Paul Laurence Dunbar’s poem The Sparrow, Exam Based Questions

Paul Laurence Dunbar’s

The Sparrow

1. In Dunbar’s poem “The Sparrow,” what is the central theme? (UPSC, PGTRB, TNPSC, NET, CUET)

a) Human suffering and resilience

b) The insignificance of life

c) The joy of nature and birdsong

d) The inevitability of death

Answer: a) Human suffering and resilience

2. Which bird is symbolically used in Paul Laurence Dunbar’s poem “The Sparrow”? (TNPSC, NET, SET)

a) Nightingale

b) Sparrow

c) Dove

d) Crow

Answer: b) Sparrow

3. What does the sparrow symbolize in Dunbar’s poem? (UPSC, PGTRB, CUET, NET)

a) Wealth and power

b) Fragility and struggle of common people

c) Eternal love

d) Immortality of the soul

Answer: b) Fragility and struggle of common people

4. What poetic device is dominant in “The Sparrow” by Paul Laurence Dunbar? (NET, SET, TNPSC)

a) Allegory

b) Personification

c) Imagery

d) Hyperbole

Answer: c) Imagery

5. Which literary movement is Dunbar often associated with, reflected in “The Sparrow”? (UPSC, PGTRB, NET)

a) Harlem Renaissance

b) Romanticism

c) African-American literature of the late 19th century

d) Transcendentalism

Answer: c) African-American literature of the late 19th century

6. In “The Sparrow,” Dunbar’s tone can best be described as: (CUET, TNPSC, NET)

a) Joyful and carefree

b) Melancholic yet compassionate

c) Cynical and bitter

d) Humorous and ironic

Answer: b) Melancholic yet compassionate