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MA English Literature Wordsworth — practice questions

Explore 5 free Wordsworth 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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Wordsworth questions and exercises with answers

Showing questions 1–5 of 5.

The diction Wordsworth advocates is 'the very language of':Read the answer and worked solution →Poetry is 'the spontaneous overflow of':Read the answer and worked solution →Wordsworth wrote poetry should use the language of:Read the answer and worked solution →Romantic poetry favoured 'low and rustic':Read the answer and worked solution →Wordsworth's two-stage composition begins with:Read the answer and worked solution →

Worked practice questions

The diction Wordsworth advocates is 'the very language of':

  1. Children
  2. Nature
  3. Men
  4. Shepherds
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Correct answer: C. Men

1. He explicitly rejects ornate 'poetic diction.' 2. 'The very language of men' is his programmatic standard. 3. This launched the Romantic project of plain speech in verse. _Source: Project Gutenberg #8905 — Wordsworth's Preface to Lyrical Ballads (1800) — "the very language of men"_

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Poetry is 'the spontaneous overflow of':

  1. Powerful feelings
  2. Imagined sounds
  3. Religious thoughts
  4. Pastoral scenes
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Correct answer: A. Powerful feelings

1. The phrase is Wordsworth's most-quoted definition. 2. It distinguishes genuine poetry from artifice. 3. It launched Romantic expressive theory. _Source: Project Gutenberg #8905 — Wordsworth's Preface to Lyrical Ballads — "Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings"_

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Wordsworth wrote poetry should use the language of:

  1. Court
  2. Common men
  3. Clergy
  4. Latin poets
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Correct answer: B. Common men

1. He chose 'the very language of men.' 2. He rejected ornate 'poetic diction.' 3. Plain speech became a Romantic standard. _Source: Project Gutenberg #8905 — Wordsworth's Preface to Lyrical Ballads — "the very language of men"_

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