The Moon and the Yew Tree Quizzes

The Moon and the Yew Tree Quiz

1 Which of the following best summarizes this poem?
The speaker attends Sunday service, where she witnesses the corrupt practices of the church.

The speaker appreciates the beauty of the moon.

The speaker observes the moon and a yew tree in a church graveyard, and feels bewildered and disoriented.

The speaker remembers her dead father as she looks at a yew tree.
2 In what year was this poem published?
1965

1962

1964

1963
3 In what year was this poem written?
1967

1965

1961

1966
4 Which of the following best describes the form of this poem?
Iambic pentameter, ABAB rhyme scheme

Free verse, unrhymed and unmetered

Free verse, with some rhymes and lines in pentameter

Iambic pentameter, heroic couplets
5 Which of the following is NOT a major theme of this poem?
War

Death

Parenthood

Religion
6 Which of the following does NOT contain an example of alliteration or consonance?
“face of the effigy”

“grasses unload their griefs”

“blue garments unloose”

“The moon is my mother”
7 Which of the following accurately describes the argument this poem makes about religion?
No one should be discriminated against for their religious beliefs.

Religion is the solution to familial conflict and trauma.

Religion is a major source of familial conflict and trauma.

Institutionalized religion can lend itself to performative rather than genuine acts of worship.
8 Which of the following literary elements is NOT featured in this poem?
Allusion

Asyndeton

Consonance

Personification
9 Which of the following takes place in the final line of the poem?
The yew tree points up.

The yew tree is discovered by the speaker.

The yew tree is cut down.

The yew tree delivers its message: blackness and silence.
10 How many lines does this poem contain?
21

28

25

35
11 Which of the following might be read as an understatement in this poem?
"Eight great tongues affirming the Resurrection."

"She is not sweet like Mary."

"It has a Gothic shape."

"Fumy, spiritous mists inhabit this place"
12 How many syllables does each line in this poem have?
8

5

6

7
13 Which of the following best describes the setting of the poem?
A church graveyard near the speaker's house in broad daylight

The house in which the speaker lives with her parents

A church graveyard near the speaker's house on the night of a full moon, imagined and perceived from the speaker's perspective

The speaker's imagination of a certain planet
14 Which of the following best describes the conflict taking place in the poem?
The moon vs. the sea it drags like a dark crime

Feelings of disorientation felt in the moonlit graveyard vs. the speaker’s desire for affection and a sense of direction

The mother of the speaker vs. the father of the speaker

The speaker's desire for religious freedom vs. institutionalized religion
15 Which of the following best describes the tone of the poem?
Disparaging, critical, scathing, accusatory

Solemn, cryptic, contemplative, grim

Grateful, loving, pious, sentimental

Nostalgic, affectionate, celebratory, ebullient
16 Which line might be the climax of the poem?
"Separated from my house by a row of headstones."

"The eyes lift after it and find the moon."

"The moon sees nothing of this. She is bald and wild."

"Eight great tongues affirming the Resurrection."
17 In which collection was this poem published?
The Colossus

Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams

The Bell Jar

Ariel
18 Which of the following INCORRECTLY describes this poem?
It makes extensive use of Biblical imagery.

It has an unnamed first-person speaker.

It has four stanzas.

It is set in a specific historical period.
19 Which of the following best describes the author?
A Romantic poet of the late nineteenth century

A confessional poet of the mid-twentieth century

A poet and playwright from the Elizabethan era

A modernist who was most active in the early twentieth century
20 Which of the following is NOT an example of rhyme or assonance from this poem?
“spiritous mists inhabit this”

“The moon is my mother”

“blue [...] pews”

“Eight great tongues”
21 "White as a knuckle and terribly upset" is NOT an example of which of the following?
The color motif in this poem

Alliteration

Simile

Reference to an idiom
22 What is the moon doing when it is "quiet / With the O-gape of complete despair"?
A giant, gaping hole is drilled through it.

It resembles a human face that is white with grief.

It resembles a human mouth that silently gapes in the shape of the letter "O."

It makes a loud, yelling sound.
23 "Her blue garments unloose small bats and owls" is NOT an example of which of the following?
Metonymy

Simile

Religious allusion

Personification
24 Which of the following is NOT a motif or symbol found in this poem?
The moon

The color blue

The color red

The yew tree
25 Which of the following accurately describes the book in which this poem was published?
It is Sylvia Plath's collection of poems, essays, and short stories.

It was written before Sylvia Plath married Ted Hughes.

It is Sylvia Plath's first poetry collection.

It is Sylvia Plath's second and posthumous poetry collection.

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