1. Dickinson's letters to Higginson suggest that her highest ambition for her poetry is that it be
aesthetically vital
publishable
technically unique
2. Dickinson's poems 130 and 214 describe experiences of nature in terms that are deliberately
personal
realistic
religious
3. Poems 241, 258, and 341 describe in introspective terms experiences of personal pain and sorrow. These descriptions suggest that Dickinson had
a keen observer's eye
an emotional life of profound intensity
an intimate acquaintance with contemporary poetry
4. Poems 435, 441, 448 describe Dickinson's attitude toward and ambitions for her poetry. They suggest that
she sought economic independence through her poetry
she considered her poetry to be of high quality
she wanted to develop a reputation as a prominent American poet
5. Dickinson's later poetry, exemplified by 1624 and 1732, suggests that
she had great hopes for America
she lost her belief in God
she experienced life as complex and ambiguous
6. In his letter to Emerson, Whitman identifies as his primary ambition
to be a founder of an indigenous American literature
to be a stylistic innovator
to put Emerson's philosophy in poetic language
7. When Whitman tells Emerson that "a profound person can easily know more of the people than they know of themselves" he is suggesting
that Emerson is such a person
the need for more careful education of American youth
a justification for his claim to be a representative voice for his readers
8. In "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry," Whitman describes the sights and sensations he experiences at sunset as he rides the crowded ferry across the East River from Manhattan to Brooklyn. His purpose in doing so is to
document the way that his pocket of America was at the time he lived there
express his unique perspective on this time and place
demonstrate how those common sights and sensations transcend time and all the other differences that divide Americans
9. In "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry," Whitman discusses individual identity as
autonomous and separate
nonexistent
derived out of commonality
10. The final line of "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry" asserts Whitman's belief that
the soul is embodied in the autonomous individual
the soul is the sum of the individuals in the community
individuals do not exist
11. Whitman's poetry is often described as providing a "catalog" of cultural sights and events. The primary effect of this catalog is
to inventory the characteristics of his culture for posterity
to add authenticity to his writing
to portray the diversity of American experience as encompassed in his consciousness.
12. Dickinson envisions literature functioning as
a religious sermon
an expression of national identity
an expression of individual, human experience
13. Whitman envisions "Song of Myself" as
an expression of one individual's experience
an expression of national identity
a new Homeric epic
14. Whitman's poetry may be contrasted with Dickinson's by being described as
precise and concrete rather than vague and abstract
undisciplined and innovative rather than disciplined and traditional
public and political rather than personal and private
15. In their differences, these poets can be read as offering
gender-specific experiences of American life
conflicting views of the American experience
complementary versions of life in nineteenth century America.