Walt Whitman poems: ". . .Bivouac's Fitful Flame" & "Beat! Drum!

Which of the following best describes the mood of 'By the Bivouac's Fitful Flame'?

• peaceful and quiet

• frightened and worried

• ambitious and eager

• paranoid and suspicious

• homesick and solemn

In the poem 'By the Bivouac's Fitful Flame,' the speaker is watching an enemy camp, waiting for the soldiers to attack.

• True

• False

In the poem, the speaker is dislocated by the war. He is passing by the soldiers' camp and looking for a place to sleep.

• True

• False

The speaker in his camp at night remembers the life he left behind.

• True

• False

In the second stanza of 'Beat! Beat! Drums!' what does the word ruthless mean?

• without a cause

• without mercy

• without hope

• without risk or danger

• none of the above

Which of the following best describes the tone of 'Beat! Beat! Drums!'?

• joyous

• confused

• tormented

• emotional

• angry

In the second stanza of 'Beat! Beat! Drums!' why does the speaker ask for the drums to be quick and the bugles to be wilder?

• The soldiers are marching on, so the drummer and bugler need to keep up.

• The drums and bugles need to be louder to help rally the soldiers and prepare them for battle.

• The drums disrupt the rhythms of daily life that have not been affected by war.

• Additional soldiers are needed in battle, so the marching music must be more intense.

• The marching soldiers have left the area of the church and school, so their procession can get louder.

Based on your reading of 'By the Bivouac's Fitful Flame,' 'Beat! Beat! Drums!' and the quotation from Whitman in the Brady selection, Whitman was trying to convey what message about the effects of war?

• War disrupts normal life and causes emotional loneliness for soldiers and civilians.

• War is a glorious adventure for all involved.

• War only affects soldiers, not civilians.

• War brings people closer together and strengthens communities.