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?
Black vs. white

Large vs. small

Loud vs. quiet

Still vs. moving
2 What is the first body part of the blackbird we see?
wing

eye

shadow

beak
3 To what does the speaker compare his state of being "of three minds?"
To three different snowy nights

To a tree containing three blackbirds

To three blackbirds in flight

To three different men looking at a blackbird
4 Other than the three minds and three blackbirds of section II, what is another trinity (union of three things) in the poem?
The man, woman, and blackbird

The blackbird, snow, and mountain

The carriage, window, and snow

The three men of Haddam
5 Which is more beautiful, inflections or innuendoes?
Neither, because the speaker does not know which to prefer

Innuendoes, because the speaker appreciates what he cannot understand

Neither, because the blackbird is neither beautiful nor interesting

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?"
Sitting amid the snow

Flying in the wind

Singing to the poet

Tracing its shadow
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 icicles on the glass

the shadow

the raging wind
8 How are the "thin men of Haddam" wasting their time?
By writing love songs to the women

By worrying too much about their lack of knowledge

By writing poems about blackbirds

By imagining idealized birds that don't exist
9 Other than "noble accents / And lucid, inescapable rhythms," what does the speaker claim to know?
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

That the blackbird's song is more beautiful than his poetry will ever be
10 What might the "edge / Of one of many circles" represent?
The edge between afternoon and evening

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
11 Who are the bawds of euphony?
People who write blackbirds into epic poems

Women who are ignored by the men of Haddam

People who like poetry that is pretty but superficial

Women who have beautiful singing voices
12 How might we describe the man in the glass coach, based on the tone of the poem's imagery?
A great poet

A man who perceives himself as superior

A down-to-earth man of nature

An attentive and wise reader
13 What does the man in the coach actually see when he gets frightened?
The shadow of his equipment

The ice on his window

Three blackbirds in a tree

The darkening sky of evening
14 Why does the speaker assume "The blackbird must be flying?"
The river is moving.

The day is ending.

The mountains are empty.

The wind is blowing.
15 What time of day is it when the poem ends?
A busy midday in town

A dark afternoon

A snowy dawn

Midnight
16 Where is the last place we see the blackbird?
Walking around the speaker's feet

Sitting in the branches of a tree

Flying out of our line of sight

Flying alongside a train
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 internal prejudices

The key to understanding nature

The viewer's point of view

The poet's linguistic craft
19 What type of sentence does Stevens use in the section about the men of Haddam, that he uses nowhere else in the poem?
Commands

Run-ons

Fragments

Questions
20 Which image is most often associated with fright?
The eye of the blackbird

A shadow

Tree limbs

Other men
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?
Smell

Hearing

Touch

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

The lack of viable material to write poems about

Uncertainty and ambiguity

Hostility
24 Stevens said that this sequence of stanzas is meant to be a collection of ________.
contradicting viewpoints

sensations

aphorisms

explanations
25 What does the poem suggest is the difference between finding the blackbird beautiful and finding it terrifying?
Our mental perspective

Our geographic location

What the blackbird is doing

The time of year

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…