Storm on the Island Quizzes

Storm on the Island Quiz Storm on the Island

1 Which phrase is an example of alliteration?

"space is a salvo"

"listen to the thing"

"can raise a tragic refrain"

"the wizened earth has never"
2 What do the poem's houses symbolize?

The strength of the storm

The culture of the people who live in them

The talent and artistry of Irish people

The oppressiveness of education
3 To which animal does Heaney compare the storm?

A lizard

A wolf

A cat

A lion
4 Which best describes the speaker's tone at the beginning of the poem?

Imploring

Confident

Sarcastic

Furious
5 Which best describes the speaker's tone at the end of the poem?

Comic

Brash

Thoughtful

Protective
6 What is this poem's meter?

The poem lacks a consistent meter

Iambic hexameter

Dactylic pentameter

Iambic pentameter
7 Which word from "Storm on the Island" is the clearest instance of onomatpoeia?

"wizened"

"salvo"

"blast"

"fear"
8 Which real event may the poem's storm refer to?

The toppling of the Hawaiian monarchy

The 1918 Russian Revolution

The Troubles in Ireland

The American invasion of Iraq
9 What best describes the poem's central contradiction or paradox?

The islanders build low houses, even though they flood with every storm

The islanders choose to remain on a dangerous island

The islanders pray for rain, though storms cause them harm

The islanders fear the storm, though it is made of air
10 What does the speaker articulate about the relationship between the sea and the storm?

The sea helps slow the storm's winds as they approach the island

The sea is a frightening place to be in the storm, more so than on land

The storm whips up the sea and scares the fish

The storm turns the sea into a dangerous force
11 Which of the following is a motif in this poem?

Clocks

The theater

War

Tourism
12 What does the word "salvo," as used in line 17, refer to?

A Catholic ceremony

A large ceramic bowl

A discharge of gunfire

A type of medicine used for burns
13 What does the word "stooks," as used in line 5, refer to?

A test taken by Irish schoolchildren

A leather belt

A bird of prey

An arrangement of grain
14 Who is the poem's speaker?

A visitor to the island

A resident, or group of residents, on the island

A child who likes to pretend to live on an island

An anthropologist studying the island
15 The "ai" sounds in the phrase "raise a tragic refrain" create which of the following?

Alliteration

Assonance

Anaphora

Rhyme
16 The phrase "spits like a tamed cat / Turned savage" makes use of:

Rhyme

Onomatopoeia

Hyperbole

Enjambment
17 Which phrase is an example of assonance?

"there are no stacks / or stooks"

"the empty air, / strange"

"We are prepared"

"the very windows, / spits like a tame cat"
18 What poetic form does "Storm on the Island" follow?

Sonnet

Villanelle

Heroic couplet

None
19 Which word best describes the island residents?

Tasteful

Stoic

Creative

Silly
20 How many lines are in this poem?

15

12

20

19
21 What is the primary effect of the "K" and "T" sounds in the poem's first lines?

Revealing that the speaker is a young child

Showing the speaker's practical, efficient attitude

Making the islanders' language sound foreign and strange

Mimicking the sound of falling rain
22 The phrase "the wizened earth has never troubled us" is an example of which device?

Personification

Simile

Metonymy

Understatement
23 In which lines does the poem's only use of end-rhyme occur?

18-19

14-15

11-12

1-2
24 Which theme is NOT extensively explored in this poem?

Fear

Community and Solidarity

Science and technology

Nature
25 What does the word "strafe" implicitly compare the wind to?

A canoe used in Ireland

A small sailboat

A military aircraft

A carriage pulled by four horses

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Storm on the Island study guide contains a biography of Seamus Heaney, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

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