1 Who makes the ice cream? the newspaper boys the speaker the roller of big cigars the mother 2 Which is NOT an adjective you could apply to the cigar man, based on the poem's description of him? arrogant masculine capable strong 3 What do the boys bring to the house? flowers desserts bed sheets funeral clothes 4 What are the wenches doing? hanging around wrapping up the body taking care of the boys complaining 5 How are the ice cream curds described? delicious lustful surprising unwanted 6 What object in the poem is NOT made to seem old? the ice cream the woman the newspapers the dresser 7 What is embroidered on the sheet used to cover the body? leaves birds flowers hearts 8 What is the woman’s dresser lacking? two cigars a hand-held mirror its top drawer three glass knobs 9 How would you describe the woman’s dresser? new stained ornate cheap 10 What is the problem with the embroidered sheet? it is transparent it is ugly it is fraying it is too short 11 What part of the woman’s body might remain visible? her horny feet her wrinkled hands her stringy hair her closed eyes 12 What would that exposed body part tell us about the dead woman? she is unpopular and alone she is cold and silent she is stiff and heavy she is old and rich 13 What kind of light does the speaker ask for in the penultimate line? the kitchen light the sunlight through the window the lamp beam the lit candles 14 What is the central contrast of the poem? masculine versus feminine life versus death fun versus sadness peace versus anger 15 Which of the following is NOT a way you could describe the tone of the poem? whimsical vengeful sexual declarative 16 What type of sentence makes up the majority of the poem? interjection explanatory imperative interrogative 17 Which formal device does Stevens use sparingly at the end of each stanza? alliteration meter rhyme allusion 18 What might the speaker mean by “Let be be finale of seem”? Let happiness only exist because of material things Let pure reality replace artifice and illusion Let death be the end of imagination Let all your poems only deal with simple topics 19 Which of the following does ice cream NOT represent in the poem? desire maturity pleasure vivacity 20 What do ice cream and death have in common? they are rare they are cold they are inevitable they are desirable 21 In this poem, Stevens primarily uses ________ details. natural scientific physical auditory 22 What is the spatial or temporal relationship of the two stanzas? they occur in different seasons they occur in different rooms they occur in different cities they are two separate memories 23 Where does the poem most likely take place? Maine Italy Florida India 24 According to the poem, which of the following is NOT a good descriptor for human life? mundane pristinely organized energetic sexual 25 Why did Stevens count this poem as his favorite? it is extremely personal it has a very complex meter it is gaudy like poetry itself it references the most Classical poets
