Question

analyzing the effect of meter

i know that i shall meet my fate
somewhere among the clouds above
-\an irish airman foresees his death,\
w. b. yeats

which statement best describes the effect of meter in the first line of the poem?

• the stress on shall meet emphasizes the speakers desire to make new friends.
• the stress on i and my emphasizes that the speaker is selfish and self-centered.
• the stress on know and fate emphasizes the speakers certainty that he will die in combat.

Explanation:

Analyze the meter of the first line

Using the Poetic Meter knowledge point

The first line is: "I know that I shall meet my fate".
Scanning the line for stressed (\( / \)) and unstressed (\( \times \)) syllables reveals iambic tetrameter:
"I know | that I | shall meet | my fate"
\(\times \quad / \quad \times \quad / \quad \times \quad / \quad \times \quad /\)

The primary stresses fall on the words know, I, meet, and fate.

Evaluate the effect of the stressed words

The stressed words "know" and "fate" are key thematic elements.

• Stressing "know" highlights the speaker's absolute certainty.
• Stressing "fate" emphasizes his acceptance of his destined death ("meet my fate").

This combination underscores the speaker's calm, resolute certainty about his impending death in combat.

Compare with the given options

• Option 1 suggests "shall meet" emphasizes a desire to make new friends, which is incorrect and misinterprets the poem's theme of death.
• Option 2 suggests "I" and "my" emphasize selfishness, which is incorrect.
• Option 3 correctly identifies that the stress on "know" and "fate" emphasizes the speaker's certainty that he will die.

Answer:

• The stress on shall meet emphasizes the speaker's desire to make new friends.
• The stress on I and my emphasizes that the speaker is selfish and self-centered.
• The stress on know and fate emphasizes the speaker's certainty that he will die in combat. (Correct answer)