Prayer Before Birth Quizzes

Prayer Before Birth Quiz 1

1 Where was Louis MacNeice from?

United States

Ireland

Germany

England
2 What other genre of writing did MacNeice pursue in his lifetime?

Drama

Speeches

Journalism

Novels
3 In what collection was "Prayer Before Birth" published?

The Last Ditch

Springboard

Collected Poems

Holes in the Sky
4 What year was the poem published?

1932

1912

1944

1920
5 What major conflict was happening at the time MacNeice wrote the poem?

The Great Depression

The Cold War

World War I

World War II
6 How old was MacNeice when he died?

38

89

24

55
7 Who is the speaker of the poem?

An unborn entity

A child

A soldier

God
8 Which of these does the speaker not mention in the first stanza of the poem?

Vampires

Ghouls

Bats

Rats
9 What is the speaker afraid of?

Torture

Imprisonment

Drugs

All of these
10 The line, "with strong drugs dope me, with wise lies lure me" contains examples of what poetic device (6)?

Alliteration

Apostrophe

Synecdoche

Personfiication
11 What, according to the speaker, can nurture their growth?

A mother

Love

Nature

God
12 For what does the speaker ask forgiveness?

The sins they are yet to commit

Their request for death

The mistakes they have made

The thoughts they currently express
13 What metaphor does the speaker use to ask for preparation for life on earth?

Reading a pamphlet

Rehearsing a play

Taking a class

Learning a language
14 According to the speaker, what will old men do to them?

Laugh at them

Ridicule them

Lecture them

Inspire them
15 According to the speaker, what will bureaucrats do to them?

Hector them

Comfort them

Manipulate them

Embarrass them
16 According to the speaker, what will lovers do to them?

Laugh at them

Save them

Emasculate them

Prepare them
17 Which of these scenarios does the speaker not imagine encountering on earth?

A beggar rejecting their gift

Being cursed by their own children

Dying in the desert

Falling from a tree
18 According to the speaker, the "man who is beast" also thinks he is what (26)?

The Savior

Love

Emperor

God
19 The term "lethal automaton" (30) is a euphemism for what?

A dictator

A gun

A machine

A solider
20 What is closest in meaning to the word "dragoon" (30)?

Coerce

Invite

Lure

Dragon
21 Which of these images represents manipulation by someone else?

Blood-baths

Machines

Trees

Hands
22 Which two fates does the speaker imagine for people on earth?

Machines and nature

Stones and water

Guns and boots

Robots and books
23 Which of these describes the form of the final lines of the poem?

Alexandrine

Couplet

Tercet

Quatrain
24 What does the speaker ask for as an alternative to being born?

Death

A song

Nurture

God
25 Which of these phrases is repeated throughout the poem?

"I am not yet born"

"Otherwise kill me"

"I fear"

"Spill me"

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Study Guide for Prayer Before Birth

Prayer Before Birth study guide contains a biography of Louis MacNeice, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

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