Winter Swans Quizzes

Winter Swans Quiz

1 What kind of verse is this poem written in?

Blank Verse

Rhymed verse

Free verse

Fake Verse
2 Which of the following best summarizes the main idea of this poem?

Nature is used metaphorically to express reconciliation between a couple.

Swans are a type of bird that mate for life.

After it rains, swans swim in lakes.

Nature is used metaphorically to communicate that reconciliation is not possible.
3 What best describes the conflict in the poem?

A couple cannot be together because of long distance.

Seeing swans swim in a lake make a couple realize they cannot be together.

A couple argue with each other.

A couple are distant and uncommunicative after a fight or disagreement.
4 Which of the following is NOT an explicit theme of the work?

Reconciliation

Relational Tension

Nostalgia

Nature
5 What collection is "Winter Swans" published in?

The Blue Book

Skirrid Hall

Mametz Wood

Skirrid Hill
6 What is Owen Sheers' heritage?

American

Scottish

Irish

Welsh
7 How many lines does each stanza have?

Each has 3 except for the last, which has 2.

Each has 2 except for the last, which has 3.

Each has 2.

Each has 3.
8 Which line best symbolizes reconciliation between the couple?

"'They mate for life' you said as they left,"

"like a pair of wings settling after flight."

"until the swans came and stopped us"

"I noticed our hands..."
9 Which best describes the significance of the change in number of lines per stanza?

All stanzas have the same number of lines.

The last stanza ends with 3 lines as opposed to 2, which numerically suggests an addition to the couple's family.

The last stanza ends with 2 lines as opposed to 3, which suggests the theme of loss.

The last stanza ends with 2 lines as opposed to 3, which numerically settles upon a pair.
10 Which of the following literary elements does not appear in the poem?

Simile

Anaphora

Metaphor

Irony
11 Which of the following best describes the tone?

Excited and assertive

Hopeful and calm

Melancholy and loving

Dry and regretful
12 Which of the following is a metaphor in the poem?

"the waterlogged earth" (Line 4)

"The clouds had given their all-" (Line 1)

"like boats righting in rough weather" (Line 12)

"porcelain over stilling water" (Line 14)
13 What is special about the material of porcelain?

Porcelain appears to be strong, but is actually fragile.

Porcelain is a kind of ceramic.

Porcelain appears to be fragile, but is actually strong.

Plates can be made of porcelain.
14 How many stanzas does the poem have?

Six, made of tercets

Seven, made of six tercets and one couplet

Seven, made of tercets

Seven, made of five tercets and two couplet
15 What does it mean to "skirt?"

To wear a skirt

To go around something rather than directly through or across it

To go on top of something

To go through something rather than around it
16 What is the poem's setting?

In the couple's house

Beside a lake in a break after a two-day rainstorm

Beside a lake during a two-day rainstorm

Beside a river in a break after a two-day rainstorm
17 Why is the earth gulping for breath?

It is the result of the amount of swans congregating by the lake.

It is the result of the heavy rains, which symbolize the argument taking place during the poem.

It is the result of the extreme cold of winter.

It is the result of the heavy rains, which symbolize the earlier argument between the couple.
18 Which is an example of consonance?

"with a show of tipping in unison" (Line 8)

"icebergs of white feather" (Line 11)

"the waterlogged earth" (Line 4)

"like boats righting in rough weather" (Line 12)
19 What is the English translation of the Welsh "Ysgyryd (skirrid) fawr?"

Great Shattered Hill

The Kingdom of Wales

Great Sloping Mountain

Great Sloping Hill
20 What theme in Sheers's work, indicated by the title of the collection, appears in "Winter Swans"?

Togetherness

Separation

Nature

Swans
21 When is enjambment used in the poem?

The poem does not use enjambment.

It is used during the swan's movement and the ending image where the couple's hands come together.

It is used when describing the way the couple walks together.

It is used throughout the poem.
22 What does it mean for the swans to "[halve] themselves?"

They dive their heads beneath the water.

They are killed by hunters.

They are separated from each other.

They feel the loss of a breakup.
23 Does the speaker reply when his or her partner remarks that the swans mate for life?

Not in words; eventually the couple's hands find each other.

The speaker only looks at his or her partner.

The speaker does not reply at all.

Not in words, the speaker hugs his or her partner.
24 What does rain symbolize in the poem?

The coming-together of the couple.

The unspecified conflict that had occurred between the swans.

Nature's natural cycles

The unspecified conflict that had occurred between the couple.
25 What best describes the ending image of the poem?

The couple's hands swing side by side like birds taking off in flight.

The couple's entwined hands resemble a pair of wings taking off in flight.

The couple's entwined hands resemble the swans swimming in the lake.

The couple's entwined hands resemble a pair of wings settling after flight.

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