Practice MCQ Test on “The Good Morrow” by John Donne. Get multiple choice questions with answers. The Good Morrow MCQ, John Donne questions, metaphysical poetry quiz, The Good Morrow analysis, The Good Morrow summary, John Donne MCQ test, English poetry MCQ, The Good Morrow questions and answers
By John Donne
I wonder, by my troth, what thou and I
Did, till we loved? Were we not weaned till then?
But sucked on country pleasures, childishly?
Or snorted we in the Seven Sleepers’ den?
’Twas so; but this, all pleasures fancies be.
If ever any beauty I did see,
Which I desired, and got, ’twas but a dream of thee.
And now good-morrow to our waking souls,
Which watch not one another out of fear;
For love, all love of other sights controls,
And makes one little room an everywhere.
Let sea-discoverers to new worlds have gone,
Let maps to other, worlds on worlds have shown,
Let us possess one world, each hath one, and is one.
My face in thine eye, thine in mine appears,
And true plain hearts do in the faces rest;
Where can we find two better hemispheres,
Without sharp north, without declining west?
Whatever dies, was not mixed equally;
If our two loves be one, or, thou and I
Love so alike, that none do slacken, none can die.
WORD MEANINGS
| Difficult Word/Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| By my troth | By my truth; truly, honestly |
| Weaned | To grow out of childish dependency; matured |
| Country pleasures | Simple, physical, or rustic pleasures |
| Snorted | Slept heavily or indulgently |
| Seven Sleepers’ den | A legendary cave where seven youths slept for centuries (symbolizing deep sleep or ignorance) |
| Fancies | Imaginations, illusions |
| Good-morrow | Good morning; here, awakening to love and awareness |
| Watch not one another out of fear | Do not guard or suspect each other; mutual trust |
| Love of other sights controls | Love surpasses all other attractions |
| Sea-discoverers | Explorers who discovered new lands |
| Let maps to other | Let maps show other new lands; the speaker is unconcerned with them |
| Possess one world | Their love creates their complete world |
| Hemispheres | Half of a sphere; here it refers to each lover as a perfect half of a whole |
| Sharp north | Harsh, cold directions; symbolic of discomfort or conflict |
| Declining west | The setting sun; symbolic of decay or death |
| Mixed equally | Combined in perfect balance |
| Slacken | Weaken or lose strength |
Line-by-line explanation of John Donne’s “The Good-Morrow”
Stanza 1:
I wonder, by my troth, what thou and I
I truly wonder what you and I were doing
Did, till we loved? Were we not weaned till then?
What did we do before we fell in love? Were we still immature, like children, till then?
But sucked on country pleasures, childishly?
Did we just enjoy simple, shallow pleasures like children do?
Or snorted we in the Seven Sleepers’ den?
Or were we in a deep, ignorant sleep like the Seven Sleepers in the legend?
’Twas so; but this, all pleasures fancies be.
Yes, that must be true, but all those past pleasures were just dreams or illusions.
If ever any beauty I did see,
If I ever thought I saw something beautiful before,
Which I desired, and got, ’twas but a dream of thee.
And if I wanted and achieved it, it was actually just a shadow or dream of you.
Stanza 2:
And now good-morrow to our waking souls,
Now, let’s greet the morning as our souls have truly awakened.
Which watch not one another out of fear;
We don’t need to watch each other suspiciously because we trust each other completely.
For love, all love of other sights controls,
Because our love is so strong, we no longer desire anything else in the world.
And makes one little room an everywhere.
Our small room feels like the whole world because of our love.
Let sea-discoverers to new worlds have gone,
Let explorers travel to discover new worlds if they want.
Let maps to other, worlds on worlds have shown,
Let maps show distant places and many other lands.
Let us possess one world, each hath one, and is one.
But for us, each of us has one world – our love – and we are each other’s world.
Stanza 3:
My face in thine eye, thine in mine appears,
When we look at each other, I see my reflection in your eyes, and you see yours in mine.
And true plain hearts do in the faces rest;
Our honest and simple hearts are reflected clearly on our faces.
Where can we find two better hemispheres,
Where else can we find two better matching halves that complete each other?
Without sharp north, without declining west?
In our love, there is no coldness (sharp north) or setting (declining west), meaning no discomfort or end.
Whatever dies, was not mixed equally;
Things that die are made of unequal or imperfect parts.
If our two loves be one, or, thou and I
But if our two loves are truly united, or if you and I are perfectly one,
Love so alike, that none do slacken, none can die.
And if our love is so balanced that neither of us grows weak, then our love can never die.
MCQs and Answers on The Good-Morrow by John Donne
1. Who is the poet of “The Good-Morrow”?
A) William Wordsworth
B) John Donne
C) John Milton
D) William Blake
Answer: B) John Donne
2. “The Good-Morrow” is a type of ______ poem.
A) Romantic
B) Metaphysical
C) Narrative
D) Sonnet
Answer: B) Metaphysical
3. What is the meaning of “Good-Morrow”?
A) Goodbye
B) Good evening
C) Good morning
D) Good night
Answer: C) Good morning
4. What does the poet wonder about in the beginning?
A) Life after death
B) Past meaningless life before love
C) The beauty of nature
D) Human suffering
Answer: B) Past meaningless life before love
5. What does “weaned” symbolize?
A) Growing out of childish pleasures
B) Death
C) Hunger
D) Deep sleep
Answer: A) Growing out of childish pleasures
6. What does the poet compare the lovers’ past life to?
A) A war
B) A celebration
C) Childish games
D) A serious commitment
Answer: C) Childish games
7. What is the “Seven Sleepers’ den”?
A) A prison
B) A legend of long sleep
C) A battlefield
D) A palace
Answer: B) A legend of long sleep
8. According to the poet, past pleasures were mere _______.
A) Sorrows
B) Realities
C) Dreams
D) Successes
Answer: C) Dreams
9. The poem talks about the awakening of ________.
A) Bodies
B) Souls
C) Nature
D) Mind
Answer: B) Souls
10. What kind of fear is absent in true love according to the poet?
A) Fear of society
B) Fear of nature
C) Fear of losing each other
D) Fear of death
Answer: C) Fear of losing each other
11. What does true love control?
A) Time
B) Wealth
C) Other sights and desires
D) Nature
Answer: C) Other sights and desires
12. What does the poet say about the room of lovers?
A) It is too small
B) It is like a prison
C) It feels like the whole world
D) It feels empty
Answer: C) It feels like the whole world
13. What does “Let sea-discoverers to new worlds have gone” mean?
A) Lovers must travel
B) Others may explore; the poet has his world in love
C) Love must change
D) Discovery is unnecessary
Answer: B) Others may explore; the poet has his world in love
14. The poet suggests that their world is ______.
A) Divided
B) Temporary
C) Complete within each other
D) Lost
Answer: C) Complete within each other
15. Where does the poet see his face?
A) In a mirror
B) In the eye of his beloved
C) In the river
D) On the ground
Answer: B) In the eye of his beloved
16. What kind of hearts do the lovers have?
A) False
B) Fearful
C) Plain and true
D) Doubtful
Answer: C) Plain and true
17. The poet uses the metaphor of ______ to describe their perfect union.
A) Hemispheres
B) Mountains
C) Rivers
D) Trees
Answer: A) Hemispheres
18. What does “sharp north” symbolize?
A) Coldness and discomfort
B) Adventure
C) Happiness
D) Beauty
Answer: A) Coldness and discomfort
19. What does “declining west” represent?
A) Rising sun
B) Strength
C) Death and decay
D) Joy
Answer: C) Death and decay
20. According to Donne, what dies?
A) Anything that is perfectly mixed
B) Anything that is unequally mixed
C) Only mortal bodies
D) Strong love
Answer: B) Anything that is unequally mixed
21. What happens if their love is perfectly balanced?
A) It weakens
B) It dies
C) It becomes eternal
D) It brings fear
Answer: C) It becomes eternal
22. What does Donne believe about true love?
A) It is temporary
B) It cannot die
C) It fades with time
D) It always hurts
Answer: B) It cannot die
23. Which literary device is frequently used in this poem?
A) Alliteration
B) Simile
C) Metaphysical conceit
D) Hyperbole
Answer: C) Metaphysical conceit
24. The poem celebrates love that is _______.
A) Physical only
B) Spiritual and eternal
C) Boring
D) Dangerous
Answer: B) Spiritual and eternal
25. “The Good-Morrow” is written in how many stanzas?
A) Two
B) Three
C) Four
D) Five
Answer: B) Three
26. The overall tone of the poem is ______.
A) Suspicious
B) Joyful and confident
C) Angry
D) Sad
Answer: B) Joyful and confident
27. The poet contrasts childish pleasures with ________.
A) Worldly success
B) True, mature love
C) Fear and pain
D) Greed
Answer: B) True, mature love
28. Which type of poetry does John Donne belong to?
A) Romantic
B) Metaphysical
C) Victorian
D) Modernist
Answer: B) Metaphysical
29. What is the key message of the poem?
A) Love is temporary
B) Love is equal, complete, and eternal
C) Lovers must separate
D) Love is only physical
Answer: B) Love is equal, complete, and eternal
30. The poem shifts from the past to _______.
A) The future
B) The present love and realization
C) The pain of loss
D) The hope of exploration
Answer: B) The present love and realization
