Question

The Merchant of Venice; The first speech Launcelot gives in Act 2: Scene 2 is written in _____?
A. iambic tetrameter
B. prose
C. blank verse
D. trochaic octameter

Answer 1

The answer is C) Blank Verse.

The first speech Launcelot gives in Act 2: Scene 2 in the play The Merchant of Venice is written in blank verse format. This is a speech made by Launcelot to himself when he sees Gobbo, his blind and old father.

A blind verse is a form of poetry in which all lines are almost or of the same length. However, the lines do not end in a rhyming pattern. Ever since the 16th century, the blank verse has been considered to be the most influential and common form of English poetry.

In this particular example, the blank verse has three lines with about eight words in each line. One line does not rhyme with the other.