Truth (Chaucer poem) Quizzes

Truth (Chaucer poem) "Truth"

1 Which work is Geoffrey Chaucer best known for?

The Revelations of Divine Love

On the Consolation of Philosophy

The Canterbury Tales

Truth
2 In what sense is "Truth" uncharacteristic of Chaucer's work?

It is written in verse

It is sincere and religious

It does not employ any wordplay or figurative language

It is written for a courtly audience
3 Which line most specifically suggests the specific audience of "Truth"?

Therefore, La Vache, cease your old wretchedness

Rule well yourself, who others advise here

Let your thing suffice, though it be small

Here’s not your home, here is but wilderness
4 What is the original language of "Truth"?

Middle English

French

German

Old English
5 What is the tone of the first stanza?

Urgent, almost panicked

Measured and rational

Frustrated, even angry

Cynical, ironic
6 Which literary device does Chaucer most extensively employ in the first stanza?

Parallel sentence structure

Allusion

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?

People with crooked spines

Dishonest people

Wealthy people

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

A fat woman

Philip's lover

The earth

The heavens
10 Which of the following BEST expresses the meaning of "busyness" in line 10?

Having a great deal to do

Difficult but necessary labor

Domestic work

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 will not affect you, nor you it

To change the world, you must also take on risk

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

The world will injure you if you try to fight against it
12 Which literary device does NOT appear in the second stanza?

Alliteration

Simile

Apostrophe

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

Mutually exclusive

Both impossible

Both necessary

Mutually dependent
14 What does the crockery represent in line 22?

Wealth

The world

The speaker

Sir Philip
15 Which of the following is NOT a similarity between stanza one and stanza two?

Both use figurative language

Both use parallel sentence structure

Both discuss similar things

Both employ a similar tone
16 Which of the following is most similar to the relationship between the speaker and the addressee?

Friends on equal terms

King and counsellor

Lover and beloved

Enemies seeking to destroy each other
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 English customs and values on your travels

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

Don't forget your family when you become powerful
18 What does the speaker mean when he tells the addressee to "hold the high way"

Conform your actions to Christian religious law

Don't get lost on your travels

Retain control of the actions of those in your realm

Don't try to change the world, just go along with everyone else
19 Which of the following did NOT influence "Truth"?

On the Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius

On the Misery of the Human Condition by Pope Innocent III

The Revelations of Divine Love by Julian of Norwich

De contemptu mundi by Bernard of Cluny
20 Which of the following BEST describes the role of "contemptus mundi" in late medieval culture

Widely held belief

Increasingly influential idea

Fringe concept

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

Let your thing suffice, though it be small

Here’s not your home, here is but wilderness

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

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

ababaaa

ababbcc

abababb

abcabca
23 What is the "envoy"?

An addendum added by another poet to summarize the poem

A satirical conclusion that undermines the preceding stanzas

A messenger who arrives and interrupts the speaker

A concluding stanza that summarizes the poem and identifies its addressee
24 Which line of the final stanza is slightly at odds with the preceding stanzas?

And truth shall deliver you, have no fear

Cry Him mercy, that out of his high goodness

To the world cease now to be in thrall

For yourself, and others, for heavenly cheer
25 How does the depiction of God change over the course of the poem?

The poem urges an increasingly intimate relationship with God

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

God is equally important throughout

The poem increasingly emphasizes God's power over Philip

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