Characterization, Theme, and Irony in "The Gift of the Magi"

Question 1

Use the poem to complete the sentences. The first four lines of the poem make up a. The last two lines of the poem make up a.

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quatrain; Selection 1: quatrain; Selection 2: couplet

Question 2

Question 2

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couplet

Question 3

Reread the first six lines of the sonnet. If the first line is identified as “a” in the rhyme scheme, how should the remaining lines be identified? Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer's lease hath all too short a date: Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, And often is his gold complexion dimm'd,

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Selection 1: b; Selection 2: a; Selection 3: b; Selection 4: c; Selection 5: d

Question 4

In the first quatrain, the speaker is comparing

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his beloved and a summer day.

Question 5

What is the central idea of the first quatrain?

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The speaker’s beloved is more beautiful than a summer day.

Question 6

Read the second quatrain of the sonnet, and then answer the questions below. What is the best paraphrase of the first two lines? What is the best paraphrase of the last two lines?

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The sun is sometimes too hot or dim.; Selection 1: The sun is sometimes too hot or dim.; Selection 2: Beauty eventually fades.

Question 7

In one to two sentences, explain the central idea of the final couplet of the poem.

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The central idea of the final couplet is that the speaker’s love for his mistress is genuine and and that she is just as beautiful as any woman described with exaggerated, false comparisons. He emphasizes that a realistic love is more valuable than one based on unrealistic or fake perceptions.

Question 8

What did you include in your response? Check all that apply.

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The speaker’s beloved lives on in the poem.; People will live on to read the poem.; The speaker’s beloved will be remembered in poetry.; This poem is a tribute to the speaker’s beloved.

Question 9

Question 14

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Beauty eventually fades.

Characterization, Theme, and Irony in "The Gift of the Magi" Answers

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