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MA English Literature Sonnet — practice questions

Explore 2 free Sonnet questions in MA English Literature English Literature. Open each question or exercise to read its content, reference answers and available explanation.

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Sonnet questions and exercises with answers

Showing questions 1–2 of 2.

A 'sonnet' in the English tradition is conventionally:Read the answer and worked solution →A sonnet has how many lines?Read the answer and worked solution →

Worked practice questions

A 'sonnet' in the English tradition is conventionally:

  1. A prose paragraph in a novel
  2. 20 lines of free verse
  3. 8 lines of trochaic tetrameter
  4. 14 lines of iambic pentameter, with a set rhyme scheme
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Correct answer: D. 14 lines of iambic pentameter, with a set rhyme scheme

1. The English/Shakespearean sonnet has 14 iambic-pentameter lines. 2. Its rhyme scheme is ababcdcdefefgg with a concluding couplet. 3. Italian (Petrarchan) sonnets use abba-abba + cdecde or cdcdcd. _Source: Coverage brief — Renaissance content area — "Shakespeare ... sonnets, dramatic conventions"_

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A sonnet has how many lines?

  1. 10
  2. 14
  3. 12
  4. 16
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Correct answer: B. 14

1. English/Italian sonnets both have 14 lines. 2. Iambic pentameter is standard. 3. Rhyme scheme distinguishes the two forms. _Source: Coverage brief — BA English Literature syllabus areas — "Shakespeare ... sonnets"_

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More English Literature topics

ShakespeareLiterary TheoryIndian English LiteratureAmerican LiteratureTagoreModernismWhitmanLiterary History