Whitman Selection Test Study Guide

Who is the epic hero in Whitman's poems?

• Solely Americans

• Himself

• All of humanity

• Poets

What symbol represents the walks of life and individual choices we make in the poem I Hear America Singing?

• Singing

• Blue collar jobs

• Mothers & daughters

• Nationalities

What group of people does Whitman mainly focus on in I Hear America Singing?

• White Collar workers

• Blue Collar labor force

• Family

• Singers

How does Whitman feel about people based on the majority of the poems in the selection?

• He finds them to be naturally fearful of change.

• He finds them to be unintelligent and difficult to teach.

• He finds that we are awful and wonderful in the same breath.

• He finds them important and he feels linked to them.

Define the word 'prolific' as it is used in the texts.

• An abundance

• Weak

• Slow

• An intense feeling

Define multitudes.

• Variety of insects

• Lots of people

• A select few

• Almost

Define teeming.

• Teeth issues

• Simmering

• Bursting

• Bubbling

What qualities of Americans indicate us being the greatest poem?

• We are a nation of beautiful nature and landscape.

• Our persistence and work ethic make for a beautiful image.

• We are a nation of writers.

• Our liveliness, the variety of people, the beauty of our connectivity

How does Whitman feel about the past?

• We don't walk away from the past; we struggle to apply what we've learned in the future.

• We walk away from controversy and try to erase the past to protect ourselves.

• We don't walk away from the past; we learn the lesson from it & improve the future by it.

• We walk away from the past and learn nothing.

What does abeyance mean, and how does Whitman apply that term to "creeds and schools"? (Song of Myself)

• Suspend; he suspends his judgment about rules and regulations.

• Suspend; he suspends or lets go of tradition & rules.

• Hold on; he holds onto tradition and rules.

• Lift up; he lifts up the principles of a formal education.