Pilate’s Wife Quizzes

Pilate's Wife Quiz Literary Devices and Themes

1 What is the poem's meter?
Iambic tetrameter

Trochaic pentameter

Iambic pentameter

Free verse
2 To whom does the phrase "The Nazarene" refer?
Jesus

Mary

Moses

Abraham
3 Which is the definition of the word "indolent"?
Indecisive

Musical

Idle

Sweet
4 Which of the following is an instance of simile?
"each tough palm was skewered"

"clutched the bridle of an ass"

"They seized the prophet then and dragged him out"

"like shells from Galilee"
5 What is the poem's rhyme scheme?
ABABCDECDE

It has no consistent rhyme scheme

ABAB

ABBACDDC
6 Which theme do the actions of the crowd most clearly relate to?
Art

Gender

Fatherhood

The role of bystanders
7 Which of the following lines displays alliteration?
"rough men shouldering a pathway to the gates."

"The crowd was baying for Barabbas."

"Firstly, his hands - a woman's."

"His face? Ugly. Talented."
8 Who is the poem's speaker?
A politician's wife in 1960s California

An unnamed soldier in World War II

A female mystic in medieval France

The wife of the biblical figure Pontius Pilate
9 Which is the poem's most prominent symbol?
Thorns

Hands

Skulls

Donkeys
10 What is the best description of the speaker's relationship to her maid?
The two are faithful companions and friends

The two do not know one another well, but Duffy hints that they will grow closer over time

The speaker does not trust her maid and keeps her actions secret from her

The speaker regards her maid maternally, teaching and advising her
11 Who is the poem's antagonist?
The Emperor

The speaker

Pilate

The maid
12 Which of the following is a major theme of the poem?
The destruction of nature

Racism

Food

Gender
13 In which poetry collection did this first appear?
Mean Time

The World's Wife

Little Red Cap

Standing Female Nude
14 What is the closest synonym of the word "baying"?
Howling

Resting

Weeping

Gossiping
15 The speaker compares her husband's hands to which of the following?
Twigs

Books

Moths

Mice
16 Which line uses assonance most extensively?
"Their pale, mothy touch made me flinch."

"the Nazarene was crowned with thorns."

"I longed for Rome, home, someone else."

"His brown hands touched me."
17 Which best describes the poem's tone?
Inquisitive

Humorous

Lamenting

Pragmatic
18 In which year was this poem first published?
1978

1999

2005

2012
19 Pilate displays many traits associated with femininity, despite his power as a man. This is an instance of what?
Dramatic Irony

Paradox

Situational Irony

Verbal Irony
20 What is the poem's setting?
First-century Jerusalem

Twentieth-century Los Angeles

Fifteenth-century Europe

Eighteenth-century India
21 What stanza type is used in this poem?
Tercets

Quatrains

Sestets

Quintains
22 Which contains is an example of sibilance?
"Leave him alone."

"His eyes were eyes to die for."

"I woke up, sweating, sexual, terrified."

"bored stiff, disguised"
23 What does the word "Galilee" refer to?
A sea

A type of headdress

A silent movie

A temple in ancient Jerusalem
24 Who is Barabbas?
The man who is pardoned instead of Jesus

A priest who leaves the church after a scandal

The speaker's late first husband

The speaker's maid
25 Which theme is the most prominent in this work?
Desire

Class

Imagination

Childhood and coming of age

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Study Guide for Pilate’s Wife

Pilate's Wife study guide contains a biography of Carol Ann Duffy, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

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