Question

question 10 of 10
read these lines from \the love song of j. alfred prufrock\:

of restless nights in one - night cheap hotels
and sawdust restaurants with oyster shells

which best explains the metrical pattern of these lines?

a. they strongly resemble iambic pentameter, though other lines in
the poem do not.

b. they represent the strict iambic pentameter that persists
throughout the poem.

c. they are written in trochaic pentameter, though the rest of the
poem is iambic.

d. they are an unusual example of trochaic pentameter in a mostly
unmetered poem.

Explanation:

First, scan the lines: "Of RESTless NIGHTS in ONE-night CHEAP hoTELS" / "And SAWdust REStauRANTS with OYster SHELLS" follows the unstressed-stressed (iambic) rhythm, with 5 iambs (pentameter) per line, matching iambic pentameter. However, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock is not strictly metrical overall; many lines vary from this pattern. Option B is wrong because the poem does not maintain strict iambic pentameter. Options C and D are wrong because the lines are iambic, not trochaic (stressed-unstressed).

Answer:

A. They strongly resemble iambic pentameter, though other lines in the poem do not.