Multiple Choice
Poetry analysis
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers
the question.
Several questions in the following quiz relate to a poem, Flat Lines.
As the poem deals with the difficult subject matter, it is not suited for use in years 7–10,
and students analysing it in senior English or Literature should be warned that the content may be
distressing. It can be juxtaposed with poems like Anne Sexton’s Wanting to Die, Sylvia
Plath’s Tulips and Lady Lazarus, and Ted Hughes’ Last Letter.
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1
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What is the primary subject matter of the poem?
Flat Lines
the
nurse starts with:
‘so were you trying to—’
I nod yes before
she finishes,
and then
I pass—
wake up
three hours later,
stitched, glued and filled
with
two pints of Dad’s blood.
on the run from public
to private, I hand the
on-duty
shrink a number;
she’s relieved to be
rid of one more.
my tendons rejoined,
I
still can’t manage
to sign papers, but a
witnessed scratch on the page
ends up
OK.
on the smoking balcony
the inmates ask: ‘so how
was your day?’ and I
lift
up my gauze-cuffs and
have nothing to say.
A | The narrator is ill, and likens hospital to prison | B | The narrator is
commenting on the health system and the poor state of public and private
hospitals | C | The narrator has attempted suicide and is admitted to a psychiatric
hospital | D | The narrator has been in a serious accident and required a blood
transfusion |
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2
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The title of the poem and the first stanza suggest that the
narrator:
A | has fainted at the sight of blood | C | is lying to get
attention | B | refuses to answer questions truthfully | D | clinically dies. |
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3
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Which stanza begins with a line that could be taken as the narrator’s
instruction to herself?
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4
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If ‘on the run from public to private’ is taken as a single line,
what metre does it use?
A | Iambic pentameter | C | Dactylic trimeter | B | Anapestic trimeter | D | Trochaic dimeter |
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5
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The poem is in:
A | present tense and second person | C | present perfect tense and second
person | B | past perfect tense and first person | D | present tense and first
person |
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6
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The stanzas in the poem are:
A | quintains | C | quatrains | B | tercets | D | cinquains |
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7
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As the subject matter in the poem is not discussed explicitly, within the text
it can be considered:
A | a euphemism and a periphrasis | C | a silence, a periphrasis and an
allegory | B | a silence and a euphemism | D | a silence, a periphrasis and a euphemism. |
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8
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William Blake’s (1757–1827) poem, A Poison Tree, shown below, is an
extended metaphor depicting what? I was angry with my
friend:
I told my wrath, my wrath did end.
I was angry with my foe:
I told it not, my wrath
did grow.
And I water’d it in fears
Night & morning with my tears;
And I
sunned it with smiles;
And with soft deceitful wiles.
And it grew both day and
night,
Till it bore an apple bright.
And my foe beheld it shine,
And he knew that it was
mine.
And into my garden stole,
When the night had veiled the pole;
In the morning glad
I see
My foe outstretch’d beneath the tree.
A | The most effective means of attaining revenge against an enemy is through
deception. | B | If anger is repressed and left to fester, it will grow like a deadly poison instead
of being dispelled. | C | The difference between a friend and a foe is the
level of honesty that can be mutually shared. | D | You should keep your friends close and your
enemies closer. |
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9
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The text below is an example of what kind of poem?  A | Terquain | C | Form | B | Diamante | D | Optical |
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10
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The poem below uses which of the following literary devices?  A | Assonance | C | Onomatopoeia | B | Antonomasia | D | Alliteration |
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11
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The text below is what type of poem? Australian rules
Rush, run, struggle, ball
Mark, tackle,
free
Scramble, siren, tumble, fall
Kick, goal, glee
A | Cinquain | C | Form | B | Terquain | D | Clerihew |
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12
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The text below is what type of poem? amidst the chill, I
sneak out in my slippers to
play with white
delight
A | Haiku | C | Senryu | B | Concrete | D | Both A and C are
correct |
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