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American Romanticism & Transcendentalism Study Guide

Total questions: 58

Worksheet time: 45mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Which group of historical figures does Emerson reference when he says "to be great is to be misunderstood."

a)

Socrates, Jesus, Galileo, Pythagoras, Copernicus, and Newton

b)

Plato, George Washington, Jesus, Thoreau, Newton, and Benjamin Franklin

c)

Aristotle, King George, Jesus, Melville, Tesla, and Marie Curie

d)

IDK

2.
Which of these statements best characterized the central idea of "Self-Reliance" by Ralph Waldo Emerson?
a)
Meekness is the virture that fosters self-awareness
b)
Rely on your own instincts
c)
customs serve a valuable purpose
3.

Which one of the following statements best states one of Emerson's philosophies?

a)

Turnabout is fair play.

b)

Keep your head in the clouds.

c)

Misery loves company.

d)

Be true to yourself.

4.
The Romantics and Transcendentalists are interested in putting others first, and focusing on themselves last?
a)
True
b)
False
5.
Identify the statement that offers the best paraphrase of this aphorism: “Trust thyself: Every heart vibrates to that iron string.”
a)
If you trust yourself, you will come up against a steel wall. 
b)
If you trust yourself, you will be broken as easily as a string. 
c)
Trust yourself, and you will be strong.
d)
Trust yourself, and you will become a musician.
6.

Based on the text, would Emerson agree or disagree with the following statement?


Following your heart can be difficult but doing so is essential to living a full life.

a)

Agree

b)

Disagree

7.

According to Emerson are routines and schedules a good thing?

a)

Yes

b)

No

8.

Would Emerson agree or disagree with the following statement.


We should fight against the place and talents we have been given.

a)

Agree

b)

Disagree

9.

Which of the following is a theme of "Self-Reliance"?

a)

The majority should be trusted

b)

Society is evil and should be destroyed.

c)

Every man should live according to his own nature and follow what he believes in right.

d)

Conforming to society is for the uneducated and weak.

10.

Greatness is demonstrated by a person when he/she

a)

is praised by many people

b)

knows what they believe in and stands up for his/her beliefs

c)

memorizes and recites copies wisdom of famous leaders

d)

mimics qualities of great leaders like Moses, Plato & Milton

11.

What is Emerson’s overall perspective on society?

a)

Society helps people achieve their potential.

b)

We must accept society’s rules.

c)

Society is all that stands between us and the forces of chaos.

d)

Society conspires to deny people their individual freedoms.

12.

According to Emerson, What must everyone realize at some point in life?

a)

that our education will help us realize that the universe is good

b)

that the power of nature is not anything new at all

c)

that being ignorant of others will lead to a great deal of envy

d)

that we can never know our true potential until we test ourselves

13.

When Henry David Thoreau stands in nature, he...

a)

feels like he doesn't matter

b)

realizes it's a part of him

c)

gets lost in it

d)

feels intimidated

14.

According to Thoreau we should...

a)

make sure that we always fully support our government

b)

make sure we do not indirectly support unjust governments

c)

remain peaceful as we tolerate unjust governments

d)

always remain loyal and fight for our governments

15.

Which of the following statements would Thoreau agree with?

a)

if someone deceives you, you have a right to take the law into your own hands

b)

the treasury makes the law, but we are not compelled to follow it

c)

how we perceive things decides whether we are revolutionary

d)

it is not enough to take a view against the government, you must take action

16.

Why did Thoreau choose to live in the woods?

a)

to challenge himself to do so

b)

to live meaningfully

c)

to avoid other people

d)

to get closer to nature

17.

In Walden, Thoreau is advocating for...

a)

simple, structured living

b)

more social freedom

c)

less individuality

d)

attention to detail

18.

Thoreau believes that...

a)

humans should devote their lives to putting out fires and helping each other

b)

humans spend too much time sleeping

c)

humans should be much more productive in their waking hours

d)

humans spend too much time preoccupied by other people's problems

19.

What was Thoreau's opinion of the news?

a)

it is important to be knowledgeable about the world and current events

b)

it is mostly noise and gossip, which is an unnecessary distraction in one's life

c)

it should be read only once a week instead of every day

d)

it is too boring to catch most people's attention and should therefore be more exciting

20.

Emily Dickinson was famous for the seven poems she wrote.

a)

True

b)

False

21.

Emily Dickinson married and had three children.

a)

True

b)

False

22.

In "Because I could not stop for death," _____ represent stages of life.

a)

the carriage, the children at school, and the ground

b)

the children at school, the fields of grain, and the setting sun

c)

the Gossamer, gown, and Tulle

d)

the house, the roof, and the ground

23.

Who drives the carriage in "Because I could not stop for death"?

a)

Prince Charming

b)

the white knight

c)

her father

d)

Death

24.

In "Because I could not stop for death," death is personified as _____.

a)

a polite gentleman

b)

a rough and harried carriage driver

c)

a weary gravedigger

d)

a well-informed tour guide

25.
The Americans the speaker refers to in the poem "I Hear America Singing" are-
a)
ordinary working people
b)
wounded soldiers
c)
great figures in the US history
d)
doctors and nurses
26.
Which of the following statements is true about the songs America is singing?
a)
The songs are out of tune
b)
Each person has a different song
c)
People are singing songs no one can hear
d)
People are singing out of sorrow
27.

Which famous Transcendentalist called Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass "the most extraordinary piece of wit and wisdom that America has yet contributed"?

a)

Henry David Thoreau

b)

Ralph Waldo Emerson

c)

Edgar Allan Poe

d)

John Greenleaf Whittier

28.

Define 'free verse'

a)

Poetry with no regular patterns of rhyme or meter

b)

Poetry with regular patterns of rhyme or meter

c)

Poetry written with a precise meter that does not rhyme.

d)

Poetry with three-line stanzas with a 5/7/5 syllable count

e)

Poetry that normally tells a story about a hero or an adventure

29.

Describe the tone of “I Hear America Singing.”

a)

Despondent

b)

Celebratory

c)

Perplexed

d)

Nervous

30.

Which US President is "O Captain! My Captain!" based on?

a)

Andrew Jackson

b)

Abraham Lincoln

c)

George Washington

d)

John Adams

31.

One extended metaphor in "Oh Captain, My Captain" is the comparison of 

a)
a journey to a ship's deck.
b)
a ship to the country.
c)
a captain to a ship.
d)
a captain to a victory.
32.

In "Oh Captain, My Captain", what does the ship in the poem symbolize? 

a)
Nothing, it's just a ship
b)
The world
c)
The United States
d)
Life
33.
The tone in the third stanza of "O Captian! My Captain" is best described as
a)
Sarcastic
b)
Mournful
c)
Resentful
34.

I helped slaves escape through the Underground Railroad and wrote frequently for anti-slavery newspapers, earning a reputation as the mother of African American journalism.

a)

Ida B. Wells

b)

Ella Baker

c)

Frances Watkins Harper

35.

1. Which of the following best summarizes the action of "Learning to Read"?

a)

A. A woman reflects on her childhood when she was denied the right to an education. She describes the great risks that she and other slaves took in order to learn.

b)

B. A speaker, who was once a slave, describes how she managed to escape so that she could attend school in the North.

c)

C. The narrator, a slave holder, describes her childhood growing up on a plantation in the South.

d)

D.The speaker, a former slave, describes the extreme brutality she experienced under the hand of Mr. Turner, the slave master. The speaker, a former slave, describes the extreme brutality she experienced under the hand of Mr. Turner, the slave master.

36.

8. PART A: Which of the following best describes the poem's, "Learning to Read", rhyme scheme?

a)

A. The poem is written in free verse. It does not follow a pattern.

b)

B. The poem follows a pattern in the first half, then breaks the pattern in the second half.

c)

C. The poem has an ABCB rhyme scheme. This pattern exists through the whole poem.

d)

D. The poem has an ABAC ACBA rhyme scheme. The poem has an ABAC ACBA rhyme scheme.

37.

9. PART B: Which of the following best describes the effect of the rhythm and rhyme on "Learning to Read's" overall meaning?

a)

A. The rhythm and rhyme give the poem a sing-songy tone, which matches the poem’s not-so-serious message.

b)

B. The rhythm and rhyme scheme contribute to the poem’s serious, scary tone, which emphasizes the fear that the slaves felt when they were trying to hide books from their slave masters.

c)

C. The rhythm and rhyme scheme is upbeat and contributes to the poem’s positive message about self-empowerment, ingenuity, and independence.

d)

D. Both B and C Both B and C

38.

In "Learning to Read", what is meant by the phrase "by hook or crook"?

a)

The slaves used a hook to figure out words.

b)

The slaves were determined to learn by any way necessary.

c)

The slaves would steal the books from the Yankees.

d)

The slaves were considered to be crooks.

39.

In "Learning to Read", which of the following best describes the speaker’s feeling about eventually learning how to read?

a)

The speaker feels scared that the slave masters will find out and hurt her.

b)

The speaker feels powerful because she can access knowledge on her own.

c)

The speaker feels resentful toward the Yankees that set up schools.

d)

The speaker does not know how education will impact her future.

40.

[p1] Romanticism emphasized using _____ as sources of knowing.

a)

Feelings & emotions

b)

Reason & rational logic

c)

Mathematics & the scientific method

41.

Who is the poet of "A Dream within a Dream"?

a)

Maram Hamadeh

b)

Edgar Allan Poe

c)

Langston Hughes

d)

Frances W. Harper

42.

3." Yet if hope has flown away" this an example of:

a)

Metaphor

b)

Simile.

c)

repetition

43.

In "A Dream Within a Dream", "Grains of the golden sand", the grains of sand symbolize:

a)

Life and time which pass quickly.

b)

the beach and the shore.

c)

His beloved one.

d)

a tree

44.

Read the following lines from "A Dream within a Dream":

" And I hold within my hand Grains of the golden sand- How few! yet how they creep Through my fingers to the deep, While I weep- While I weep! O God! Can I not grasp them with a tighter clasp? O God! Can I not save One from the pitiless wave?"

What can the reader suggest from these lines?

a)

He is admiring the beauty of the sand falling from his hand

b)

He realizes he is unable to save everything from disappearing.

c)

He realizes he is going crazy

d)

He's pushing an agenda

45.

What time period is approximately the time of the American Romantic Era?

a)

1800 - 1860

b)

1700 - 1750

c)

1850 - 1900

d)

1640 - 1690

46.

Where did American Romantics believe that you could find God?

a)

Nature

b)

Church

c)

Inside yourself

d)

In books

47.

How do the events in the U.S. between 1800 and 1860? influence the lives of Americans?

a)

They moved to Hawaii.

b)

They bought lots of land to cultivate.

c)

Many give up their homes and move west in search of land, gold or silver.

d)

People wanted to look for new jobs.

48.

Romantics value education over intuition.

a)

True

b)

False

49.

All of the following are traits of the American Romantic Hero EXCEPT

a)

Youthful

b)

Innocent

c)

Obedient

d)

Reflective

50.

Romanticism is...

a)

desolate, full of remote settings, and violent.

b)

an attitude toward nature, humanity and society emphasizing freedom, imagination, and individuality.

c)

a philosophy that says truth is reached through intuition over reason.

d)

events and social conditions presented as they really are, with no idealization.

51.

Both Whitman and Dickinson poems are examples of poetry that

a)

stresses the pangs of love that are not returned

b)

praises the work of ordinary people

c)

abandons conventional rhyme and meter

d)

captures the cadence of public speakers

52.

Ralph Waldo Emerson's purpose in "Nature" is to:

a)

express his disappointment in the society of his time

b)

explain and analyze how nature works

c)

describe a profound way of seeing nature

d)

argue that everyone should leave the cities and live in nature

53.

As literary models, American Romantic poets used:

a)

poetic traditions established by European and British Romantics

b)

experimental forms created by younger poets

c)

the rhymes of folk songs

d)

ideas drawn from the novels of American Romantics

54.

Which of the following is a metaphor?

a)

Time is but the stream I go a-fishing in.

b)

I left the woods for as good a reason as I went there.

c)

Why should we be in such desperate haste to succeed and in such desperate enterprises?

d)

I wanted to live deliberately.

55.

When Henry David Thoreau uses the metaphor, "I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life," he means that he:

a)

wants to get the most from life that he possibly can

b)

never wants to go hungry

c)

wants to dive into the ocean and explore caves

d)

wants to live deliberately and get ahead of his neighbors

56.

What poetic device does Emily Dickinson use in the following lines:

Because I could not stop for Death--

He kindly stopped for me--

a)

internal rhyme

b)

paradox

c)

simile

d)

civility

57.

Walt Whitman is known as:

a)

The father of American Romantic Poetry

b)

the father of British Romantic Poetry

c)

the father of Transcendental Poetry

d)

the father of Emily Dickinson

58.

Edgar Allan Poe is

a)

a Dark Romantic author and poet

b)

a Transcendentalist

c)

a crazy person

d)

a teenager