Skip to content
Storgy

Quiz — Storgy

A NEW MADRIGAL TO AN OLD MELODY.

by Alfred Noyes.

Ten questions on craft, meaning, and form. Untimed. Answer every question to submit.

Q01of 10

The poem's subtitle notes that Shadow-of-a-Leaf uses 'clear' in 'a more ancient sense.' What does 'clear' mean in the refrain 'our clear May'?

Q02of 10

Which verse form best describes the overall structure of 'A New Madrigal to an Old Melody'?

Q03of 10

What literary technique does Noyes use when he writes 'As along a dark pine-bough, in slender white mystery / The moon lay to listen'?

Q04of 10

What is the primary theme Shadow-of-a-Leaf voices in the third stanza, beginning 'In the years that are gone'?

Q05of 10

What does the speaker discover when he 'drew back the branches' in the second stanza?

Q06of 10

In the final stanza the refrain changes subtly. Which word replaces 'balm and poppy' from the first stanza's version?

Q07of 10

The phrase 'long-forgot litany' is repeated across the poem. What does calling the song a 'litany' most importantly suggest about its character?

Q08of 10

How does the tone shift between the third stanza (Shadow-of-a-Leaf's lament) and the fourth stanza (the speaker's response)?

Q09of 10

The setting of 'a deep dreaming wood that is older than history' functions chiefly as what kind of device?

Q10of 10

Which line most directly expresses the poem's central argument about loss and memory?

0 / 10 answered

Standings

Top 10 attempts

No attempts yet. Be the first to climb the standings.