SAT Prep

Category - Reading

That time of year thou mayst in me behold
When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang
Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,
Bare ruin'd choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.
In me thou see'st the twilight of such day
As after sunset fadeth in the west;
Which by and by black night doth take away,
Death's second self, that seals up all in rest.
In me thou see'st the glowing of such fire,
That on the ashes of his youth doth lie,
As the death-bed, whereon it must expire,
Consum'd with that which it was nourish'd by.
This thou perceiv'st, which makes thy love more strong,
To love that well, which thou must leave ere long.



Which term most accurately describes the tone of this sonnet and speaker’s attitude toward his impending death?
  1. Tenacious
  2. Cryptic
  3. Resignation
  4. Resolution
Explanation
Answer: C - The term that most accurately describes the tone of this sonnet and the speaker’s attitude toward his impending death is resignation. Resignation is an acceptance of fate. This is particularly evident in the first quatrain, in which the speaker compares his time of life to late autumn. This reference to a natural phase in the cycle of seasons makes clear that it is fated and inevitable that age follow youth and death follow old age.
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