Question

question 6
read this quotation:
a horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse!
—william shakespeare, king richard iii, act v, scene iv
why is this verse an example of iambic pentameter?
a. it is a line from shakespeare, and his plays contain verse written only in iambic pentameter.
b. it contains five metrical feet, each with an unstressed and then a stressed syllable.
c. the verse forms a pattern of an unstressed syllable immediately followed by a stressed syllable.
d. the verse is 10 syllables long with an unstressed syllable at the beginning and end.

Explanation:

To determine why the verse is iambic pentameter, recall: Iambic pentameter has 5 iambs (metrical feet), each iamb is an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed one. Let's analyze options:

• Option A: Shakespeare's plays also have prose, so "only in iambic pentameter" is wrong.
• Option B: Iambic pentameter has 5 feet (pentameter) with each foot (iamb) being unstressed then stressed. This matches the definition.
• Option C: The pattern of unstressed then stressed is an iamb, but the option's wording is less precise about the 5 - foot structure. Also, the key is the 5 iambs.
• Option D: A 10 - syllable line with unstressed at start/end doesn't define iambic pentameter (which needs 5 iambs, each unstressed - stressed).

Answer:

B. It contains five metrical feet, each with an unstressed and then a stressed syllable.