Truth (Chaucer poem) Quizzes

Truth (Chaucer poem) "Truth"

1 Which work is Geoffrey Chaucer best known for?

Truth

The Revelations of Divine Love

The Canterbury Tales

On the Consolation of Philosophy
2 In what sense is "Truth" uncharacteristic of Chaucer's work?

It does not employ any wordplay or figurative language

It is written for a courtly audience

It is sincere and religious

It is written in verse
3 Which line most specifically suggests the specific audience of "Truth"?

Rule well yourself, who others advise here

Therefore, La Vache, cease your old wretchedness

Here’s not your home, here is but wilderness

Let your thing suffice, though it be small
4 What is the original language of "Truth"?

French

Old English

Middle English

German
5 What is the tone of the first stanza?

Frustrated, even angry

Cynical, ironic

Urgent, almost panicked

Measured and rational
6 Which literary device does Chaucer most extensively employ in the first stanza?

Allusion

Parallel sentence structure

Alliteration

Figurative language
7 Which of the following best describes the irony of the first stanza?

The speaker gives good advice but does not follow it

He who seeks good things on earth will only make his life worse

Sir Philip wants to rule others, but cannot even rule himself

Sir Philip thinks he is such a good person, but he is actually selfish and judgmental
8 Which of the following BEST expresses the meaning of "the crooked" in line 8?

Wealthy people

Dishonest people

People with crooked spines

Misled people
9 Who is "her who wobbles like a ball"?

The heavens

Philip's lover

The earth

A fat woman
10 Which of the following BEST expresses the meaning of "busyness" in line 10?

Domestic work

Having a great deal to do

Difficult but necessary labor

Work for the sake of work
11 What does the metaphor "kicking at an awl" imply about trying to make the world a better place?

The world is delicate and you must not be violent with it

The world will not affect you, nor you it

The world will injure you if you try to fight against it

To change the world, you must also take on risk
12 Which literary device does NOT appear in the second stanza?

Apostrophe

Alliteration

Simile

Metaphor
13 Fill in the blank: The line "control yourself, who would control your peer" casts self-control and power as:

Both impossible

Mutually dependent

Mutually exclusive

Both necessary
14 What does the crockery represent in line 22?

Sir Philip

The world

Wealth

The speaker
15 Which of the following is NOT a similarity between stanza one and stanza two?

Both use parallel sentence structure

Both employ a similar tone

Both use figurative language

Both discuss similar things
16 Which of the following is most similar to the relationship between the speaker and the addressee?

Lover and beloved

Enemies seeking to destroy each other

King and counsellor

Friends on equal terms
17 What does the speaker mean when he tells his addressee to "know your country"?

Remember that your real home is heaven

Don't forget your family when you become powerful

Don't delude yourself into forgetting the flaws of your country

Don't forget English customs and values on your travels
18 What does the speaker mean when he tells the addressee to "hold the high way"

Retain control of the actions of those in your realm

Don't try to change the world, just go along with everyone else

Don't get lost on your travels

Conform your actions to Christian religious law
19 Which of the following did NOT influence "Truth"?

On the Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius

De contemptu mundi by Bernard of Cluny

The Revelations of Divine Love by Julian of Norwich

On the Misery of the Human Condition by Pope Innocent III
20 Which of the following BEST describes the role of "contemptus mundi" in late medieval culture

Increasingly influential idea

Fringe concept

Widely held belief

Universally accepted dogma
21 Which of the following contains a pun on the name "la Vache"?

Forth, pilgrim, forth! Forth, beast, out of your stall!

Here’s not your home, here is but wilderness

Let your thing suffice, though it be small

Beware therefore of kicking at an awl
22 What is the rhyme scheme of "Truth"?

abababb

abcabca

ababbcc

ababaaa
23 What is the "envoy"?

A messenger who arrives and interrupts the speaker

A satirical conclusion that undermines the preceding stanzas

A concluding stanza that summarizes the poem and identifies its addressee

An addendum added by another poet to summarize the poem
24 Which line of the final stanza is slightly at odds with the preceding stanzas?

To the world cease now to be in thrall

For yourself, and others, for heavenly cheer

Cry Him mercy, that out of his high goodness

And truth shall deliver you, have no fear
25 How does the depiction of God change over the course of the poem?

God is equally important throughout

God becomes less and less important as Philip moves away from the true path

The poem urges an increasingly intimate relationship with God

The poem increasingly emphasizes God's power over Philip

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