Practicing Success

Target Exam

CUET

Subject

English

Chapter

Comprehension - (Poetry / Literary)

Question:

Read the poem given below and answer the question by choosing the correct option:

"I cannot go to school today,"
Said little Peggy Ann McKay.
"I have the measles and the mumps,
A gash, a rash and purple bumps.
My mouth is wet, my throat is dry,
I'm going blind in my right eye.
My tonsils are as big as rocks,
I've counted sixteen chicken pox
And there's one more-that's seventeen,
And don't you think my face looks green?
My leg is cut-my eyes are blue-
It might be instamatic flu.
I cough and sneeze and gasp and choke,
I'm sure that my left leg is broke-
My hip hurts when I move my chin,
My belly button's caving in,
My back is wrenched, my ankle's sprained,
My 'pendix pains each time it rains.
My nose is cold, my toes are numb.
I have a sliver in my thumb.
My neck is stiff, my voice is weak,
I hardly whisper when I speak.
My tongue is filling up my mouth,
I think my hair is falling out.
My elbow's bent, my spine ain't straight,
My temperature is one-eight.
My brain is shrunk, I cannot hear,
There is a hole inside my ear.
I have a hangnail, and my heart is-what?
What's that? What's that you say?
You say today is... Saturday?
G'bye, I'm going out to play!"

The literary device used by the poet to highlight the number of ailments Peggy Ann Mckay seems to suffer from is :

Options:

transferred epithet

oxymoron

hyperbole

asyndeton

Correct Answer:

hyperbole

Explanation:

The correct literary device used by the poet to highlight the number of ailments Peggy Ann Mckay seems to suffer from is:

 hyperbole

Hyperbole is a figure of speech in which exaggeration is used for emphasis, and in this poem, Peggy Ann McKay exaggerates her illnesses to a great extent, listing a multitude of ailments, some of which are humorous and clearly exaggerated for effect.