Question 44
GCE_MODEL_QUESTIONS_VOL1
•
2025
•
LITERATURE_IN_ENGLISH
•
objective
In the poem *"Ode to a Nightingale"* by John Keats, the following three lines appear:
"Thou wast not born for death,\
Yet, once, thou cam'st to me,\
And sang a song of love."
Identify the figure of speech used in each line, and explain how each contributes to the overall mood of the poem. Provide a brief synthesis of how the combined effect of these figures of speech deepens the poem's exploration of transience and eternity.
Answer Options
Correct Answer
A.
Line 1 uses a paradox, line 2 uses apostrophe (addressing the bird) with a sense of fleeting time, and line 3 uses a metaphor (the song as love) together with personification. The paradox creates a lofty, contemplative mood; the apostrophe adds intimacy and urgency; the metaphor adds tenderness. Combined, they contrast the nightingale's imagined eternity with the poet's brief encounter, deepening the poem's exploration of transience versus eternity.
B.
All three lines rely on personification alone, giving the nightingale human qualities, which solely creates a whimsical mood rather than addressing transience or eternity.
C.
Line 1 features alliteration with the repeated ‘t' sound, line 2 uses onomatopoeia with ‘cam'st', and line 3 demonstrates enjambment; these formal devices set a rhythmic tone but do not contribute to the poem's thematic contrast.
D.
Line 1 employs a simile, comparing death to a distant horizon; line 2 uses a metaphor, treating the nightingale as a messenger; line 3 contains hyperbole, exaggerating the song's power, none of which shape the poem's mood as described.
Correct Answer
A
Correct Option:
Line 1 uses a paradox, line 2 uses apostrophe (addressing the bird) with a sense of fleeting time, and line 3 uses a metaphor (the song as love) together with personification. The paradox creates a lofty, contemplative mood; the apostrophe adds intimacy and urgency; the metaphor adds tenderness. Combined, they contrast the nightingale's imagined eternity with the poet's brief encounter, deepening the poem's exploration of transience versus eternity.
About This Question
This is
Gce Model Questions Vol1
2025
Literature In English
Question 44.
It is one of the
objective
questions from the
2025
Gce Model Questions Vol1
Literature In English
examination.
Difficulty level:
Medium
.