Barn Owl Quizzes

Barn Owl Quiz

1 In what year was the poem published?

1969

1970

1965

1980
2 Which of the following is an example of a metaphor used in the poem?

"I am the owl" (line 8)

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

"A horny fiend, I crept" (line 3)

"the wrecked thing that could / not bear the light nor hide" (lines 37-38)
3 Which of the following best describes the rhyme scheme of the poem?

ABBABB

ABABCC

ABCABC

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

Waking up early before her parents

The barn

The owl

The gun
5 Who is the "old no-sayer, robber of power / by sleep" in lines 7-8?

The owl

The speaker's mother

The speaker's father

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

Personification

Metaphor

Simile
7 Which adjective best describes the speaker's tone in stanza 1?

Straightforward and intellectual

Excited and condescending

Horrified and remorseful

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

Somber but hopeful

Horrified and remorseful

Straightforward and intellectual

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

Its bowels

Its tail

Its wings

Its eyes
10 How many times does the speaker shoot the owl?

Twice

Three times

Many times

Once
11 From what point of view and tense is "Barn Owl" told?

Third-person limited, past tense

First-person, past tense

First-person, present tense

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

"a horny fiend"

"a child / obedient, angel-mind-"

"master of life and death"

"a lonely child"
13 Which stanza contains the poem's climax?

Stanza One

Stanza Two

Stanza Five

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

British

Canadian

American

Australian
15 Which of the following is an example of caesura?

My first shot struck. He swayed,

My father reached my side,

child who believed death clean

Let him dream of a child
16 Before shooting the owl, what did the speaker believe about death?

That it was clean and final

She had never heard of death

That it only applied to humans

That is was messy and obscene
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?

"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"

"gave me the fallen gun. / 'End what you have begun.'"
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 fallen gun

The injured owl

The urine-scented hay

The objects that the speaker is carrying
21 Which of the following best describes the structure of each stanza?

A couplet

Free-form

A quartet

A sestet
22 Which of the following is NOT an example of alliteration?

"home at this hour"

"Let him dream of a child"

"dropped, / and dribbled"

"My first shot struck. He swayed,"
23 Which of the following is NOT a feature of the barn as stated in the poem?

A red door

Hay on the floor

Loose straw on the floor

A beam
24 Which of the following is an example of religious subtext in the poem?

"dribbled through the loose straw"

"gave me the fallen gun."

"those eyes that did not see"

"blessed by the sun"
25 Which of the following is NOT a symbol in the poem?

Sunlight

Vision

The owl

Nightfall

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