1.

The following is a poem by Alfred Tenison:

When cats run home and light is come,

And dew is cold upon the ground,

And the far-off stream is dumb,

And the whirring sail goes round,

And the whirring sail goes round;

Alone and warming his five wits,

The white owl in the belfry sits.

When merry milkmaids click the latch,

And rarely smells the new-mown hay,

And the cock hath sung beneath the thatch

Twice or thrice his roundelay,

Twice or thrice his roundelay;

Alone and warming his five wits,

The white owl in the belfry sits.

What is the main idea of the text?

A. Cats and milkmaids share much in common: both are seen by the owl.

B. As the sun rises and the world comes to life, the owl settles in to rest.

C. The routine of each day is predictable and common.

D. The cat and the rooster are the waking signs of each morning.

2. “An Incident of the French Camp” is a poem by Robert Browning. Having read it,
a student claims that the town of Ratisbon has been taken. Which quotation
from the text best supports the claim?
A. You know, we French storm’d Ratisbon/ A mile or so away/ On a little mound,
Napoleon/ Stood on our storming-day;

B. Just as perhaps he mus’d “My plans/ That soar, to earth may fall. Let once my army
leader Lannes/ Waver at yonder wall,”

C. “Well,” cried he, “Emperor, by God’s grace/ We’ve got you Ratisbon!/ The Marshal’s in
the market-place/ And you’ll be there anon!”

D. “You’re wounded!” “Nay,” the soldier’s pride/ Touched to the quick, he said: “I’m
killed, Sire!” And his chief beside, Smiling the boy fell dead.

3. The following is the poem “Old Ironsides” by Oliver Wendell Homes:

Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!

Long has it waved on high,

And many an eye has danced to see

That banner in the sky;

Beneath it rung the battle shout,

And burst the cannon’s roar;—

The meteor of the ocean air

Shall sweep the clouds no more.

Her deck, once red with heroes’ blood,

Where knelt the vanquished foe,

When winds were hurrying o’er the flood

And waves were white below.

No more shall feel the victor’s tread,

Or know the conquered knee;

The harpies of the shore shall pluck

The eagle of the sea!

O, better that her shattered hulk

Should sink beneath the wave;

Her thunders shook the mighty deep,

And there should be her grave;

Nail to the mast her holy flag,

Set every threadbare sail,

And give her to the god of storms,

The lightning and the gale!

Based on the text, what fate would Holmes prefer for Old Ironsides?

A. That she be destroyed by a lightning strike

B. That she be taken ashore and preserved for posterity

C. That she lose her flag and decks

D. That she sink in glory to the depths of the sea

4. “Warren’s Address to the American Soldiers” is a poem by John Peirpont. A

writer, knowing that that the poem echoes Warren’s rallying cry to American
soldiers, claims that it aims to glorify a coming battle. Which quotation from the
poem most effectively illustrates the claim?

A. Look behind you! They’re afire!/ And, before you, see/ Who have done it! – From the
vale/ On they come!

B. Will ye look for greener graves?/ Hope ye mercy still?

C. What’s the mercy despots feel?/ Hear it in that battle-peal!

D. In the God of battles trust!/ Die we may, and die we must/ But, O, where can dust to
dust/ Be consigned so well.

5. “My Own Shall Come to Me” is a poem by John Burroughs. A teacher tells her
class that it is a poem about patience and the inevitability of fate. Which
 quotation from “My Own Shall Come to Me” most effectively illustrates the
claim?

A. I rave no more ‘gainst time or fate/For lo! My own shall come to me…/ No wind can
drive my bark astray,/ Nor change the tide of destiny.

B. The stars come nightly to the sky;/ the tidal wave comes to the sea;/ Nor time, nor
space, nor deep, nor high,/ Can keep my own away from me.

C. The waters know their own and draw/ The brook that springs in yonder heights;/ So
flows the good with equal law/ Unto the soul of pure delights.

D. Serene I fold my hands and wait,/ Nor care for wind, nor tide, nor sea…/ What matter
if I stand alone?/ I wait with joy the coming years;

6. The following is the poem “A Wish” by Samuel Rogers:

Mine be a cot beside the hill;

A bee-hive’s hum shall soothe my ear;

A willowy brook that turns a mill

With many a fall shall linger near.

The swallow, oft, beneath my thatch

Shall twitter from her clay-built nest;

Oft shall the pilgrim lift the latch,

And share my meal, a welcome guest.

Around my ivied porch shall spring

Each fragrant flower that drinks the dew;

And Lucy, at her wheel, shall sing

In russet gown and apron blue.

The village church among the trees,

Where first our marriage-vows were given,

With merry peals shall swell the breeze

And point with taper spire to Heaven.

Which choice best describes the function of the underlined portion in the text as a
whole?

A. To describe the garden of the narrator

B. To paint a picture of an idyllic country life

C. To help the reader visualize all that the narrator has lost

D. To illustrate the domestic part of what the narrator is wishing for

7. “L’Envoi” is a poem by Rudyard Kipling. A commenter claims that if the entire

poem is read as if Kipling approving of what he describes, then Kipling believes
that artists should paint not because they must, but for the love of it. Which
quotation from “L’Envoi” most effectively illustrates the claim?

A. And only the Master shall praise us/ and only the Master shall blame;/ And no one
shall work for money,/ and no one shall work for fame;/ But each for the joy of the
working

B. And those who were good shall be happy: they shall sit in a golden chair;/ They shall
splash at a ten-league canvas with brushes of comet’s hair;

C. When the oldest colors have faded, and the youngest critic has died,/ We shall rest,
and, faith, we shall need it—lie down for an eon or two.

D. They shall find real saints to draw from – Magdalene, Peter, and Paul;/ They shall work
for an age at a sitting and never be tired at all!

8. The following is the poem “Little Things” by Ebenezer Cobham Brewer:

Little drops of water,

Little grains of sand,

Make the mighty ocean

And the pleasant land.

Thus the little minutes,

Humble though they be,

Make the mighty ages

Of eternity.

8. Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A. To illustrate how small and individual moments build into all of history.

B. To discuss time lost while visiting the ocean.

C. To contrast the relentless progression of time with the endless movement of the
ocean

D. To encourage the reader to take their time as they go through life.

9. The following is the poem “The Butterfly and the Bee” by William Lisle:
BowlesMethought I heard a butterfly

Say to a laboring bee:

“Thou hast no colors of the sky

On painted wings like me.”

“Poor child of vanity! Those dyes,

And colors bright and rare,”

With mild reproof, the bee replies,

“Are all beneath my care.

“Content I toil from morn to eve,

And scorning idleness,

To tribes of gaudy sloth I leave

The vanity of dress.”

What is the main idea of the text?

A. In an imaginary conversation, a butterfly and a bee have little in common.

B. As a personal quality, work ethic is far preferable to beauty.

C. Being judgmental of others is not an admirable pastime.

D. Even creatures as small as bees have lessons to teach us all.

10. The following is the poem “Ingratitude” by William Shakespeare: Blow, blow, thou
winter wind,

Thou are not so unkind

As man’s ingratitude;

Thy tooth is not so keen

Because thou are not seen,

Although thy breath be rude.

Freeze, freeze, thou bitter sky,

Thou dost not bite so nigh

As benefits forgot;

Though thou the waters warp,

Thy sting is not so sharp

As friend remembered not.

Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?

A. To explain that winter is a harsh time through which all men must suffer.

B. To illustrate that emotional pain can hurt far worse than physical pain.

C. To paint a picture of various harms that many befall the narrator.

D. To show the readers the dangers of making friends with the wrong people.