Shakespeare's sonnets

Shakespeare's sonnets - Test

1. How many sonnets are contained in the quarto published in 1609?

A) 126
B) 154
C) 200
D) 160

2. Which play by Shakespeare includes a prologue written as a sonnet?

A) Love's Labour's Lost
B) Henry V
C) Much Ado About Nothing
D) Romeo and Juliet

3. Who is the 'Fair Youth' in Shakespeare's sonnets?

A) Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton
B) An unnamed young man addressed by the poet
C) A fictional character with no historical basis
D) William Hughes, a young actor

4. What is the rhyme scheme of Shakespearean sonnets?

A) ABC ABC DEF DEF GG
B) ABAB CDCD EFEF GG
C) AABB CCDD EEFF GG
D) ABBA ABBA CDE CDE

5. Which character in Shakespeare's sonnets is described as having black hair and 'dun' skin?

A) The Dark Lady
B) The narrator
C) The Fair Youth
D) The Rival Poet

6. What is the form of 'A Lover's Complaint'?

A) Three quatrains and a final couplet
B) 47 seven-line stanzas written in rhyme royal
C) An epic poem
D) 154 sonnets

7. Who is often speculated to be the 'Rival Poet' in Shakespeare's sonnets?

A) John Davies of Hereford
B) Ben Jonson
C) Francis Davison
D) A composite of several poets

8. What is the primary theme of the 'Fair Youth' sonnets?

A) Lust and homoeroticism
B) Infidelity and betrayal
C) Rejection and independence
D) Admiration for the youth's beauty and a plea to marry and have children

9. Which sonnet sequence is considered a continuation of the Renaissance tradition?

A) The Canterbury Tales
B) Paradise Lost
C) Leaves of Grass
D) Shakespeare's Sonnets

10. What does the 'volta' in a sonnet typically signify?

A) The end of the poem
B) A turn or shift in thought or mood
C) The beginning of the poem
D) A repetition of ideas

11. Which play features sonnets written by characters as part of a comedic narrative?

A) Henry V
B) Love's Labour's Lost
C) Much Ado About Nothing
D) Romeo and Juliet

12. What is the significance of the dedication to 'Mr. W.H.' in Shakespeare's Sonnets?

A) It reveals him to be the Dark Lady
B) It identifies him as the Fair Youth
C) It is a subject of speculation regarding his identity
D) It confirms Mr. W.H. as the author

13. Which sonnet form does Shakespeare's Sonnets follow?

A) Spenserian sonnet
B) English or Shakespearean sonnet
C) Free verse
D) Petrarchan sonnet

14. What is the primary focus of 'A Lover's Complaint'?

A) The misery of a woman victimized by male desire
B) The beauty of nature
C) The triumphs of love
D) The adventures of a knight

15. Which play includes a sonnet at the end of its epilogue?

A) Romeo and Juliet
B) Much Ado About Nothing
C) Love's Labour's Lost
D) Henry V

16. What is a notable feature of the sonnets in 'A Lover's Complaint'?

A) They are free verse
B) They follow the Shakespearean sonnet form
C) They consist of three quatrains and a couplet
D) They are written in rhyme royal

17. Which historical figure is often speculated to be the Fair Youth?

A) William Hughes
B) Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton
C) Edward Alleyn
D) Ben Jonson

18. What is the primary theme of the sonnets addressed to the Dark Lady?

A) Overt sexuality and a defiant departure from traditional themes
B) Praise for her beauty
C) Admiration for her intelligence
D) Rejection of her advances

19. What is the primary meter used in Shakespeare's sonnets?

A) Anapestic trimeter
B) Trochaic tetrameter
C) Dactylic hexameter
D) Iambic pentameter

20. Which play features a partial sonnet read aloud?

A) Henry V
B) Romeo and Juliet
C) All’s Well that Ends Well
D) Much Ado About Nothing

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