sonnet quiz

"Their" and "they" (line 8) refer to which of the following?

"every word" (line 7)

The image of "Crooked eclipses" (line 7) is most closely linked to which other image in the poem?

"the main of light" (line 5)

The poem's final two lines do which of the following?

Present a simile that resolves a contradiction described in the preceding lines

Line 10 ("And you . . . argument") identifies which of the following about the speaker?

The abiding theme of his personal and literary focus

Which of the following best describes the structure of the poem as a whole?

Three increasingly ominous representations of a process, followed by an optimistic assertion

Line 12, "And nothing stands but for his scythe to mow," is best paraphrased as

everything exists only to be destroyed

In line 6, the word "Crawls" serves primarily to

evoke both a baby's movements and the idea that in youth the years pass slowly

In line 12, the speaker compares the expression of romantic love to

financial transactions

The subject of lines 1-4 is best described as the

minutes of our lives elapsing

The overall tone of the poem is best described as

purposeful and heartfelt

The questions in the first eight lines of the poem primarily serve to

set up an assertion about the nature of the poet's love

The image presented in line 11 ("So all . . . new") most significantly implies the speaker's

skill in presenting the same thoughts in numerous poems

Which of the following best characterizes the development of the poem as a whole?

The speaker acknowledges a weakness in his writing, only to turn this weakness into a means of affirming his devotion to his beloved.

The action of the waves in lines 1-4 is best described as

an inexorable procession

In context, the question in line 5 ("Why write . . . ever the same") conveys the speaker's

apparent self-reproach for using poetic diction he has used before

In lines 5-8 ("Why write . . . proceed?"), the speaker most clearly implies that his poems

are easily recognizable as his because of their literary features

In context, the phrase "transfix the flourish" (line 9) is best understood to mean

diminish the vitality

In line 5, "Nativity" refers primarily to the

earliest stage of life

The first twelve lines of the poem primarily focus on the

relentlessness of time

The verbs in lines 9-12—"transfix," "delves," "Feeds on," and "mow"—serve to dramatize

time's absolute control over human life