A Blessing

In “A Blessing” and “Predators,” animals are described as “bowing.” What is the main effect of this image?

• It shows who is in charge and who is not.

• It indicates the animals’ fun-loving nature.

• It reveals the speakers’ opinions of their pets.

• It describes a particular physical quality of animals.

Which theme do “A Blessing” and “Predators” share?

• caring for the land

• taming a wild beast

• shyness and friendliness

• the human-animal connection

Which passage from "A Blessing" most clearly supports the answer to Part A?

• We step over the barbed wire into the pasture/Where they have been grazing all day, alone.

• They bow shyly as wet swans. They love each other./There is no loneliness like theirs.

• I would like to hold the slender one in my arms,/For she has walked over to me...

• Suddenly I realize/That if I stepped out of my body I would break/Into blossom.

In "A Blessing," what is most likely the "blessing"?

• the spring grasses that grow in the pasture

• the light breeze that moves over the landscape

• the relationship between the speaker and his friend

• the feeling of closeness between humans and animals

Read these lines from "A Blessing." And the eyes of those two Indian ponies Darken with kindness. They have come gladly out of the willows... Which words in these lines make the horses seem human?

• eyes, ponies

• ponies, kindness

• kindness, gladly

• gladly, willows

Part A: In "A Blessing," what effect do the. ponies have on the speaker?

• They make him feel sad.

• They bring up old memories.

• They make him feel alive.

• They cause him to be careful.

With which statement would the speaker in "A Blessing" most likely agree?

• Moments of silent communication between people and animals are a gift.

• People who believe they are communicating with animals are mistaken.

• Friends can communicate best when they are surrounded by nature.

• People with rare and special gifts are able to communicate with animals.

Which passage from "A Blessing" contains alliteration?

• And the eyes of those two Indian ponies/Darken with kindness.

• They love each other./There is no loneliness like theirs.

• They begin munching the young tufts of spring in the darkness.

• For she has walked over to me/And nuzzled my left hand.

In which line from "A Blessing" is a simile used?

• They have come gladly out of the willows...

• We step over the barbed wire...

• They bow shyly as wet swans.

• I would like to hold the slender one in my arms.

In "A Blessing," what literary device is used in the line "They bow shyly as wet swans"?

• A) Metaphor

• B) Simile

• C) Personification

• D) Hyperbole