Barn Owl Quizzes

Barn Owl Quiz

1 In what year was the poem published?
1980

1969

1965

1970
2 Which of the following is an example of a metaphor used in the poem?
"the wrecked thing that could / not bear the light nor hide" (lines 37-38)

"to his place on a high beam" (line 11)

"I am the owl" (line 8)

"A horny fiend, I crept" (line 3)
3 Which of the following best describes the rhyme scheme of the poem?
ABABCC

ABBABB

ABCABC

AABBCC
4 What is the speaker's "prize" in line 8?
The owl

Waking up early before her parents

The gun

The barn
5 Who is the "old no-sayer, robber of power / by sleep" in lines 7-8?
The speaker's mother

The speaker's father

The owl

The speaker
6 As used in lines 17-18, "a wisp-haired judge whose law / would punish beak and claw" is an example of which literary device?
Antonym

Simile

Personification

Metaphor
7 Which adjective best describes the speaker's tone in stanza 1?
Excited and condescending

Straightforward and intellectual

Horrified and remorseful

Somber but hopeful
8 Which adjective best describes the speaker's tone in stanzas 5 and 6?
Straightforward and intellectual

Horrified and remorseful

Somber but hopeful

Excited and condescending
9 Which of the owl's features is NOT mentioned by the speaker?
Its wings

Its tail

Its eyes

Its bowels
10 How many times does the speaker shoot the owl?
Twice

Many times

Once

Three times
11 From what point of view and tense is "Barn Owl" told?
Third-person limited, present tense

First-person, present tense

First-person, past tense

Third-person limited, past tense
12 Which of the following is NOT a phrase that the speaker uses to describe herself in the poem?
"a horny fiend"

"master of life and death"

"a lonely child"

"a child / obedient, angel-mind-"
13 Which stanza contains the poem's climax?
Stanza One

Stanza Five

Stanza Two

Stanza Four
14 Gwen Harwood is a(n) ____ poet.
Canadian

Australian

American

British
15 Which of the following is an example of caesura?
child who believed death clean

My first shot struck. He swayed,

Let him dream of a child

My father reached my side,
16 Before shooting the owl, what did the speaker believe about death?
That is was messy and obscene

She had never heard of death

That it was clean and final

That it only applied to humans
17 What is the title of the companion poem to "Barn Owl" in the diptych "Father and Child"?
"The Fallen Gun"

"Quadrant"

"Nightfall"

"A Child's Rebellion"
18 Which of the following is an example of slant rhyme in the poem?
"gave me the fallen gun. / 'End what you have begun.'"

"Let him dream of a child / obedient, angel-mind-"

"to his place on a high beam / in our old stables, to dream"

"a wisp-haired judge whose law / would punish beak and claw"
19 When does the poem take place?
At night

In the afternoon

At dusk

In early morning
20 In line 25, "bundle of stuff" best means
The objects that the speaker is carrying

The urine-scented hay

The fallen gun

The injured owl
21 Which of the following best describes the structure of each stanza?
A sestet

A couplet

A quartet

Free-form
22 Which of the following is NOT an example of alliteration?
"My first shot struck. He swayed,"

"Let him dream of a child"

"home at this hour"

"dropped, / and dribbled"
23 Which of the following is NOT a feature of the barn as stated in the poem?
Loose straw on the floor

A beam

Hay on the floor

A red door
24 Which of the following is an example of religious subtext in the poem?
"dribbled through the loose straw"

"gave me the fallen gun."

"blessed by the sun"

"those eyes that did not see"
25 Which of the following is NOT a symbol in the poem?
Vision

The owl

Nightfall

Sunlight

Study Guide for Barn Owl

Barn Owl study guide contains a biography of Gwen Harwood, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

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Barn Owl

by Gwen Harwood

Barn Owl Quiz

Barn Owl Questions and Answers

Study Guide for Barn Owl

Lesson Plan for Barn Owl