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Literature in English Past Questions

Study and practice Literature in English past questions with answers and detailed explanations. Then test your knowledge using our interactive CBT practice platform and prepare confidently for your upcoming examinations.

50 questions JAMB 2378 WAEC 1459 CUSTOM 2

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Past Questions

50 questions

Question 1 of 20 50 total questions

Question 1

jamb 1987

In David Diop's 'The Vultures', the statement 'And the monotonous rhythm of the paternoster Drowned the howing on the plantations,' suggests that

Amusic was more important than work

Bboredom received more attention than suffering

Cmusic was more pleasant than cries

Dreligion received more attention than the suffering slaves.

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Question 2

jamb 1987

In 'Vanity', Birage Diop portrays the African predicament as arising from

Asad complaining voices of beggars

Bpitiful anger bowing like a tumour

Cnot listening to the dead

Dclamouring and crying roughly over our torments

View Explanation & Discuss

Question 3

jamb 1987

In The Victims, the affection between Ubaka and Bomboy is significant because it

Aresults in the death of Ubaka

Bshows that young people are more affectionate than their elders

Ccontrasts with the general hatred in their family

Dleads to reconciliation in the family

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Question 4

jamb 1987

An antagonist is a character in a narrative who

Auses abusive language to antagonize other characters

Bworks against the interest the interests of the protagonist

Cworks against the interests of other characters

Dchampions the cause of the protagonist

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Question 5

jamb 1987

A sonnet is a poem of

Afourteen lines

Bten lines

Cseven stanzas

Dsix stanzas

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Question 6

jamb 1987

A couplet is a

Asuccession of three rhyming lines

Bsuccession of two rhyming lines

Cpoem of two stanzas

Dpoem of three stanzas

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Question 7

jamb 1987

An allegory is a story

Ain which people or things or events have another meaning

Bwhich aims at teaching a moral lesson

Cin which allegations are made about the characters

Dtold in verse

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Question 8

jamb 1987

Alliteration is

Athe use of figures of speech to achieve poetic effect

Bthe repetition of two or more words having the same initial consonant sound

Cusually employed to set the scene for a conflict

DAll of the above

View Explanation & Discuss

Question 9

jamb 1987

An ode is best described as a

Astory told in poetic from

Bpoetic composition of fourteen lines

Cnarration about nature and natural objects

Dlyrical poem addressed to some persons things

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Question 10

jamb 1987

She said you just had to make an emotional commitment in marriage. It was like skiing, you could not see in advance what would happen but you had to let go. Maybe that was why I failed, because I didn't know what I had to let go of. For me it hadn't been like skiing, it was more like jumping off a cliff. That was the feeling I had all the time I was married, in the air, going down, waiting for the smash at the bottom.

The passage indicates that the author's experience in marriage was

Aexhilarating like skiing

Bsteeped in boredom and monotony

Cfull of fear of the unknown

Dfraught with grief and despair

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Question 11

jamb 1987

'A white ball of fire tore through the dome of the night. It exploded into the branches of a colossal tree of fire - whose stem instantly leapt towards the earth'.
The passage directs is appeal primarily to the sense of

Ahearing

Bsight

Ctouch

Dsmell.

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Question 12

jamb 1987

'what happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore-
And then run?'
In the above lines, the poet achieves special effect by the use of

Atransferred epithet

Bsynecdoche

Calliteration

Dsimile.

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Question 13

jamb 1987

''...her vesper done of all its wreathed pearls her hair she fees. Unclasps her warmed jewels one by one; Loosens her fragrant bodice; by degrees

Her rich attire creeps rustling to her knees''.

The passage gives ample evidence of the poet''s

Asensuous description

Bmeticulous attension to matters concerning women

Cmastery of the Spenserian stanza

Dsensual feelings and emotions.

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Question 14

jamb 1987

'For i have known them all already, known them all.
Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons,
I have measured out my life with coffee spoons'.
The tone in these lines suggest

Athe authors desire to accomplish more in life

Banxiety and tension

Ctediousness and boredom

Danger and exasperation.

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Question 15

jamb 1987

'Olu hissed, slammed the door and dash out screaming'.
The dominant figure of speech in the above sentence is

Azeugma

Boxymoron

Chyperbole

Donomotopoeia

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Question 16

jamb 1987

'A dungeon horrible, one all sides round'
As one great furnace flamed, yet for those flames
No light, but rather darkness visible'.
The phrase 'darkness visible' in the above lines is an example of

Ametaphor

Bhyperbole

Coxymoron

Dlitotes.

View Explanation & Discuss

Question 17

jamb 1987

'Was it for this you took such constant care
The bodkin, comb and essence to prepare?
For this your locks in paper durance bound?
For this with tort'ring iron wreath'd round?
The dominant figure of speech in the above passage is

Asynecdoche

Brhetorical questions

Cparody

Dapostrophe.

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Question 18

jamb 1987

'The early morning smoke had now gone off the eyes of the day. Trees and houses were still wet from last night's rain, but a cool breeze caressed the world like a gentle hand.'
The dominant literary device in this passage is

Ametaphor

Boxymoron

Csynecdoche

Dpersonification

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Question 19

jamb 1987

'Have you got any hands today?
'No, i am working alone. My helpers are on strike
'Would you like to engage me? My fees are reasonable.'
'No thank you'.
In this brief dialogue, the first line contains the device known as

Asyncedoche

Bparadox

Coxymoron

Dhyperbole

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Question 20

jamb 1987

The novel, The Novella and the Short Story are the major sub-genres

Anon-fiction

Bprose fiction

Cpoetry

Ddrama

View Explanation & Discuss

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