for Prayer Before Birth

Prayer Before Birth study guide contains a biography of Louis MacNeice, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

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