Lit test 1

Authors of celocanth poems

Horace Shipp and Ogden Nash

Who is the subject of the celocanth poem by Horace Shipp?

A happy Coelacanth

Where does the Coelacanth livein the Horace Shipp poem?

In dim, primordial seas

What is notable about the Coelacanth’s agein the Horace Shipp poem?

He is described as “very ancient”

What activities does the Coelacanth enjoy in the Horace Shipp peom?

Eating, mating, hunting, sleeping

What does Dame Nature urge the Coelacanth to do in the Horace Shipp poem?

Evolve

How does the Coelacanth respond to Dame Nature’s command in the Horace Shipp poem?

He refuses and says “I’m staying as I am”

What does the Coelacanth say about Darwin in the Horace Shipp poem?

“You get on with making Darwin”

What is the Coelacanth described as in the Ogden Nash poem?

Our only living fossil

What plant is the Coelacanth compared to in the Ogden Nash poem?

The amaranth, a plant supposed to be immortal

What does “status quo apostle” imply in the Ogden Nash poem?

The Coelacanth represents resistance to change

How does the Coelacanth treat other fish in the Ogden Nash poem?

It jeers at unfossilized fish and mocks them as intellectual snobs

What is notable about the Coelacanth’s evolution in the Ogden Nash poem?

It remains unrevised and unchanged

What ironic flaw does the poem highlight in the Ogden Nash poem?

The Coelacanth doesn’t realize it’s obsolete

What theme is explored in the Ogden Nash poem?

Stubbornness against evolution and the irony of outdated persistence

(Ted Hughes, “Pike”) How are pike described physically?

“Three inches long, perfect”

(Ted Hughes, “Pike”) What is the poet’s attitude toward the pike?

Awe mixed with dread

(Ted Hughes, “Pike”) What setting intensifies the mood?

A deep pond with “thirty feet of depth”

(Ted Hughes, “Pike”) What memory does the speaker recall?

Seeing a dead pike with another jammed in its throat — a violent image of cannibalism

(Ted Hughes, “Pike”) What is the final emotional note?

The speaker feels watched and haunted by the pike’s presence

(Rupert Brooke, “Heaven) What is the central subject of the poem?

Fish imagining their version of Heaven

(Rupert Brooke, “Heaven) How is Heaven described by the fish?

A place without nets, hooks, or fishermen

(Masuji Ibuse, “The Salamander”) Where is the salamander located?

Inside a narrow, damp well

(Masuji Ibuse, “The Salamander”) What does the salamander contemplate?

His isolation, the passage of time, and the futility of escape

How does the salamander view his condition?

With a mix of pride, denial, and quiet despair

(Masuji Ibuse, “The Salamander”) What is the salamander’s attitude toward change?

He rationalizes staying put, avoiding action

(Masuji Ibuse, “The Salamander”) What final emotional effect does the story evoke?

A quiet sadness and philosophical reflection on inertia

(Julio Cortázar, “Axolotl”) Where does the narrator observe the axolotls?

In a tank at the Paris aquarium

(Julio Cortázar, “Axolotl”) What draws the narrator to the axolotls?

Their stillness, mystery, and human-like gaze

(Julio Cortázar, “Axolotl”) What physical features are emphasized?

Transparent bodies, golden eyes, and external gills

(Julio Cortázar, “Axolotl”) What shift occurs in the narrator’s perspective?

He begins to feel he is becoming one of them

(Julio Cortázar, “Axolotl”) What is the final emotional effect?

A surreal merging of minds, evoking existential unease

(Theodore Dreiser, “McEwen of the Shining Slave-Makers”) What is McEwen’s role in the colony?

Leader and strategist of raids on other ant colonies

(Theodore Dreiser, “McEwen of the Shining Slave-Makers”) What behavior defines the slave-makers?

They invade other colonies to steal pupae and enslave emerging ants

(Theodore Dreiser, “McEwen of the Shining Slave-Makers”) What does Dreiser emphasize about McEwen?

His intelligence, determination, and tactical brilliance

(Theodore Dreiser, “McEwen of the Shining Slave-Makers”) How are the enslaved ants treated?

They perform labor for the slave-makers, unaware of their origins

(Theodore Dreiser, “McEwen of the Shining Slave-Makers”) What final impression does McEwen leave?

A figure of ruthless efficiency, embodying nature’s darker instincts

(Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis) Who is the protagonist of the story?

Gregor Samsa

(Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis) What transformation occurs?

Gregor wakes up as a giant insect

(Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis) What is Gregor’s initial concern?

Missing work and disappointing his employer

(Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis) How does his family react to his metamorphosis?

With horror, shame, and eventual rejection

(Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis) How does Gregor’s relationship with his family change?

He shifts from provider to outcast

(Fiona Benson, “Mama Cockroach I Love You”) What creature is the focus of the poem?

A mother cockroach

(Fiona Benson, “Mama Cockroach I Love You”) How is the cockroach portrayed?

As nurturing, resilient, and fiercely protective

(Fiona Benson, “Mama Cockroach I Love You”) What does the speaker express toward the cockroach?

Love, admiration, and solidarity

(Fiona Benson, “Mama Cockroach I Love You”) What societal critique underlies the poem?

Challenges disgust and prejudice toward marginalized beings

(Richard Bach, Jonathan Livingston Seagull) Who is the protagonist of the story?

Jonathan Livingston Seagull

(Richard Bach, Jonathan Livingston Seagull) What sets Jonathan apart from other gulls?

His passion for flight and refusal to conform

(Richard Bach, Jonathan Livingston Seagull) What is Jonathan’s main pursuit?

Mastery of flight as a path to self-perfection and transcendence

(Richard Bach, Jonathan Livingston Seagull) How do the other gulls react to Jonathan’s behavior?

They reject and exile him for breaking social norms

(Richard Bach, Jonathan Livingston Seagull) What transformation does Jonathan undergo?

From outcast to enlightened teacher

(Ursula K. LeGuin, “The Fliers of Gy”) What is the central anomaly in Gy society?

Some children are born with wings

(Ursula K. LeGuin, “The Fliers of Gy”) How does Gy society treat the winged individuals?

As disabled, shameful, and burdensome

(Ursula K. LeGuin, “The Fliers of Gy”) What theme does the story explore?

Societal rejection of beauty and transcendence

(Ursula K. LeGuin, “The Fliers of Gy”) What is the narrator’s perspective?

Sympathetic to the fliers, questioning societal norms

(Ted Hughes, “Hawk Roosting”) What does the hawk claim about nature?

“It took the whole of Creation / To produce my foot, my each feather” — nature exists to serve him

(Ted Hughes, “Hawk Roosting”) How does the hawk view death and violence?

As natural and necessary — “My manners are tearing off heads”

(Ted Hughes, “Hawk Roosting”) What is the hawk’s attitude toward change?

He rejects it — “I am going to keep things like this”

(Helen Macdonald, H is for Hawk) What is the central subject of the memoir?

Training a goshawk named Mabel during a period of grief

(Helen Macdonald, H is for Hawk) What personal event triggers the narrative?

The sudden death of Macdonald’s father

(Helen Macdonald, H is for Hawk) What historical figure is interwoven into the narrative?

T.H. White, author of The Goshawk

(Helen Macdonald, H is for Hawk) How does Macdonald contrast herself with White?

She seeks empathy and connection, while White struggled with dominance and fear

(W.B. Yeats, “Leda and the Swan”) Who are the central figures in the poem?

Leda and Zeus (in the form of a swan)

(W.B. Yeats, “Leda and the Swan”) What myth does the poem retell?

The rape of Leda by Zeus, which leads to the birth of Helen of Troy

(W.B. Yeats, “Leda and the Swan”) What is the tone of the poem?

Violent, intense, and mythic

(W.B. Yeats, “Leda and the Swan”) What symbolic meaning does the swan carry?

Divine force, erotic power, and destructive fate

(W.B. Yeats, “Leda and the Swan”) What historical events are linked to the myth?

The Trojan War and the fall of Troy

(Anonymous (Swedish), Swan Maiden story) Who is the central supernatural figure?

A Swan Maiden

(Anonymous (Swedish), Swan Maiden story) What transformation does she undergo?

She sheds her swan feathers to become a human woman

(Anonymous (Swedish), Swan Maiden story) How does the hunter encounter her?

He spies on her and steals her feather cloak while she bathes

(Anonymous (Swedish), Swan Maiden story) What does the feather cloak symbolize?

Her freedom, identity, and ability to return to her swan form

(Anonymous (Swedish), Swan Maiden story) What is the hunter’s motive?

To marry her by preventing her return to the sky

(Anonymous (Swedish), Swan Maiden story) How does the Swan Maiden respond to her captivity?

She lives with the hunter but eventually finds her feathers and escapes

(John Hollander, “Swan and Shadow”) What is the visual structure of the poem?

A calligram shaped like a swan and its reflection

(John Hollander, “Swan and Shadow”) What is the central image?

A swan gliding on water, mirrored by its shadow

(John Hollander, “Swan and Shadow”) What literary device defines the poem?

Visual poetry — form reflects content

(John Hollander, “Swan and Shadow”) How does the poem treat symmetry?

As both aesthetic and philosophical — the swan and its shadow are inseparable yet distinct

(Aristophanes, The Birds) Who are the main human characters?

Peisthetaerus and Euelpides

(Aristophanes, The Birds) What is their goal?

To escape Athenian life and find a utopia among the birds

(Aristophanes, The Birds) What do they convince the birds to do?

Build a city in the sky called Cloudcuckooland

(Aristophanes, The Birds) How are the gods portrayed?

As vulnerable to manipulation and ridicule

(Aristophanes, The Birds) What does Cloudcuckooland symbolize?

A fantastical escape from reality and critique of idealism

(Aristophanes, The Birds) What is Peisthetaerus’s transformation?

From fugitive to ruler of gods and birds

(Daphne du Maurier, “The Birds”) What is the central threat in the story?

Birds inexplicably begin attacking humans

(Daphne du Maurier, “The Birds”) Who is the protagonist?

Nat Hocken, a disabled war veteran and farm laborer

(Daphne du Maurier, “The Birds”) What is the setting?

A coastal village in post-war England

(Daphne du Maurier, “The Birds”) How do the birds behave?

Coordinated, relentless, and increasingly violent

(Daphne du Maurier, “The Birds”) How does Nat respond to the attacks?

With resourcefulness and protective instincts toward his family

(Freya the Walrus) Where did Freya become famous?

Coastal towns across Norway and parts of Europe

(Freya the Walrus) What unusual behavior did she exhibit?

Lounged on docks and boats, often sinking small vessels

(Freya the Walrus) How did the public respond to Freya?

With fascination, affection, and viral social media attention

(Freya the Walrus) What was the tone of media coverage?

Initially playful and endearing, later controversial

(Freya the Walrus) What decision did Norwegian authorities make?

They euthanized Freya, citing public safety concerns

(Freya the Walrus) What was the public reaction to her death?

Outrage, sadness, and debate over wildlife management

(Freya the Walrus) What theme does Freya’s story highlight?

Human intrusion into natural habitats and ethical treatment of wild animals