Poetry Multiple Choice Set Questions and Answers

AP Multiple Choice 2 (236-238)

When I heard the learn’d astronomer,

When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me,

When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them,

When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,

How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick,

Till rising and gliding out I wander’d off by myself,

In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,

Look’d up in perfect silence at the stars.

1. Lines 1-4 are an example of

A. polysyndeton

B. anaphora
C. appositive

D. anadiplosis

E. metaphor

2. The primary purpose of the enjambment in lines 4-5 is to

A. emphasize the word room

B. convey the speaker’s disregard for lectures
C. lengthen the first five lines of the poem
D. contrast lines 1-3 with lines 4-5
E. create a sense of slowed time

3. All of the following characterize the speaker’s attitude except

A. enjoyment of the night sky

B. detached from the lecturer
C. unimpressed by the lecturer
D. bored by the lecturer

E. irritation with the lecturer

4. From the poem, the reader can infer that

A. the speaker is a lover of nature

B. the lecturer is well-renowned
C. the speaker prefers the lecturer to the night sky

D. nature is most beautiful in its original form
E. the lecturer over-analyzed the stars

5. The purpose of the last two lines is to

I. emphasize the night sky’s beauty
II. reiterate the motif of time

III. contrast with the first five lines

A. II. only    B. III. only       C. II. and III. only   D. I. and III. only            E. I. II. and III.

Poetry Multiple Choice Answer Guide

• The correct choice is B. An anaphora is when the same word is used to start subsequent clauses or sentences, as seen in “When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer”
• A. is incorrect because polysyndeton describes different tenses of one word
• C. is incorrect because appositives are multiple nouns or noun phrases
• D. is incorrect because anadiplosis is when the last word and first word of subsequent clauses or sentences are the same
• E. is incorrect because a metaphor is used to compare figuratively

• The correct choice is E. The enjambed lines allow the poem to be read slower, which creates the sense of more time in between events.
• A. is incorrect because the word room does not contribute to author purpose
• B. is incorrect because the speaker is not disregarding lectures in these lines, he is only disinterested in the one lecture he’s attending
• C. is incorrect because the enjambment itself does not add length
• D. is incorrect because lines 1-3 are enjambed as well

• The correct choice is E. Though the speaker was discomfited by the lecturer, there is no evidence to support that the lecturer irritated him.
• A. is incorrect because the speaker notes the perfect silence under the night sky.
• B. is incorrect because the speaker was not drawn into the lecture.
• C. is incorrect because in comparison with the night sky, the speaker was unimpressed with the figures and charts offered by the lecturer.
• D. is incorrect because the lecturer was so lethargic that the speaker left the room.

• The correct choice is E. The speaker discusses the motif of voice between the lecturer’s explanation and the perfect silence in observing the stars, leading to the conclusion that the lecturer actually over-talked the subject of stars.
• A. is incorrect because the speaker enjoys the night sky, not necessarily nature.
• B. is incorrect because no information is given on the lecturer.
• C. is incorrect because the speaker actually prefers the opposite.
• D. is incorrect because this is stating an opinion, not something the speaker believes. The wording is tricky with this answer choice.

• The correct choice is D. The beauty of the night sky is emphasized through the contrast between the first five lines and the last four lines. The tone shift between the two sections denotes a contrast, a contrast made evident as the speaker enjoys himself in the outdoors, whereas he was “tired and sick” in the room.
• All other choices are incorrect because they either contain II. which is incorrect because time is only mentioned once, or they do not contain both I. and III.