To Penshurst Quizzes

1 Who does the speaker address in "To Penshurst"?

The lady of the house

Jonson's patron

The king

The house
2 Who was Sir Robert Sidney?

Jonson's patron

Jonson's friend

Jonson's neighbor

Jonson's father
3 Which of the following is NOT something Jonson praises Penshurst for?

The hospitality of the lord and lady

The quality of the land

The beauty of the architecture

The goodness of the children
4 What is Jonson alluding to in the opening of "To Penshurst"?

Catholic churches in Europe

Sidney's other estates

The king's palace

The temple of Solomon
5 How does Jonson depict the relationship between Sidney and his neighbors?

Resentful

Envious

Affectionate

Equal
6 How does the poet depict himself within the poem?

As a member of the family

As an advisor

As a fool

As a prophet
7 How does Jonson characterize other aristocrats in comparison to Sidney?

As more superficial

As less wealthy

As less intelligent

As more powerful
8 What genre did Jonson invent with "To Penshurst"?

The heroic couplet

The ode

The country-house poem

The patronage poem
9 In what sense is "To Penshurst" giving advice?

Jonson encourages Sidney to continue to be a true nobleman

Jonson warns Sidney against selling Penshurst

Jonson encourages Sidney to pay him more money

Jonson encourages Sidney to build a more spectacular house
10 Why was Penshurst less visually impressive than other aristocratic homes?

The Sidneys were less wealthy, so could not achieve the same grandeur

It had been built gradually, so the plan was not unified

The Sidneys chose to build a humble home to fit in with the neighbors

The Sidneys had been too cheap to hire a good architect
11 How does Jonson respond to Penshurst's unfashionable appearance?

He says true beauty is more important than trends

He argues that it was once in fashion

He argues that architectural beauty is not that important

He attempts to conceal it
12 What pattern established in the opening does the line "Thou joy’st in better marks, of soil, of air" disrupt?

Addressing various houses

Use of metaphors

Syntactical order

Use of negations
13 Why might Jonson suggest that Sidney's animals give themselves up willingly?

To prove that animals are foolish

To suggest that Sidney is tyrannical

To emphasize Sidney's natural place at the top of the hierarchy

To show that the poem is meant to be satirical
14 What is the "Great Chain of Being"?

The bonds that connect people with God

A natural hierarchy of all living things

The bonds that connect all people with one another

The natural stages in a person's life
15 Why does Jonson emphasize that Sidney's neighbors bring gifts?

To show that the Sidneys don't have everything

To prove that everyone in the community is wealthy

To show that Sidney is at home in the community

To show off his knowledge of consumer goods
16 How does Jonson depict the arrival of the king?

As a show of disrespect

As an inconvenience

As an honor

As a sign of the Sidney's political importance
17 What does Penshurst symbolize?

The rivalry between Jonson and Sidney

The decline of England

Sir Robert's character

The wisdom of God
18 What does the line "His children thy great lord may call his own" imply?

Sir Robert can claim anyone in the community as a son

Sir Robert is wealthy enough to merit being a father

Other noblemen can't be sure their wives are faithful

Sir Robert's children aren't his own biologically
19 Who is the speaker in "To Penshurst"?

The lady

A houseguest

Sir Robert

Jonson himself
20 What is the form of "To Penshurst"?

Heroic couplets

Free verse

Rhyme royal

Sonnet sequence
21 What is the meter of "To Penshurst"?

Trochaic pentameter (each line is made up of five pairs of one stressed and one unstressed syllable)

Iambic tetrameter (each line is made up of four pairs of one unstressed and one stressed syllable)

Trochaic tetrameter (each line is made up of four pairs of one stressed and one unstressed syllable)

Iambic pentameter (each line is made up of five pairs of one unstressed and one stressed syllable)
22 Which of the following contains alliteration?

Of wood, of water; therein thou art fair.

Fertile of wood, Ashore and Sidney’s copse

Thou hast thy walks for health, as well as sport

Of touch or marble; nor canst boast a row
23 Which of the following best replaces "copse" in "Fertile of wood, Ashore and Sidney’s copse"

Police

Patch of trees

Clearing

Favorite spot
24 Which of the following does Sidney personify?

The animals of Penshurst

Penshurst itself

The other houses in the area

The fruit trees
25 Which of the following is most obviously an example of hyperbole?

With all their zeal to warm their welcome here. / What (great I will not say, but) sudden cheer

Bright eels that emulate them, and leap on land/Before the fisher, or into his hand.

The blushing apricot and woolly peach / Hang on thy walls, that every child may reach.

Thy copse too, named of Gamage, thou hast there, / That never fails to serve thee seasoned deer

To Penshurst

by Ben Jonson

To Penshurst "To Penshurst"

To Penshurst Questions and Answers

Study Guide for To Penshurst