AP Success - AP English Literature: The Broken Heart
The Broken Heart
He is stark mad, whoever says, That he hath been in love an hour, Yet not that love so soon decays, But that it can ten in less space devour; Who will believe me, if I swear That I have had the plague a year? Who would not laugh at me, if I should say I saw a flash of powder burn a day?
Ah, what a trifle is a heart, If once into love's hands it come! All other griefs allow a part To other griefs, and ask themselves but some; They come to us, but us love draws; He swallows us and never chaws; By him, as by chain'd shot, whole ranks do die; He is the tyrant pike,1 our hearts the fry.2
If 'twere not so, what did become Of my heart when I first saw thee? I brought a heart into the room, But from the room I carried none with me; If it had gone to thee, I know Mine would have taught thine heart to show More pity unto me ; but Love, alas! At one first blow did shiver3 it as glass.
Yet nothing can to nothing fall, Nor any place be empty quite; Therefore I think my breast hath all Those pieces still, though they be not unite; And now, as broken glasses show A hundred lesser faces, so My rags of heart can like, wish, and adore, But after one such love, can love no more.
—John Donne, 1633
1 predatory fish 2 small fish, easily devoured 3 shatter
"The Broken Heart" by John Donne, written in 1633
Question 1
In lines 3-4 ("He is stark mad, whoever says, / That he hath been in love an hour"), the speaker suggests that:
Love is a fleeting emotion.
Madness and love are intimately connected.
Love cannot be confined to a specific timeframe.
Being in love for an hour is a rational experience.
Madness is a temporary state.
Question 2
The phrase "it can ten in less space devour" (line 6) primarily signifies that love:
Can be destructive.
Is enduring and long-lasting.
Evolves over time.
Is difficult to understand.
Fosters growth and development.
Question 3
The rhetorical question in lines 7-8 ("Who will believe me, if I swear / That I have had the plague a year?") serves to:
Highlight the speaker's honesty.
Undermine the speaker's credibility.
Emphasize the severity of love.
Compare love to a disease.
Show the speaker's desperation for belief.
Question 4
The metaphor of a "flash of powder burn a day" (line 10) is used to illustrate:
The suddenness of love.
The destructive power of love.
The fleeting nature of attraction.
The intensity of passion.
The danger inherent in love.
Question 5
In line 12, "Ah, what a trifle is a heart," the speaker suggests that the heart is:
Resilient and strong.
Easily manipulated.
The source of all emotion.
Insignificant when compared to love.
Valuable and cherished.
Question 6
The comparison of love to a "tyrant pike" (line 19) suggests that love is:
Gentle and nurturing.
Cruel and domineering.
Indifferent and uninvolved.
Playful and whimsical.
Encouraging and supportive.
Question 7
The imagery of "broken glasses" (line 34) serves to symbolize:
Clarity and understanding.
Fragility and vulnerability.
Reconstruction and healing.
Confusion and distortion.
Transparency and honesty.
Question 8
In line 37, "My rags of heart can like, wish, and adore," indicates that the speaker feels:
Complete emotional fulfillment.
A sense of loss and incompleteness.
Overwhelming joy and contentment.
Detachment and indifference.
Anger and resentment.
Question 9
The passage as a whole portrays love as:
A unifying force.
A source of joy and happiness.
A dangerous and consuming power.
A trivial and unimportant emotion.
A guiding principle for behavior.
Question 10
The speaker's tone throughout the poem can best be described as:
Optimistic and hopeful.
Sarcastic and cynical.
Indifferent and apathetic.
Reverent and admiring.
Desperate and pleading.
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