Estimated Reading Time: 27 min
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An Apology for Poetry MCQs
1. Sidney was inspired to defend poetry by John Pietro Pugliano, who was a—
A. philosopher
B. soldier
C. horse-master
D. painter
2. Sidney felt a need to defend poetry because in his era it had become the—
A. profession of kings
B. “laughing-stock of children”
C. most profitable art
D. primary tool of the church
3. Sidney states that the first poet-teachers in ancient Greece were Musaeus, Homer, and—
A. Plato
B. Aristotle
C. Hesiod
D. Solon
4. The myth of Amphion building Thebes with music is an allegory for poetry’s power to—
A. inspire armies in battle
B. tame wild animals
C. create a structured, civilizéd society
D. predict future events
5. The philosopher who famously criticized poets yet still used poetic methods himself was—
A. Thales
B. Plato
C. Herodotus
D. Pythagoras
6. The ancient Roman word for a poet, “vates,” means diviner, foreseer, and—
A. maker
B. teacher
C. prophet
D. singer
7. Sidney explains that the Greek word “Poetes” literally means—
A. “to speak”
B. “to delight”
C. “tó imitate”
D. “to make”
8. The term Sidney uses to describe the flawed, ordinary world of Nature is—
A. silver
B. brazen
C. iron
D. leaden
9. Sidney borrowed the philosophical concept of mimesis, or an “art of imitation,” from—
A. Plato
B. Aristotle
C. Socrates
D. Empedocles
10. The true purpose of all learning, in Sidney’s view, is to—
A. accumulate knowledge
B. pursue personal wealth
C. inspire “virtuous action”
D. gain social power
11. A key weakness of the philosopher’s teaching, according to Sidney, is that it is too—
A. concrete and specific
B. abstract and general
C. emotional and passionate
D. simple and childish
12. The historian’s main limitation is being tied to “what is,” which refers to—
A. what should ideally happen
B. what actually happened
C. what is believed to be true
D. what the gods have decreed
13. A poet’s version of “Cyrus” is superior to the historical figure because it is more—
A. historical
B. entertaining
C. doctrinable
D. complex
14. For Sidney, the power to __________ is “of a higher degree than teaching” because it inspires action.
A. know
B. move
C. see
D. speak
15. The story of Menenius Agrippa ending a political conflict is used to show poetry’s impact in the city of—
A. Athens
B. Sparta
C. Thebes
D. Rome
16. The one English play Sidney commends for its strong moral message is—
A. Hamlet
B. Gorboduc
C. Doctor Faustus
D. The Spanish Tragedy
17. Sidney defines “laughter,” in contrast to true delight, as a—
A. “joyful noise”
B. “scornful tickling”
C. “harmonious feeling”
D. “pleasant wonder”
18. Sidney compares the “painted affectation” of the Euphuism prose style to a—
A. soldier in parade armor
B. heavily painted courtesan
C. jewel worn without purpose
D. dancer dancing to their own music
19. The cumbersome grammatical rules of languages like Latin are humorously called the—
A. poet’s burden
B. scholar’s delight
C. Tower of Babylon’s curse
D. ornament of speech
20. The final curse Sidney wishes upon those who scorn poetry is that their memory will—
A. be eternally mocked
B. be plagued by bad rhymes
C. die for want of an epitaph
D. only be remembered by philosophers
21. The author feels compelled to defend poetry because it acted as a nurturing “__________” that helped cultivate early knowledge.
A. mother
B. nurse
C. teacher
D. guide
22. Sidney mentions that in his time, poetry’s esteem has fallen so low it has become the—
A. subject of philosophical debate
B. king’s favored entertainment
C. “laughing-stock of children”
D. tool of political rebellion
23. The allegorical power of poetry is shown in the myth of Orpheus, who could move “stony and beastly people,” meaning he could—
A. literally talk to animals
B. build cities with music
C. command statues to move
D. civilize brutish and uncivilized men
24. The Greek philosopher-poets Thales and Empedocles used verse to present their theories about—
A. moral philosophy
B. warfare and politics
C. natural philosophy
D. the art of love
25. To make his abstract arguments more engaging, Plato wove in “mere tales,” such as the story of—
A. the Minotaur
B. Gyges’ Ring
C. Oedipus Rex
D. the Trojan Horse
26. The “Father of History,” Herodotus, showed his reverence for poetry by naming the books of his great work after the—
A. Greek gods
B. Roman emperors
C. Muses
D. ancient kings
27. In Turkey, according to Sidney, poets are honored alongside—
A. military generals
B. the wealthiest merchants
C. political leaders
D. religious leaders
28. The practice of “Sortes Virgilianae” involved opening the works of Virgil to a random page to—
A. find moral guidance
B. appreciate his style
C. predict the future
D. settle legal disputes
29. Sidney argues that the Psalms of David are a “divine poem” because their prophecy is—
A. “merely poetical”
B. historically accurate
C. scientifically sound
D. philosophically complex
30. In contrast to all other professions who are observers, Sidney states the poet is unique because they are not—
A. bound by the rules of logic
B. required to be virtuous
C. tied to any such subjection
D. respected by the general public
31. Sidney uses Theagenes from Heliodorus’ work as an example of a poet’s creation of a perfect—
A. constant friend
B. valiant man
C. right prince
D. true lover
32. The poet’s ability to create a better, golden world shows that humanity shares a spark of—
A. philosophical insight
B. historical understanding
C. divine creativity
D. scientific curiosity
33. Sidney’s definition of poetry as a “speaking picture” means it creates an image so vivid it—
A. must be drawn or painted
B. requires musical accompaniment
C. speaks directly to the reader’s soul
D. can only be understood by the educated
34. The type of poetry that imitates “the unconceivable excellencies of God” is called—
A. Philosophical Poetry
B. Right Poetry
C. Divine Poetry
D. Heroical Poetry
35. The true “makers,” according to Sidney, are the “Right Poets” who use their imagination to create stories about—
A. what once was and will be again
B. what is, hath been, or shall be
C. what the philosophers have decreed
D. what may be and should be
36. Sidney proves verse is not essential to poetry by citing Xenophon’s story of Cyrus as a true—
A. “heroical poem”
B. “divine tragedy”
C. “philosophical comedy”
D. “pastoral elegy”
37. The highest or “mistress-knowledge,” which has the goal of “well-doing,” was called by the Greeks—
A. Gnosis
B. Praxis
C. Mimesis
D. Architektonike
38. The philosopher teaches a “disputative virtue,” while the historian offers a concrete—
A. precept
B. example
C. theory
D. rule
39. Sidney dismisses lawyers as teachers of virtue because they only create good citizens, not necessarily good—
A. men
B. leaders
C. thinkers
D. soldiers
40. To explain how poetry clarifies philosophy, Sidney says seeing a picture of an __________ is better than hearing a description.
A. elephant
B. lion
C. castle
D. battle
41. Poetry gives powerful insight into “self-devouring cruelty” through the actions of the character—
A. Oedipus
B. Ulysses
C. Achilles
D. Atreus
42. Because history must report on a “foolish world,” it often shows the virtuous suffering, such as in the case of Socrates and—
A. Caesar
B. Cato
C. Herodotus
D. Achilles
43. Sidney claims the poet is the “monarch” of all sciences because of the unique ability to—
A. teach logic
B. record facts
C. move people
D. predict the future
44. The poet makes virtue attractive from the start by offering a “cluster of grapes,” which is a metaphor for a delightful—
A. tale
B. argument
C. rule
D. definition
45. The prophet Nathan used a “feigned” story, or parable, to make King David—
A. a better military leader
B. recognize his own sin
C. a more popular ruler
D. build a grander temple
46. The Pastoral Poem, according to Sidney, often serves a moral and __________ function.
A. religious
B. historical
C. scientific
D. political
47. The goal of the Elegiac Poem is to move readers to feel compassion and—
A. blame
B. pity
C. joy
D. anger
48. The Iambic Poem functions like strong medicine because it directly and aggressively exposes—
A. human weakness
B. political corruption
C. foolishness
D. wickedness and vice
49. Sidney states that comedy teaches by showing the “common errors of life” in a __________ way.
A. tragic
B. heroic
C. ridiculous
D. serious
50. Tragedy makes kings fear becoming tyrants by showing the “__________ of this world.”
A. beauty
B. certainty
C. uncertainty
D. justice
51. Sidney says the Lyric Poem’s goal is to praise virtuous actions and inspire listeners with—
A. patriotic fervor
B. moral lessons
C. religious doubt
D. a desire for laughter
52. The Epic Poem makes virtues like “magnanimity and justice shine” by dressing them in their—
A. “workday clothes”
B. “holiday apparel”
C. “armor of logic”
D. “veil of fables”
53. Sidney criticizes English plays for absurdly showing decades of events in just—
A. one day
B. one hour
C. two hours
D. three acts
54. The mingling of “kings and clowns” in English tragedy ruins the proper feeling of “admiration and __________.”
A. delight
B. commiseration
C. sportfulness
D. sorrow
55. Sidney argues that true delight comes from things that are harmonious and—
A. absurd
B. disproportioned
C. beautiful
D. sinful
56. Sidney criticizes contemporary love poems for using “fiery speeches” that lack true passion, or—
A. mimesis
B. energeia
C. praxis
D. gnosis
57. An overuse of the repetition of initial consonant sounds is a stylistic fault Sidney calls the—
A. “coursing of a letter”
B. “far-fet word”
C. “painted affectation”
D. “similitude”
58. Sidney wishes writers who copy classical orators like Cicero would “devour them whole,” meaning they should—
A. memorize their speeches
B. copy their phrases exactly
C. internalize the principles behind their style
D. translate their works literally
59. A writer who cares more about speaking “curiously than truly” is said to be—
A. a popular philosopher
B. a true poet
C. dancing to his own music
D. a master of energeia
60. An excessive use of “similitudes,” or comparisons, results in “tedious prattling” that confuses the reader’s—
A. judgment
B. emotion
C. memory
D. passion
61. Sidney believes that some scholars abuse their learning by using their knowledge of art simply to—
A. teach effectively
B. create beauty
C. find the truth
D. show off that knowledge
62. The English language is praised by Sidney for being a “mingled language” because it takes the best from—
A. Latin and Greek
B. the other languages it comes from
C. the royal court
D. the common people
63. Sidney argues that the English language is naturally good for modern verse because its words have clear—
A. spellings
B. origins
C. stress patterns
D. definitions
64. A rhyme with the stress on the second-to-last syllable, like “pleasure” and “treasure,” is called—
A. Masculine Rhyme
B. Sdrucciola Rhyme
C. Internal Rhyme
D. Feminine Rhyme
65. In his final summary, Sidney claims the accusations against poetry are “either false or __________.”
A. blasphemous
B. feeble
C. complicated
D. ungrateful
66. The reason England fails to value poetry, according to Sidney, is because of “poet-apes,” not—
A. philosophers
B. true poets
C. historians
D. the language
67. Sidney asks readers to believe with Scaliger that reading __________ can make a man honest faster than philosophy.
A. Homer
B. Dante
C. Chaucer
D. Virgil
68. Sidney says poetry purposefully hides mysteries “under the veil of fables” so that “__________” cannot abuse them.
A. common people
B. kings and tyrants
C. profane wits
D. rival poets
69. In his humorous conclusion, Sidney says poets can make you immortal by placing your soul among figures like Virgil’s—
A. Aeneas
B. Dido
C. Anchises
D. Turnus
70. The people who speak against poetry are fundamentally __________, according to Sidney.
A. foolish
B. ungrateful
C. uneducated
D. impious
71. Homer’s epics, for Sidney, served as a complete guide to Greek history, values, and—
A. science
B. laws
C. religion
D. mathematics
72. Sidney states that philosophers like Pythagoras delivered their ethical lessons through—
A. logical proofs
B. public debates
C. written laws
D. song and poetry
73. The “areytos” performed by the “simple Indians” are songs that preserve their history, religion, and—
A. laws
B. farming techniques
C. ancestry
D. language
74. Sidney believes the universal love for poetry proves it is the first necessary step towards all other forms of—
A. entertainment
B. religious worship
C. social status
D. learning
75. While Sidney calls the “Sortes Virgilianae” a “godless superstition,” he uses it as proof of the immense __________ people had for poets.
A. fear
B. pity
C. reverence
D. dislike
76. The poet’s “high-flying liberty of conceit” gives their words a—
A. “divine force”
B. “historical accuracy”
C. “philosophical weight”
D. “popular appeal”
77. Sidney states that practitioners of all other arts and sciences remain fundamentally limited to studying—
A. the future
B. what already exists
C. the abstract world
D. the human soul
78. Sidney’s “erected wit” refers to the human intellect’s ability to grasp the idea of—
A. God
B. the past
C. perfection
D. infinity
79. The type of poetry that is “wrapped within the fold of the proposed subject” and cannot use invention freely is—
A. Divine Poetry
B. Right Poetry
C. Heroical Poetry
D. Philosophical Poetry
80. Sidney believes a poem can fail only because of the fault of the individual poet, not the—
A. language
B. art form itself
C. audience
D. historical subject
81. Because poetry deals with the universal ideal (“what should be”), Sidney states it is superior to history, which is stuck with the—
A. divine
B. abstract
C. particular
D. future
82. A fictional story from a poet is better at moving the reader because it can be “tuned to the highest key of __________.”
A. passion
B. logic
C. truth
D. music
83. The main reason the poet wins the “laurel crown” over the philosopher is for the ability to move people to—
A. “well-thinking”
B. “well-speaking”
C. “well-knowing”
D. “well-doing”
84. The author states it is acceptable for different kinds of poetry to be—
A. censored by the state
B. mixed together
C. written only by nobles
D. kept secret from the public
85. In Sidney’s view, comedy teaches by contrasting the “filthiness of evil” with the—
A. “holiness of the divine”
B. “certainty of history”
C. “beauty of virtue”
D. “complexity of philosophy”
86. Sidney notes that the English language has an advantage over French and Italian because it possesses __________ types of rhyme.
A. one
B. two
C. three
D. four
87. Sidney believes that the people of __________ are held in “devout reverence.”
A. Turkey
B. Wales
C. Greece
D. Ireland
88. The character Orlando is used by Sidney as an example of an ideal—
A. true lover
B. valiant man
C. right prince
D. constant friend
89. For Sidney, the ultimate goal of the “mistress-knowledge” is the knowledge of—
A. the universe
B. God
C. oneself
D. the past
90. Sidney argues that poetry can “devise new punishments in hell” for—
A. tyrants
B. bad poets
C. philosophers
D. ungrateful children
91. The mixing of genres in English plays is criticized for ruining the “right __________” in comedy.
A. moral
B. conclusion
C. sportfulness
D. characters
92. Sidney finds it wrong for comedy to laugh at “sinful things,” which should be hated, or “miserable” things, which should be—
A. mocked
B. ignored
C. pitied
D. praised
93. A writer who uses rhetorical figures as external decorations without genuine feeling is compared to a person who wears—
A. a crown without being a king
B. jewels just for the sake of being flashy
C. a soldier’s uniform without being brave
D. a scholar’s robe without being wise
94. The author’s discussion of prose style is relevant because oratory and poetry are—
A. complete opposites
B. equally profitable
C. closely related
D. both dying art forms
95. The classical quantitative verse, used by Greeks and Romans, is based on the __________ of syllables.
A. number
B. stress
C. duration
D. sound
96. Sidney praises the English language because it is capable of any “excellent __________” of poetry.
A. translation
B. exercising
C. criticism
D. publication
97. In his final plea, Sidney wants readers to believe that poets write from a—
A. “divine fury”
B. “philosophical calm”
C. “historical duty”
D. “sense of humor”
98. The conversation with Pugliano made Sidney think that if a practical skill like horsemanship receives passionate praise, then poetry certainly deserved its—
A. funding
B. audience
C. defence
D. critique
99. Sidney credits Gower and Chaucer as the first poets who gave prestige and __________ to the English language.
A. rhythm
B. grammar
C. shape
D. vocabulary
100. The philosopher Plato achieved a poetic effect in his writing by using dramatic dialogues rather than—
A. epic poems
B. dry treatises
C. personal letters
D. historical records
101. The custom of the “Sortes Virgilianae” shows the immense reverence people had for the poet—
A. Homer
B. Dante
C. Ovid
D. Virgil
102. Sidney hesitates to call the Psalms of David poetry for fear of “profaning a __________.”
A. sacred text
B. philosophical idea
C. royal decree
D. holy name
103. Sidney states that astronomers and geometers are limited because they can only study what—
A. can be imagined
B. is written in books
C. exists
D. is approved by the church
104. The poet gives form to a perfect idea that exists in their mind, which is a concept Sidney calls the “idea, or __________.”
A. fore-conceit
B. after-thought
C. true-sight
D. inner-voice
105. The reason the poet is the true winner over the philosopher and historian is that he combines the philosopher’s precept with the historian’s—
A. accuracy
B. example
C. narrative
D. timeline
106. In history, the wicked often prosper, as in the case of the successful but morally questionable—
A. Socrates
B. Cato
C. Caesar
D. Herodotus
107. Sidney believes that philosophy requires “attentive, studious __________,” making it less accessible than poetry.
A. wealth
B. leisure
C. painfulness
D. genius
108. The Satiric Poem uses __________ as its weapon to make people ashamed of their faults.
A. direct aggression
B. pity and compassion
C. praise and honour
D. laughter and ridicule
109. An example of an appropriate target for comic laughter, according to Sidney, is the arrogant—
A. “virtuous prince”
B. “suffering hero”
C. “self-wise-seeming schoolmaster”
D. “pious prophet”
110. Sidney criticizes ornate writers for piling on too many “figures and flowers” of speech until the __________ is buried under decoration.
A. rhythm
B. rhyme
C. author’s name
D. meaning
111. The simple and direct style of the __________ is praised by Sidney as being more sound than that of some scholars.
A. courtiers
B. merchants
C. farmers
D. soldiers
112. A rhyme on the third-to-last syllable, like “beautiful” and “dutiful,” is known as—
A. Masculine Rhyme
B. Sdrucciola Rhyme
C. Feminine Rhyme
D. Slant Rhyme
113. In his final humorous curse, Sidney hopes that a poetry-hater, for lacking skill, will never gain favour in—
A. business
B. war
C. politics
D. love
114. The first teachers in Rome who established a literary culture were the poets Livius Andronicus and—
A. Virgil
B. Ovid
C. Ennius
D. Horace
115. A key way poets create their “golden” world is by inventing __________ who serve as models for humanity.
A. new languages
B. complex philosophies
C. perfect characters
D. alternate histories
116. The knowledge of oneself, with the final end of “well-doing,” is the supreme knowledge Sidney calls—
A. Mimesis
B. Energeia
C. Architektonike
D. Poetes
117. The poet excels at solving the main challenge of moving people to do—
A. what is profitable
B. what is easy
C. whát is right
D. what is popular
118. A major fault of English comedy, in Sidney’s view, is that it tries to get laughter from “doltishness” or crude—
A. civility
B. scurrility
C. morality
D. poesy
119. Sidney’s overall goal in his discussion of style is to identify the “common infection” of overly ornate writing so that writers can return to a right use of matter and—
A. rhyme
B. inspiration
C. manner
D. passion
120. Sidney’s final argument is that a person should believe in poetry because the gods love poets and can make you __________ with their verses.
A. wealthy
B. powerful
C. famous
D. immortal
