SAT II Literature : Literary Terminology and Devices
Study concepts, example questions & explanations for SAT II Literature
All SAT II Literature Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #81 : Literary Terminology Describing Poetry
1 I WILL arise and go now, and go to Innisfree, 2 And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made: 3 Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honeybee, 4 And live alone in the bee-loud glade. 5 And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow, 6 Dropping from the veils of the mourning to where the cricket sings; 7 There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow, 8 And evening full of the linnet's wings. 9 I will arise and go now, for always night and day 10 I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore; 11 While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey, 12 I hear it in the deep heart's core.
(1893)
Which of the following is the rhyme scheme of the poem?
ABAB
CDCD
EFEF
ABAB
trochaic hexameter
iambic pentameter
terza rima
ABAB
CDCD
EFEF
Rhyme schemes are described by labeling each new sound that appears at the end of a line with a new letter. The rhyme scheme of this poem is therefore as follows:
"...Innisfree" (A)
"...made" (B)
"...honeybee" (A)
"...glade" (B)
"...slow" (C)
"...sings" (D)
"...glow" (C)
etc.
Iambic pentameter and trochaic hexameter are meters, not rhyme schemes.
Passage adapted from William Butler Yeats' "Lake Isle of Innisfree" (1893)
Example Question #81 : Literary Terminology And Devices
I saw thee once—once only—years ago:
I must not say how many—but not many.
It was a July midnight; and from out
A full-orbed moon, that, like thine own soul, soaring,
Sought a precipitate pathway up through heaven, (5)
There fell a silvery-silken veil of light,
With quietude, and sultriness and slumber,
Upon the upturn'd faces of a thousand
Roses that grew in an enchanted garden,
Where no wind dared to stir, unless on tiptoe— (10)
In line 6, what is “silvery-silken” an example of?
Periodic sentence
Telegraphic sentence
Pleonasm
Polysyndeton
Alliteration
Alliteration
This is alliteration, the repetition of sounds at the beginning of words. Polysyndeton is the excessive use of conjunctions (e.g. “I went and I picked up the paper and I read it over and finally I crumpled it up”). Pleonasm is the addition of unnecessary or redundant words (e.g. “the quiet soundless night”). Telegraphic and periodic sentences are, as it sounds, devices that apply to entire sentences and not just single phrases.
Passage adapted from Edgar Allan Poe’s “To Helen” (1831)
Example Question #81 : Literary Terminology And Devices
I saw thee once—once only—years ago:
I must not say how many—but not many.
It was a July midnight; and from out
A full-orbed moon, that, like thine own soul, soaring,
Sought a precipitate pathway up through heaven, (5)
There fell a silvery-silken veil of light,
With quietude, and sultriness and slumber,
Upon the upturn'd faces of a thousand
Roses that grew in an enchanted garden,
Where no wind dared to stir, unless on tiptoe— (10)
What literary device can be seen in lines 8-9?
Slant rhyme
Chiasmus
Paradox
Enjambment
Ellipsis
Enjambment
We can see that lines 9 continues a thought begun in line 8 without any intermediary punctuation: “Upon the upturn'd faces of a thousand / Roses that grew in an enchanted garden.” The continuation of a thought or syntax across multiple lines of poetry is known as enjambment.
Passage adapted from Edgar Allan Poe’s “To Helen” (1831)
Example Question #82 : Literary Terminology And Devices
I saw thee once—once only—years ago:
I must not say how many—but not many.
It was a July midnight; and from out
A full-orbed moon, that, like thine own soul, soaring,
Sought a precipitate pathway up through heaven, (5)
There fell a silvery-silken veil of light,
With quietude, and sultriness and slumber,
Upon the upturn'd faces of a thousand
Roses that grew in an enchanted garden,
Where no wind dared to stir, unless on tiptoe— (10)
What literary technique can be seen throughout the entire passage?
Metabole
Pun
Pathetic fallacy
Hyperbole
Allegory
Pathetic fallacy
Pathetic fallacy is a type of personification wherein nature or the environment take on attributes mirroring the human conflicts, emotions, or drama of the work. This is the technique seen here: The lovestruck speaker encounters the beautiful addressee in a beautiful enchanted garden. In other words, the characters’ emotions are matched by their setting.
Passage adapted from Edgar Allan Poe’s “To Helen” (1831)
Example Question #84 : Sat Subject Test In Literature
1 In silent night when rest I took,
2 For sorrow near I did not look,
3 I wakened was with thund’ring noise
4 And piteous shrieks of dreadful voice.
5 That fearful sound of “fire” and “fire,”
6 Let no man know is my Desire.
7 I, starting up, the light did spy,
8 And to my God my heart did cry
9 To straighten me in my Distress
10 And not to leave me succourless.
11 Then, coming out, behold a space
12 The flame consume my dwelling place.
13 And when I could no longer look,
14 I blest His name that gave and took,
15 That laid my goods now in the dust.
16 Yea, so it was, and so ‘twas just.
17 It was his own, it was not mine,
18 Far be it that I should repine;
19 He might of all justly bereft
20 But yet sufficient for us left.
21 When by the ruins oft I past
22 My sorrowing eyes aside did cast
23 And here and there the places spy
24 Where oft I sate and long did lie.
25 Here stood that trunk, and there that chest,
26 There lay that store I counted best.
27 My pleasant things in ashes lie
28 And them behold no more shall I.
29 Under thy roof no guest shall sit,
30 Nor at thy Table eat a bit.
31 No pleasant talk shall ‘ere be told
32 Nor things recounted done of old.
33 No Candle e'er shall shine in Thee,
34 Nor bridegroom’s voice e'er heard shall be.
35 In silence ever shalt thou lie,
36 Adieu, Adieu, all’s vanity.
37 Then straight I ‘gin my heart to chide,
38 And did thy wealth on earth abide?
39 Didst fix thy hope on mould'ring dust?
40 The arm of flesh didst make thy trust?
41 Raise up thy thoughts above the sky
42 That dunghill mists away may fly.
43 Thou hast a house on high erect
44 Framed by that mighty Architect,
45 With glory richly furnished,
46 Stands permanent though this be fled.
47 It’s purchased and paid for too
48 By Him who hath enough to do.
49 A price so vast as is unknown,
50 Yet by His gift is made thine own;
51 There’s wealth enough, I need no more,
52 Farewell, my pelf, farewell, my store.
53 The world no longer let me love,
54 My hope and treasure lies above.
(1666)
By what metrical unit is the poem structured?
Anapest
Pentameter
Trochee
Anaphora
Iamb
Iamb
An iamb is made of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. The lines of the poem are written in iambic tetrameter (4 iambs per line).
Passage adapted from Anne Bradstreet's "Upon the Burning of our House" (1666)
Example Question #86 : Literary Terminology Describing Poetry
1 In silent night when rest I took,
2 For sorrow near I did not look,
3 I wakened was with thund’ring noise
4 And piteous shrieks of dreadful voice.
5 That fearful sound of “fire” and “fire,”
6 Let no man know is my Desire.
7 I, starting up, the light did spy,
8 And to my God my heart did cry
9 To straighten me in my Distress
10 And not to leave me succourless.
11 Then, coming out, behold a space
12 The flame consume my dwelling place.
13 And when I could no longer look,
14 I blest His name that gave and took,
15 That laid my goods now in the dust.
16 Yea, so it was, and so ‘twas just.
17 It was his own, it was not mine,
18 Far be it that I should repine;
19 He might of all justly bereft
20 But yet sufficient for us left.
21 When by the ruins oft I past
22 My sorrowing eyes aside did cast
23 And here and there the places spy
24 Where oft I sate and long did lie.
25 Here stood that trunk, and there that chest,
26 There lay that store I counted best.
27 My pleasant things in ashes lie
28 And them behold no more shall I.
29 Under thy roof no guest shall sit,
30 Nor at thy Table eat a bit.
31 No pleasant talk shall ‘ere be told
32 Nor things recounted done of old.
33 No Candle e'er shall shine in Thee,
34 Nor bridegroom’s voice e'er heard shall be.
35 In silence ever shalt thou lie,
36 Adieu, Adieu, all’s vanity.
37 Then straight I ‘gin my heart to chide,
38 And did thy wealth on earth abide?
39 Didst fix thy hope on mould'ring dust?
40 The arm of flesh didst make thy trust?
41 Raise up thy thoughts above the sky
42 That dunghill mists away may fly.
43 Thou hast a house on high erect
44 Framed by that mighty Architect,
45 With glory richly furnished,
46 Stands permanent though this be fled.
47 It’s purchased and paid for too
48 By Him who hath enough to do.
49 A price so vast as is unknown,
50 Yet by His gift is made thine own;
51 There’s wealth enough, I need no more,
52 Farewell, my pelf, farewell, my store.
53 The world no longer let me love,
54 My hope and treasure lies above.
(1666)
"Farewell, my pelf, farewell, my store" is an example of __________________.
Personification
Metaphor
Allusion
Assonance
Apostrophe
Apostrophe
"Apostrophe" is an address to an imaginary character, often non-human. In this line, the speaker addresses the things she has lost.
Passage adapted from Anne Bradstreet's "Upon the Burning of our House" (1666)
Example Question #87 : Literary Terminology Describing Poetry
1 In silent night when rest I took,
2 For sorrow near I did not look,
3 I wakened was with thund’ring noise
4 And piteous shrieks of dreadful voice.
5 That fearful sound of “fire” and “fire,”
6 Let no man know is my Desire.
7 I, starting up, the light did spy,
8 And to my God my heart did cry
9 To straighten me in my Distress
10 And not to leave me succourless.
11 Then, coming out, behold a space
12 The flame consume my dwelling place.
13 And when I could no longer look,
14 I blest His name that gave and took,
15 That laid my goods now in the dust.
16 Yea, so it was, and so ‘twas just.
17 It was his own, it was not mine,
18 Far be it that I should repine;
19 He might of all justly bereft
20 But yet sufficient for us left.
21 When by the ruins oft I past
22 My sorrowing eyes aside did cast
23 And here and there the places spy
24 Where oft I sate and long did lie.
25 Here stood that trunk, and there that chest,
26 There lay that store I counted best.
27 My pleasant things in ashes lie
28 And them behold no more shall I.
29 Under thy roof no guest shall sit,
30 Nor at thy Table eat a bit.
31 No pleasant talk shall ‘ere be told
32 Nor things recounted done of old.
33 No Candle e'er shall shine in Thee,
34 Nor bridegroom’s voice e'er heard shall be.
35 In silence ever shalt thou lie,
36 Adieu, Adieu, all’s vanity.
37 Then straight I ‘gin my heart to chide,
38 And did thy wealth on earth abide?
39 Didst fix thy hope on mould'ring dust?
40 The arm of flesh didst make thy trust?
41 Raise up thy thoughts above the sky
42 That dunghill mists away may fly.
43 Thou hast a house on high erect
44 Framed by that mighty Architect,
45 With glory richly furnished,
46 Stands permanent though this be fled.
47 It’s purchased and paid for too
48 By Him who hath enough to do.
49 A price so vast as is unknown,
50 Yet by His gift is made thine own;
51 There’s wealth enough, I need no more,
52 Farewell, my pelf, farewell, my store.
53 The world no longer let me love,
54 My hope and treasure lies above.
(1666)
Which of the following literary devices does the author employ in this poem?
Hyperbole
Personification
Rhyming couplets
Foreshadowing
Dramatic irony
Rhyming couplets
The poem is made up of pairs of lines that rhyme at the end. For example,
"In silent night when rest I took,
For sorrow near I did not look,"
Passage adapted from Anne Bradstreet's "Upon the Burning of our House" (1666)
Example Question #88 : Literary Terminology Describing Poetry
1 MUCH have I travell’d in the realms of gold,
2 And many goodly states and kingdoms seen;
3 Round many western islands have I been
4 Which bards in fealty to Apollo hold.
5 Oft of one wide expanse had I been told
6 That deep-brow’d Homer ruled as his demesne;
7 Yet did I never breathe its pure serene
8 Till I heard Chapman speak out loud and bold:
9 Then felt I like some watcher of the skies
10 When a new planet swims into his ken;
11 Or like stout Cortez when with eagle eyes
12 He star’d at the Pacific—and all his men
13 Look’d at each other with a wild surmise—
14 Silent, upon a peak in Darien.
(1816)
Lines 9-14 make use of what literary device?
Metaphor
Hyperbole
Simile
Onomatopoeia
Personification
Simile
A simile is a comparison between two things that uses the comparing words "like" or "as." There are two similes in lines 9-14 of this poem. In lines 9-10, the speaker compares himself (with the word "like") to "some watcher of the skies" (line 9). After that, the speaker compares himself (again with the word "like") to Cortez discovering the New World (lines 11-14).
Passage adapted from "On First Looking into Chapman's Homer" by John Keats (1816)
Example Question #84 : Sat Subject Test In Literature
To the Dead in the Grave-Yard Under My Window
by Adelaide Crapsey (1878 - 1915)
- How can you lie so still? All day I watch
- And never a blade of all the green sod moves
- To show where restlessly you toss and turn,
- And fling a desperate arm or draw up knees
- Stiffened and aching from their long disuse;
- I watch all night and not one ghost comes forth
- To take its freedom of the midnight hour.
- Oh, have you no rebellion in your bones?
- The very worms must scorn you where you lie,
- A pallid mouldering acquiescent folk,
- Meek habitants of unresented graves.
- Why are you there in your straight row on row
- Where I must ever see you from my bed
- That in your mere dumb presence iterate
- The text so weary in my ears: “Lie still
- And rest; be patient and lie still and rest.”
- I’ll not be patient! I will not lie still!
The poem’s imagery suggests a parallel between ___________.
day and night
beds and graves
freedom and rebellion
physical pain and spiritual pain
death and sleep
beds and graves
We know that the speaker is bedridden. She says to the dead, "All day I watch
And never a blade of all the green sod moves/ To show where restlessly you toss and turn...." She is comparing her own tossing and turning in bed to the restlessness that she imagines the dead should feel in their graves. They lie in "unresented graves"; by contrast, the speaker resents her own bed very much.
The other answer choices are not supported by the text. Freedom and rebellion are discussed, but they are not presented as parallel states. The same for day and night, physical pain and spiritual pain. Death and sleep are clearly not parallel, because the dead are determinedly dead, while the speaker is unable to sleep at all.
Example Question #85 : Sat Subject Test In Literature
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright,
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare sieze the fire?
And what shoulder, & what art,
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? & what dread feet?
What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?
When the stars threw down their spears,
And water'd heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb make thee?
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?
(1794)
What literary term best describes the bolded and underlined words in the first stanza?
Assonance
Consonance
Enjambment
Exact rhyme
Slant rhyme
Slant rhyme
"Bright" and "night" are exact, perfect rhymes. "Symmetry" (pronounced sim-me-tree) is an slant rhyme with "eye." They do not rhyme exactly, but sound can make a rhyme within an existent rhyme scheme.
Passage adapted from William Blake's "The Tyger" (1794)
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