Unit Exam Review English 12B

Read the sentence from The Woman in White:

Finding us distinguished, as a nation, by our love of athletic exercises, the little man, in the innocence of his heart, devoted himself impromptu to all our English sports and pastimes whenever he had the opportunity of joining them; firmly persuaded that he could adopt our national amusements of the field by an effort of will precisely as he had adopted our national gaiters and our national white hat.

Based on the context in which the word impromptu is used, which response most accurately defines this word?

• at the spur of the moment or without any advance notice or preparation

• in a spirit of friendly, good-natured rivalry and competition

• with intensity and aggression that exceeds the bounds of good sportsmanship

• with total polish as the result of studious planning and diligent practice

Tags

TEKS.ELA.E1.2B

TEKS.ELA.E2.2B

TEKS.ELA.E3.2B

TEKS.ELA.E4.2B

TEKS.ELA.RI.1A

Read the excerpt from The Woman in White.

My father was a drawing-master before me. His exertions had made him highly successful in his profession; and his affectionate anxiety to provide for the future of those who were dependent on his labours had impelled him, from the time of his marriage, to devote to the insuring of his life a much larger portion of his income than most men consider it necessary to set aside for that purpose.

Which responses accurately state strategies that a student could use to determine the meaning of impelled?

(Select all that apply.)

• Brainstorm a different word, like caused or forced, that would make sense in the sentence.

• Consider words like compelled and propelled, which have similar roots.

• Consider words like impede and impetus, which have similar roots.

• Brainstorm a different word, like prevented or hindered, that would make sense in the sentence.

Tags

TEKS.ELA.CR.2F

TEKS.ELA.E1.2B

TEKS.ELA.E2.2B

TEKS.ELA.E3.2B

TEKS.ELA.E4.2B

Read the excerpt from The Woman in White.

“No, no, no,” she said vehemently. “I’m quite safe, and quite happy now. If you are a gentleman, remember your promise. Let him drive on till I stop him. Thank you—oh! thank you, thank you!”

Which responses accurately explain ways that a student who did not know the word vehemently could determine its meaning?

(Select all that apply.)

• Brainstorm other words, like “forcefully” or “emphatically,” that would make sense in the sentence.

• Analyze its prefix, ve-, to determine that it carries extra emphasis.

• Analyze its suffix, -ly, to determine that it is an adverb describing how the woman spoke.

• Brainstorm other words, like “nervously” or “timidly,” that would make sense in the sentence.

Tags

TEKS.ELA.CR.2F

TEKS.ELA.E1.2B

TEKS.ELA.E2.2B

TEKS.ELA.E4.2B

TEKS.ELA.RI.1A

Reread the poem “Dulce et Decorum Est.”

Which excerpts provide the strongest evidence that the narrator feels that war is unimaginably cruel?

(Select all that apply.)

• If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood
  Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs …

• And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,
  His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin, …

• In all my dreams before my helpless sight
  He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.

• Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs,
  And towards our distant rest began to trudge.

Tags

TEKS.ELA.E1.7B

TEKS.ELA.E2.7B

TEKS.ELA.E3.7B

TEKS.ELA.E4.7B

TEKS.ELA.LG.2L

Read the lines from “Up-Hill.”

Shall I find comfort, travel-sore and weak?
   Of labor you shall find the sum.
Will there be beds for me and all who seek?
   Yea, beds for all who come.

Which response most clearly explains the speaker’s views expressed in the lines?

• Heaven is a place where people rest and recover from the labor of life to prepare them to live again.

• Heaven is a place believed in by the living, but after death there is actually just eternal, oblivious sleep.

• Heaven is a place where people can rest, and there is room for anyone who travels there.

• Heaven is a place where people labor and toil, but where they occasionally find rest, just as in life.

Tags

TEKS.ELA.E1.7B

TEKS.ELA.E2.7B

TEKS.ELA.E3.7B

TEKS.ELA.E4.7B

TEKS.ELA.LG.2L

Read the lines from the poem “Up-Hill.”

Does the road wind up-hill all the way?
   Yes, to the very end.
Will the day’s journey take the whole long day?
   From morn to night, my friend.

Which responses clearly explain the effect of the language in the poem?

(Select all that apply.)

• The words “Yes, to the very end” create a slightly eerie tone, so that before the reader learns the metaphorical second meaning of the poem, the reader already senses the poem’s seriousness.

• The words “my friend” create an overly warm tone and let the reader know that the two speakers in the poem know each other well.

• The words “all the way” and “journey” create a light-hearted and joyful tone and inform the reader that excitement along the way will make the difficulties of this undertaking worthwhile.

• The words “up-hill” and “whole long day” create a serious, purposeful tone and imply to the reader that the journey described in the poem will be unceasingly difficult.

Tags

TEKS.ELA.E1.7B

TEKS.ELA.E2.7B

TEKS.ELA.E3.7B

TEKS.ELA.E4.7B

TEKS.ELA.LG.2L

Read the lines from “The Soldier.”

If I should die, think only this of me:
That there’s some corner of a foreign field
That is for ever England.

Which response accurately explains the meaning of the lines?

• The narrator’s grave will become an English place because he is English, implying that his death will not be a tragedy.

• The narrator will leave a legacy honoring England, implying that he will atone for the shame of his life by dying for his country.

• The narrator’s death will be in a “foreign field,” implying that his family must “think only” of him, since they cannot visit.

• The narrator will be in “some” corner of a field, implying that his grave will be unmarked because his body will be lost in the chaos of war.

Tags

TEKS.ELA.E1.7B

TEKS.ELA.E2.7B

TEKS.ELA.E3.7B

TEKS.ELA.E4.7B

TEKS.ELA.LG.2L

Read the excerpt from “Dulce et Decorum Est.”

Many had lost their boots,
But limped on, blood-shod.

Which response most clearly explains the impact of the description “blood-shod”?

• The description means the men wore blood, not shoes, on their feet, and this surprising choice of words reminds the reader of the shocking pain of war.

• The description is a synonym for being shell-shocked or, in modern terms, having symptoms of post-traumatic stress, and it shows that the soldiers were affected both physically and emotionally.

• The description means the men’s eyes were red from exhaustion, and this vivid, descriptive language creates a clear image of the effects of war for the reader.

• The description is a medical term for having lost so much blood that one is near death, and it explains with clinical precision and understatement why the men were limping.

Tags

TEKS.ELA.E1.7B

TEKS.ELA.E2.7B

TEKS.ELA.E3.7B

TEKS.ELA.E4.7B

TEKS.ELA.LG.2L

Read the lines from “Up-Hill.”

Will the day’s journey take the whole long day?
   From morn to night, my friend
But is there for the night a resting-place?
   A roof for when the slow dark hours begin.

Which response accurately explains the meaning of the words “the slow dark hours” in this poem?

• “The slow dark hours” is a metaphorical way of describing death.

• “The slow dark hours” refers to the nighttime on the traveler’s journey, when he must stay at the inn.

• “The slow dark hours” refers to times when people have sinned and feel far from their god.

• “The slow dark hours” is a figurative way of describing times of grief that will occur during life.

Tags

TEKS.ELA.E1.7B

TEKS.ELA.E2.7B

TEKS.ELA.E3.7B

TEKS.ELA.E4.7B

TEKS.ELA.LG.2L

Read the lines from “Dulce et Decorum Est.”

Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,
Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,
Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs,
And towards our distant rest began to trudge.

Which response accurately explains the effect of the descriptive language in the lines?

• The words “distant,” “rest,” and “turned our backs” show that the men can leave the conflict, creating a hopeful tone.

• The words “sacks” and “Knock-kneed” show that the men are weighed down with supplies they took from their enemies, creating a victorious tone.

• The words “hags,” “cursed,” and “haunting” show that the fighting is a supernatural experience, creating a mysterious tone.

• The words “Bent,” “beggars,” and “trudge” show that the men are exhausted from the war, creating a weary tone.

Tags

TEKS.ELA.E1.7B

TEKS.ELA.E2.7B

TEKS.ELA.E3.7B

TEKS.ELA.E4.7B

TEKS.ELA.LG.2L