Pilate’s Wife Quizzes

Pilate's Wife Quiz Literary Devices and Themes

1 What is the poem's meter?
Iambic pentameter

Free verse

Trochaic pentameter

Iambic tetrameter
2 To whom does the phrase "The Nazarene" refer?
Moses

Jesus

Abraham

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

Sweet

Idle

Musical
4 Which of the following is an instance of simile?
"They seized the prophet then and dragged him out"

"clutched the bridle of an ass"

"like shells from Galilee"

"each tough palm was skewered"
5 What is the poem's rhyme scheme?
It has no consistent rhyme scheme

ABABCDECDE

ABAB

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

Art

The role of bystanders

Fatherhood
7 Which of the following lines displays alliteration?
"His face? Ugly. Talented."

"The crowd was baying for Barabbas."

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

"rough men shouldering a pathway to the gates."
8 Who is the poem's speaker?
An unnamed soldier in World War II

A politician's wife in 1960s California

The wife of the biblical figure Pontius Pilate

A female mystic in medieval France
9 Which is the poem's most prominent symbol?
Donkeys

Thorns

Hands

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

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

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

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

The Emperor

The maid

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

Food

Racism

Gender
13 In which poetry collection did this first appear?
Little Red Cap

The World's Wife

Mean Time

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

Weeping

Gossiping

Howling
15 The speaker compares her husband's hands to which of the following?
Mice

Moths

Books

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

"His brown hands touched me."

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

"the Nazarene was crowned with thorns."
17 Which best describes the poem's tone?
Pragmatic

Inquisitive

Lamenting

Humorous
18 In which year was this poem first published?
2005

1999

2012

1978
19 Pilate displays many traits associated with femininity, despite his power as a man. This is an instance of what?
Verbal Irony

Dramatic Irony

Paradox

Situational Irony
20 What is the poem's setting?
Eighteenth-century India

Twentieth-century Los Angeles

Fifteenth-century Europe

First-century Jerusalem
21 What stanza type is used in this poem?
Quintains

Tercets

Quatrains

Sestets
22 Which contains is an example of sibilance?
"I woke up, sweating, sexual, terrified."

"His eyes were eyes to die for."

"bored stiff, disguised"

"Leave him alone."
23 What does the word "Galilee" refer to?
A sea

A silent movie

A temple in ancient Jerusalem

A type of headdress
24 Who is Barabbas?
The speaker's maid

The speaker's late first husband

The man who is pardoned instead of Jesus

A priest who leaves the church after a scandal
25 Which theme is the most prominent in this work?
Desire

Imagination

Childhood and coming of age

Class

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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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