Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird Quizzes

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird Quiz

1 Which of the following is NOT a contrast present in the first stanza?

Large vs. small

Black vs. white

Still vs. moving

Loud vs. quiet
2 What is the first body part of the blackbird we see?

wing

eye

beak

shadow
3 To what does the speaker compare his state of being "of three minds?"

To three different men looking at a blackbird

To three different snowy nights

To a tree containing three blackbirds

To three blackbirds in flight
4 Other than the three minds and three blackbirds of section II, what is another trinity (union of three things) in the poem?

The blackbird, snow, and mountain

The man, woman, and blackbird

The three men of Haddam

The carriage, window, and snow
5 Which is more beautiful, inflections or innuendoes?

Neither, because the speaker does not know which to prefer

Neither, because the blackbird is neither beautiful nor interesting

Innuendoes, because the speaker appreciates what he cannot understand

Inflections, because the birdsong is euphonious to the ear
6 What is the blackbird doing when it is only "a small part of the pantomime?"

Flying in the wind

Sitting amid the snow

Tracing its shadow

Singing to the poet
7 Which of the following is NOT an image that helps create the mood of terror in section VI?

the back-and-forth motion of the blackbird

the shadow

the icicles on the glass

the raging wind
8 How are the "thin men of Haddam" wasting their time?

By writing poems about blackbirds

By writing love songs to the women

By imagining idealized birds that don't exist

By worrying too much about their lack of knowledge
9 Other than "noble accents / And lucid, inescapable rhythms," what does the speaker claim to know?

That the blackbird's song is more beautiful than his poetry will ever be

That the blackbird is an omen of death

That the blackbird is a messenger of Heaven

That the blackbird is involved in what he knows
10 What might the "edge / Of one of many circles" represent?

The edge between what we can see and not see

The edge of the town of Haddam

The edge between what is beautiful and ugly

The edge between afternoon and evening
11 Who are the bawds of euphony?

Women who have beautiful singing voices

People who like poetry that is pretty but superficial

People who write blackbirds into epic poems

Women who are ignored by the men of Haddam
12 How might we describe the man in the glass coach, based on the tone of the poem's imagery?

A great poet

An attentive and wise reader

A down-to-earth man of nature

A man who perceives himself as superior
13 What does the man in the coach actually see when he gets frightened?

Three blackbirds in a tree

The darkening sky of evening

The ice on his window

The shadow of his equipment
14 Why does the speaker assume "The blackbird must be flying?"

The day is ending.

The river is moving.

The wind is blowing.

The mountains are empty.
15 What time of day is it when the poem ends?

A dark afternoon

A snowy dawn

Midnight

A busy midday in town
16 Where is the last place we see the blackbird?

Flying alongside a train

Flying out of our line of sight

Sitting in the branches of a tree

Walking around the speaker's feet
17 Which season is evoked most often by the imagery in the poem?

summer

autumn

winter

spring
18 What do glass windows most likely represent in the poem?

The viewer's point of view

The poet's linguistic craft

The viewer's internal prejudices

The key to understanding nature
19 What type of sentence does Stevens use in the section about the men of Haddam, that he uses nowhere else in the poem?

Fragments

Run-ons

Questions

Commands
20 Which image is most often associated with fright?

Other men

The eye of the blackbird

Tree limbs

A shadow
21 Which of the following best describes the difference between the blackbird's presence in section I and section XIII?

motion vs. stillness

visible vs. invisible

fear vs. tranquility

unknown vs. known
22 Other than sight, what sense is used most often to describe the blackbird?

Touch

Taste

Smell

Hearing
23 What does the poem suggest is something about interpretation of nature that we should be willing to accept?

Hostility

Uncertainty and ambiguity

Tragedy

The lack of viable material to write poems about
24 Stevens said that this sequence of stanzas is meant to be a collection of ________.

aphorisms

explanations

sensations

contradicting viewpoints
25 What does the poem suggest is the difference between finding the blackbird beautiful and finding it terrifying?

Our geographic location

The time of year

What the blackbird is doing

Our mental perspective

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Ask Your Own Question

Study Guide for Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird study guide contains a biography of Wallace Stevens, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

Read the Study Guide for Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird…