POETRY TEST PRIMER.
Challenge yourself with the following questions. The less you have to check your notes for answers, the more prepared you are for the upcoming test.

Vocabulary: Identify the following terms:

satire metaphor sonnet free verse concrete poetry rhyme scheme stanza verse symbol form content onomatopoeia


The following poems are the ones we studied in class:
ygUDuh (pg.10), Is My Team Ploughing (pg. 6), When I Was One-and-Twenty (pg 13) Jabberwocky (pg. 12), FOR WANT OF A NAIL (pg.5), The Road Not Taken (pg. 13), LITERACY (pg. 5) Quote on pg. 5. by Paul Valéry, 40-Love (pg.6), Ambition (pg. 11), Five Ways to Kill a Man (pg 13) Rhymes For A Modern Nursery {"Two Blind Mice", "Clementine", "Jack and Jill", Epitaph on a Politician, A Sovereign Nation"}(pg.17), The Soldier (14) First Lesson (form exercise), No Respect (form exercise) Things made by Iron (form exercise) Class (group discussion)


1. Refer to these poems when answering the following questions:

2. Pick three poems from the above list and explain how each creates an effective use of metaphor.

3. Which is the most effective example of satire? Why?

4. Which is the most cynical poem? Make sure you justify your answer.

5. Using examples, explain the message Paul Valéry wished to get across when he uttered, "I write half the poem. The reader writes the other half."

6. Are there any poems that would maintain their powerful message regardless of the form chosen by the poet? Offer suggestions and explain why you still think they work (even if they aren't quite as effective)

7. Are there any poems where form is absolutely essential to the story? Find examples of poems that would fail miserably if not for form.

8. Some poems are more effective if presented in a particular format (for example, some work better when presented out loud, while others must be read in order to appreciate them) Find two examples of each and justify your choices.

9. Read the poem "Experiment Degustatory" by Ogden Nash. What is the message of the poem? How does the form contribute to the appreciation of the poem? Of the categories of poem offered on the front pages of your poetry collection, what category does this poem best fit?

10. What is poetry?

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