The Lucy Poems are a group of five lyrical works by William Wordsworth, written between 1798 and 1801. They reflect themes of nature, love, beauty, and loss, centered around a mysterious girl named Lucy. The five poems include: “Strange fits of passion have I known,” “She dwelt among the untrodden ways,” “I travelled among unknown men,” “Three years she grew in sun and shower,” and “A slumber did my spirit seal.” Set against natural landscapes, these poems highlight Lucy’s purity and the sorrow of her untimely death. They remain some of Wordsworth’s most poignant reflections on human emotion and mortality.
Strange fits of Passion Have I Known: Multiple Choice Questions
- Who is the author of “Strange fits of passion have I known”?
a) Samuel Taylor Coleridge
b) Lord Byron
c) William Wordsworth
d) John Keats
Answer: c) William Wordsworth - In what collection was “Strange fits of passion have I known” primarily published?
a) Songs of Innocence
b) The Prelude
c) Lyrical Ballads, with Other Poems (second edition)
d) Endymion
Answer: c) Lyrical Ballads, with Other Poems (second edition) - What is the approximate publication year of the collection that includes this poem?
a) 1798
b) 1800
c) 1807
d) 1814
Answer: b) 1800 - What does the speaker say he has known in the first line?
a) Moments of great joy
b) Strange fits of passion
c) Profound wisdom
d) Deep sorrow
Answer: b) Strange fits of passion - To whom does the speaker say he will “dare to tell” what once befell him?
a) The general public
b) Only the lover’s ear
c) His closest friend
d) No one at all
Answer: b) Only the lover’s ear - How did “she I loved” look every day?
a) Pale and sickly
b) Fresh as a rose in June
c) Tired and weary
d) Radiant as the sun
Answer: b) Fresh as a rose in June - At what time of day did the speaker bend his way to her cottage?
a) Beneath a morning sun
b) Under a midday glare
c) Beneath an evening-moon
d) During a stormy night
Answer: c) Beneath an evening-moon - Upon what did the speaker fix his eye as he rode?
a) Her cottage
b) The wide lea
c) The moon
d) His horse
Answer: c) The moon - What was the pace of his horse as he drew nigh to those paths?
a) Slowing
b) Steady
c) Quickening
d) Stopping
Answer: c) Quickening - What did the speaker and his horse reach before climbing the hill?
a) The river bank
b) The orchard-plot
c) The village square
d) The stable
Answer: b) The orchard-plot - As they climbed the hill, what was the moon doing in relation to Lucy’s cot?
a) Rising higher
b) Moving away
c) Sinking and coming nearer, and nearer still
d) Becoming obscured by clouds
Answer: c) Sinking and coming nearer, and nearer still - In what state did the speaker describe himself as being in the fifth stanza?
a) Awake and alert
b) In one of those sweet dreams he slept
c) Lost in thought
d) Overwhelmed with anxiety
Answer: b) In one of those sweet dreams he slept - What did the speaker call “Kind Nature’s gentlest boon!”?
a) The moon
b) Lucy’s love
c) His horse
d) His sleep/dream
Answer: d) His sleep/dream - What did the speaker keep his eye on “all the while” his horse moved on?
a) Lucy’s cottage
b) The path ahead
c) The descending moon
d) The distant stars
Answer: c) The descending moon - What action did the horse perform continually, “hoof after hoof”?
a) He raised and never stopped
b) He stumbled and faltered
c) He galloped swiftly
d) He paused and rested
Answer: a) He raised and never stopped - What happened to the “bright moon” suddenly?
a) It rose high above the cottage
b) It dropped behind the cottage roof
c) It became a full moon
d) It was covered by a cloud
Answer: b) It dropped behind the cottage roof - What kind of thoughts does the speaker say will “slide / Into a Lover’s head!”?
a) Logical and rational
b) Fond and wayward
c) Happy and carefree
d) Practical and mundane
Answer: b) Fond and wayward - What did the speaker cry out to himself when the moon dropped?
a) ‘How beautiful!’
b) ‘O mercy!’
c) ‘What a sight!’
d) ‘Finally!’
Answer: b) ‘O mercy!’ - What sudden fear or thought did the dropping moon trigger in the speaker?
a) That the moon was falling.
b) That Lucy should be dead.
c) That he had lost his way.
d) That his horse was tired.
Answer: b) That Lucy should be dead. - What is the central event or “befell” that the poem describes?
a) A journey to Lucy’s cottage
b) A strange psychological connection between the moon and the speaker’s beloved
c) A dream about Lucy
d) A conversation with a lover
Answer: b) A strange psychological connection between the moon and the speaker’s beloved - What is the rhyme scheme of the poem?
a) AABB CCDD EEFF GGHH IIJJ
b) ABAB CDCD EFEF GHGH IJIJ KLKL MNMN
c) ABCB DEDE FGFG HIHI JKJK LMLM NPOP
d) ABAB CBCB DEDE FGHG HIJI KLKL MNMN
Answer: b) ABAB CDCD EFEF GHGH IJIJ KLKL MNMN - What literary device is evident in “Fresh as a rose in June”?
a) Metaphor
b) Personification
c) Simile
d) Hyperbole
Answer: c) Simile - The poem is a part of which famous series by Wordsworth?
a) The River Duddon Sonnets
b) The Lucy Poems
c) The Immortality Odes
d) The Prelude
Answer: b) The Lucy Poems - The moon in the poem acts as a symbol of:
a) Constant, unchanging love
b) The speaker’s shifting emotions and anxieties
c) Divine judgment
d) Time passing
Answer: b) The speaker’s shifting emotions and anxieties - What is the overall tone of the poem?
a) Joyful and lighthearted
b) Philosophical and detached
c) Introspective, a mixture of peace, apprehension, and sudden fear
d) Angry and resentful
Answer: c) Introspective, a mixture of peace, apprehension, and sudden fear - The phrase “lover’s ear alone” suggests the personal and intimate nature of the story being told, highlighting the poem as a:
a) Public declaration
b) Private confession or reflection
c) Historical account
d) Scientific observation
Answer: b) Private confession or reflection - The natural imagery throughout the poem (moon, lea, orchard-plot, hill) contributes to the poem’s atmosphere of:
a) Urban chaos
b) Rural tranquility, yet capable of psychological drama
c) Harsh wilderness
d) Industrial development
Answer: b) Rural tranquility, yet capable of psychological drama - The “quickening pace” of the horse indicates the speaker’s:
a) Impatience to arrive
b) Fear of the dark
c) Urgency and excitement to see Lucy
d) Desire to escape
Answer: c) Urgency and excitement to see Lucy - The speaker’s “sweet dreams” in the fifth stanza highlight his state of:
a) Delirium
b) Contentment and almost unconscious bliss
c) Nightmares
d) Deep contemplation
Answer: b) Contentment and almost unconscious bliss - The sudden drop of the moon symbolizes:
a) The setting of the sun
b) A sudden, irrational fear or premonition of loss
c) The end of a beautiful night
d) A celestial phenomenon
Answer: b) A sudden, irrational fear or premonition of loss - The poem emphasizes the power of:
a) Rational thought
b) Supernatural events
c) Imagination and the human mind’s connection to nature
d) Physical strength
Answer: c) Imagination and the human mind’s connection to nature - What literary device is used in “Kind Nature’s gentlest boon!” when referring to sleep/dreams?
a) Alliteration
b) Metaphor
c) Personification
d) Onomatopoeia
Answer: c) Personification - The ending of the poem is:
a) Conclusive and reassuring
b) Ambiguous and unsettling, leaving the reader with a question
c) Humorous and light
d) Filled with clear answers
Answer: b) Ambiguous and unsettling, leaving the reader with a question - The “passion” in the title refers to:
a) Anger
b) Intense love or strong emotion
c) Religious fervor
d) A hobby
Answer: b) Intense love or strong emotion - The poem is an example of Wordsworth’s exploration of:
a) Social commentary
b) Psychological states and the inner self
c) Historical narratives
d) Scientific discoveries
Answer: b) Psychological states and the inner self - The setting of the poem is primarily:
a) Urban
b) Maritime
c) Rural
d) Industrial
Answer: c) Rural - What is Lucy’s role in this poem?
a) She is an active participant in the events.
b) She is the passive object of the speaker’s affection and anxiety.
c) She is a symbolic representation of nature.
d) She is a distant memory.
Answer: b) She is the passive object of the speaker’s affection and anxiety. - The speaker’s journey by horse indicates a time period prior to:
a) Modern transportation
b) The invention of the wheel
c) The use of boats
d) Foot travel
Answer: a) Modern transportation - The poem suggests that a lover’s mind can be prone to:
a) Pure logic
b) Sudden, irrational anxieties linked to their beloved
c) Constant happiness
d) Indifference
Answer: b) Sudden, irrational anxieties linked to their beloved - The use of the word “dare” in the second line implies:
a) Fear of telling the story
b) The unconventional or deeply personal nature of the tale
c) A challenge to the listener
d) A physical feat
Answer: b) The unconventional or deeply personal nature of the tale - What does the speaker imply about the connection between his gaze upon the moon and his thoughts of Lucy?
a) They are unrelated.
b) The moon’s movement directly influences his feelings for Lucy.
c) The moon serves as a projection screen for his anxieties about Lucy.
d) He only looks at the moon when thinking of Lucy.
Answer: c) The moon serves as a projection screen for his anxieties about Lucy. - The phrase “What once to me befell” suggests the poem is about:
a) A recurring dream
b) A past, specific incident
c) A hypothetical situation
d) A future prophecy
Answer: b) A past, specific incident - The “cottage-roof” being lower than the moon suggests:
a) The speaker is looking down from a high point.
b) The moon is unusually low in the sky.
c) The cottage is on flat ground.
d) The moon is setting relative to the cottage.
Answer: d) The moon is setting relative to the cottage. - The poem showcases the Romantic characteristic of:
a) Celebrating urban landscapes
b) Emphasizing the power of imagination and emotion over reason
c) Advocating for industrial growth
d) Focusing on ancient Greek mythology
Answer: b) Emphasizing the power of imagination and emotion over reason - The “wide lea” refers to:
a) A bustling city street
b) An open grassland or meadow
c) A dense forest
d) A vast body of water
Answer: b) An open grassland or meadow - The speaker’s state of “sweet dreams” while still conscious and riding suggests:
a) He was literally asleep on his horse.
b) He was in a state of tranquil, almost trance-like reverie.
c) He was hallucinating.
d) He was distracted by real dreams.
Answer: b) He was in a state of tranquil, almost trance-like reverie. - The ending question, ‘If Lucy should be dead!’, is a moment of:
a) Relieved certainty
b) Rational conclusion
c) Sudden, terrifying irrational fear
d) Philosophical inquiry
Answer: c) Sudden, terrifying irrational fear - The poem’s structure of seven quatrains gives it a sense of:
a) An epic narrative
b) A personal, reflective journey
c) A dramatic dialogue
d) A quick, fleeting thought
Answer: b) A personal, reflective journey - What does the poem imply about the nature of love?
a) It is always joyful and carefree.
b) It can be accompanied by profound and sometimes irrational anxieties.
c) It is a purely logical emotion.
d) It leads to indifference.
Answer: b) It can be accompanied by profound and sometimes irrational anxieties. - The poem ultimately delves into the speaker’s:
a) External adventures
b) Inner psychological landscape
c) Social observations
d) Political views
Answer: b) Inner psychological landscape