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The Boxers

By Michael Longley

We were combatants from the start. Our dad
Bought us boxing gloves when we were ten —
Champions like Euryalus, say, or Epeius
Of wooden-horse fame: ‘I am the greatest!’
‘Nobody’s going to knock me down!’ Listen,
Peter, to the commentary — gruesome teeth-­
Grinding, sweat splattering their arms and legs,
Huge fists in ox-­hide thongs slugging it out,
Then the knock-­out blow to Euryalus’s chin —
Hoisting him with an uppercut — like a fish
That arches out of weed-­tangled shallows
And collapses back into hazy water,
Sea wind sending shock-­waves up the beach —
The winner gives the loser a helping hand
And his seconds support him across the ring
On dragging feet, head lolling to one side,
Blood clots et cetera et cetera…
I’ll tie your gloves. Shall we fight again?

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Famous-Poems-quiz

Famous Poems: 20 Multiple-Choice Questions

1 / 20

"Out of the night that covers me, Black as the pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul."

 - What is the title of this poem?

2 / 20

"Oh, my luve is like a red, red rose, That's newly sprung in June: Oh, my luve is like the melodie, That's sweetly play'd in tune."

- What is the title of this poem?

3 / 20

"How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My soul can reach."

 

- Who is the author of this poem?

4 / 20

"Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary," - What is the next line of this poem by Edgar Allan Poe?

5 / 20

"The world is too much with us; late and soon, Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers; Little we see in Nature that is ours; We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!"

- Who is the author of this poem?

6 / 20

"Do not go gentle into that good night,

 Old age should burn and rave at close of day; 

Rage, rage against the dying of the light."

 

- Who is the author of this poem?

7 / 20

"i carry your heart with me" is a famous poem by E.E. Cummings. What is the next line of this poem after "i carry your heart with me(i carry it in"?

8 / 20

"A thing of beauty is a joy forever: Its loveliness increases; it will never Pass into nothingness; but still will keep A bower quiet for us, and a sleep Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing."

 - What is the title of this poem?

9 / 20

"I wandered lonely as a cloud That floats on high o'er vales and hills, When all at once I saw a crowd, A host, of golden daffodils."

 - What is the title of this poem?

10 / 20

"The Odyssey" is a famous epic poem by Homer. What is the next line of this poem after "Tell me, O Muse, of that ingenious hero"?

11 / 20

"The woods are lovely, dark and deep, 

But I have promises to keep, 

And miles to go before I sleep, 

And miles to go before I sleep." 

 

- Who is the author of this poem?

12 / 20

"Because I could not stop for Death - He kindly stopped for me -"

- What is the next line of this poem?

13 / 20

"I am the master of my fate, 

I am the captain of my soul." 

 

- What is the title of this poem?

14 / 20

"Ode to a Nightingale" is a famous poem by John Keats. What is the next line of this poem after "My heart aches, and a drowsy numbness pains"?

15 / 20

"I, too, sing America. I am the darker brother."

- What is the next line of this poem by Langston Hughes?

16 / 20

"Because I could not stop for Death, 

He kindly stopped for me; 

The carriage held but just ourselves, 

And Immortality."

 

- What is the title of this poem?

17 / 20

"The Second Coming" is a famous poem by William Butler Yeats. What is the next line of this poem after "Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold"?

18 / 20

"Water, water, everywhere, 

And all the boards did shrink; 

Water, water, everywhere, 

Nor any drop to drink."

 

 - What is the title of this poem?

19 / 20

"Because I could not be with you, I will write across the page the words I was too afraid to speak, I was too afraid to stay, I was too afraid to leave."

 

- What is the title of this poem?

20 / 20

"Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate:"

- What is the next line of this sonnet?

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Forms-Of-Poetry-Quiz

Forms Of Poetry: 20 Multiple-Choice Questions

1 / 20

Which of the following poetic forms is characterized by alternating lines of iambic tetrameter and iambic trimeter, with a rhyme scheme of A-B-A-B?

2 / 20

What is the name of the poetic form in which the first letter of each line spells out a word or phrase?

3 / 20

What is the name of the poetic form in which the last word of each line is repeated throughout the poem?

4 / 20

What is the name of the poetic form consisting of a series of unrhymed tercets followed by a quatrain, with the same end words used throughout the poem in a specific pattern?

5 / 20

Which of the following poetic forms is characterized by a series of eight-line stanzas, with a rhyme scheme of A-B-A-B-B-C-B-C?

6 / 20

What is the name of the poetic form consisting of a six-line stanza, with a rhyme scheme of A-A-B-B-C-C and a syllable count of 8-8-5-5-8-8?

7 / 20

Which of the following poetic forms is characterized by three stanzas of three lines each and a final quatrain?

8 / 20

What is the name of the poetic form consisting of a single line, typically with a specific syllable count or word limit, and often used to convey a strong emotion or idea?

9 / 20

What is the name of the poetic form in which each line or stanza repeats the same sequence of words, but in reverse order?

10 / 20

Which of the following poetic forms is characterized by a poem with three stanzas of three lines each, followed by a single four-line stanza, with a specific rhyme scheme and syllable count?

11 / 20

What is the name of the poetic form in which each line contains the same number of syllables?

12 / 20

Which of the following is NOT a form of Japanese poetry?

13 / 20

What is the name of the poetic form that originated in ancient Arabic poetry, consisting of rhyming couplets and a refrain, typically used to express love or melancholy?

14 / 20

What is the name of the poetic form consisting of 17 syllables arranged in three lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables?

15 / 20

Which of the following poetic forms originated in ancient Greece and typically consists of a long narrative poem about heroic deeds?

16 / 20

Which of the following poetic forms is characterized by a poem that describes or meditates on the natural world, often using vivid imagery and sensory language?

17 / 20

Which of the following poetic forms is characterized by six sestets and a final tercet, with a complex pattern of repeating end words?

18 / 20

Which of the following poetic forms is characterized by three-line stanzas, with the second line repeating as the last line of the previous stanza?

19 / 20

What is the name of the poetic form in which two rhyming lines of iambic pentameter are followed by a rhyming line of iambic tetrameter?

20 / 20

Which of the following poetic forms originated in Italy?

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