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British Literature Unit 3 Pretest

Total questions: 20

Worksheet time: 10mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

All of the following elements contribute to the musical effect of a poem except

a)

rhyme

b)

personification

c)

meter

d)

alliteration

2.

Which of the following statements about theme is false?

a)

Writers rarely state their themes directly.

b)

Readers may have different interpretations of the theme of a work.

c)

The theme of a work is the same as the subject.

d)

Sometimes the theme of a work is related to the time period in which the work was written.

3.

A dramatic monologue is a poem in which —

a)

the speaker is the voice of the poet

b)

the poet uses heightened language to tell a story

c)

two characters address each other in turn

d)

a speaker who is not the poet addresses a silent listener

4.

A traditional Petrarchan, or Italian, sonnet —

a)

is divided into an octave and a sestet

b)

does not rhyme

c)

contains three quatrains

d)

has more than one speaker

5.

The mood in a literary work —

a)

never changes in the course of the work

b)

is defined by the subject of the work

c)

is always established in the opening of the work

d)

can shift at various points in the work

6.

Which of the following word pairs is assonant?

a)

sun and shade

b)

hill and dale

c)

erase and fade

d)

daily and dull

7.

Which of the following statements about couplets is true?

a)

Couplets are elements that repeat throughout a poem.

b)

A couplet consists of two consecutive lines of poetry that rhyme.

c)

A pair of rhyming words forms a couplet.

d)

Couplets always appear at the end of poems.

8.

What is the difference between an internal conflict and an external conflict?

a)

An internal conflict takes place between two characters, while an external conflict takes place between a character and society.

b)

An internal conflict takes place within a character, but an external conflict takes place between a character and a group, a force of nature, or another character.

c)

An external conflict is the major conflict in a work, and an internal conflict is a struggle that takes place between subordinate characters.

d)

Whereas an external conflict relates to the historical context of a literary work, an internal conflict relates to the particular lives of the characters.

9.

Which of the following statements about allegories is true?

a)

They can be understood on both a literal and symbolic level.

b)

They do not use traditional plot devices.

c)

They are meant to be read literally.

d)

They are not open to multiple interpretations.

10.

Which of the following statements about antonyms is true?

a)

The definition of antonym is “a word with a prefix meaning ‘not’ added to it.”

b)

Every word has only one antonym.

c)

Antonyms differ from synonyms only in their connotations.

d)

An antonym has the opposite or nearly the opposite meaning as another word.

11.

A fourteen-line poem that traditionally conforms to strict patterns of rhythm and rhyme is known as a(n) —

a)

couplet

b)

sestet

c)

ode

d)

sonnet

12.

A speech that an actor delivers to the audience when no one else is onstage is called a(n) —

a)

dialogue

b)

soliloquy

c)

aside

d)

monologue

13.

Tone can best be described as the writer’s —

a)

choice of words

b)

philosophical beliefs

c)

attitude toward the reader, a subject, or a character

d)

central idea about human experience

14.

What is a paradox?

a)

An apparent contradiction that is actually true

b)

An illogical comparison

c)

A false statement

d)

An idea that is implied, not stated

15.

Which of the following quotations contains an example of parallelism, or parallel structure?

a)

“Let tyrants fear.”

b)

“Farewell, thou child of my right hand, and joy.”

c)

“Read not to contradict and confute; nor to believe and take for granted; nor to find talk and discourse; but to weigh and consider.”

d)

“No man prospers so suddenly as by others’ errors.”

16.

The unique manner in which writers use language to express their ideas is known as —

a)

mood

b)

point of view

c)

style

d)

cadence

17.

Which of the following quotations contains personification?

a)

“Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”

b)

“My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground.”

c)

“Revenge is a kind of wild justice.”

d)

“There will be the river whispering run.”

18.

When comparing authors’ points of view about a subject, you should —

a)

dismiss ideas that an author implies but does not state

b)

consider the time period in which each author wrote the work

c)

look only for similarities between the arguments

d)

disregard the authors’ choice of words

19.

A knowledge of Greek and Latin roots can help you do all of the following except —

a)

recognize that particular mathematical terms have related meanings

b)

define certain unfamiliar scientific terms

c)

understand the origin of some medical terms

d)

appreciate the complexity of a biological process

20.

Which of the following statements about synonyms is false?

a)

Synonyms must derive from the same root.

b)

Synonyms can have nearly the same meaning.

c)

Synonyms may have different connotations.

d)

The contexts in which two synonyms are used may differ.