Question

the moving waters at their priestlike task
of pure ablution round earths human shores,
or gazing on the new soft-fallen mask
of snow upon the mountains and the moors —
no — yet still steadfast, still unchangeable,
pillowd upon my fair loves ripening breast,
to feel for ever its soft fall and swell,
awake for ever in a sweet unrest,
still, still to hear her tender-taken breath,
and so live ever — or else swoon to death.

— \bright star, would i were steadfast as thou art,\ john keats

this is an example of which poetic form?
a. ballad
b. free verse
c. blank verse
d. sonnet

Explanation:

This excerpt is from John Keats' "Bright Star, Would I Were Steadfast As Thou Art", which is a Shakespearean sonnet: it follows the 14-line structure of a sonnet, has a consistent iambic pentameter rhythm, and fits the thematic and formal conventions of the sonnet form. Ballads are narrative with a refrain, free verse has no fixed meter/rhyme, and blank verse has unrhymed iambic pentameter (this poem has a rhyme scheme), so those are incorrect.

Answer:

D. Sonnet