1. Which of the following would best characterize a literary movement? (1
point)similar plots
shared ideas
familiar titles
contemporary publishers
The item below has been reviewed and is scheduled to be updated. All students
will receive full credit for any response to the following.
2.Which literary movement ended around the time of the Civil War? (1
American Romanticism
American Realism
American classicism
American regionalism
3. Thomas Paine’s Common Sense was a major influence on the (1
American Revolution
War of 1812.
Civil War.
French and Indian War.
4. Which of the following poets is best known for writing poetry in free verse? (1 point)
Phillis Wheatley
Edgar Allan Poe
Emily Dickinson
Jonathan Edwards
5. Which of these authors is best known for a narrative of his journey to America? (1 point
William Bradford
Walt Whitman
Thomas Paine
Jonathan Edwards
6. Which two authors share stylistic similarities, despite their work in different literary movements? (1 point)
Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman
William Bradford and Olaudah Equiano
Ambrose Bierce and Edgar Allan Poe
Henry James and Sarah Orne Jewett
7. Which of the following defines the meter of a poem? (1 point)
the number of lines
the arrangement of stressed and unstressed syllables
the rhythm of end rhymes
the number of words in a line
8. According to Fred Veillux, in "Indians Are a People, Not Mascots," what are Native American mascots? (1 point)
stereotypes of Native Americans
emblems of Native American culture
methods for understanding Native American history
realistic copies of Native American art
9. Which of the following is a theme of “Young Goodman Brown”? (1
point)It’s better to be patient than happy.
Sadness leads to wisdom.
The truth is often hidden.
It's better to be lucky than good.
Matching
Match the literary movement or subgenre with the literature. Letters may be used
more than once.
A. Early American and Colonial Literature
B. American Romanticism
C. Transcendentalism
D. Realism
E. Regionalism
10. Phillis Wheatley's poetry (1 point)
11. Mark Twain's "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" (1 point)
12. Walt Whitman's poetry (1 point)
13. Henry David Thoreau's Walden (1 point)
The item below has been reviewed and is scheduled to be updated. Please insert
a. as the answer to receive full credit for this question.
14. Trickster tales and creation stories (1 point)
Multiple Choice
Read the following excerpt. Then answer questions 15–19.
I looked upon the scene before me—upon the mere house, and the simple landscape
features of the domain—upon the bleak walls—upon the vacant eyelike windows—upon
a few rank sedges—and upon a few white trunks of decayed trees—with an utter
depression of soul, which I can compare to no earthly sensation more properly
than to the afterdream of the reveler upon opium—the bitter lapse into everyday
life—the hideous dropping off of the veil. There was an iciness, a sinking, a
sickening of the heart—an unredeemed dreariness of thought which no goading of
the imagination could torture into aught of the sublime. What was it—I paused to
think—what was it that so unnerved me in the contemplation of the House of
Usher?
15. Which technique does the author use in this excerpt? (1
point)persuasion
information
description
interpretation
16. Which poetic device is used in the sentence "There was an iciness, a
sinking, a sickening of the heart–"? (1 point)enjambment
metaphor
consonance
assonance
17. Analyze the style of the excerpt above. The author is (1 point)Walt
Whitman.
William Bradford.
Jonathan Edwards.
Edgar Allan Poe.
18. Reread the first sentence of the excerpt above. Using context clues, you
conclude that sedges are (1 point)birds.
letters.
plants.
houses.
19. Which of the following statements best paraphrases the first sentence of
the excerpt above? (1 point)I had a daydream about a vacant house.
The house before me was surely haunted.
The appearance of the house depressed me.
My neighbor's house was vandalized.
Matching
Match the author with the regional dialect. Not all authors will be used.
A. Ambrose Bierce
B. Mark Twain
C. Charles Waddell Chesnutt
D. Cedric Yamanaka
E. Emily Dickinson
F. Sarah Orne Jewett
20. "One day, when I was one kid, I was climbing some rocks looking out at da
ocean. Down Malaekahana side. All of a sudden, my bruddah start screaming, 'Get
down from deah. No good. Da rocks sacred.'" (1 point)
21. "'Sylvy takes after him,' the grandmother continued affectionately, after
a minute's pause. 'There ain't a foot o' ground she don't know her way over, and
the wild creaturs counts her one o' themselves. Squer'ls she'll tame to come an'
feed right out o' her hands, and all sorts o' birds. Last winter she got the
jaybirds to bangeing here, and I believe she'd 'a' scanted herself of her own
meals to have plenty to throw out amongst 'em, if I had n'tkep' watch.'" (1
point)
22. "The feller took the money and started away; and when he was going out at
the door, he sorter jerked his thumb over his shoulder--so--at Dan'l, and says
again, very deliberate, 'Well,' he says, 'I don't see no p'ints about that frog
that's any better'n any other frog.'" (1 point)
23. “‘Scuse me, suh, I’s lookin’ for my husban’. I heerd you wuz a big man an’
hadlibbedheah a long time, an’ I ‘lowed you wouldn’t min’ ef I’d come roun’
an’ ax you ef you’d eberheerd of a merlatter man by de name er Sam Taylor
‘quirin’ roun’ in de chu’chesermongs’ de people fer his wife ‘Liza Jane?” (1
point)
Multiple Choice
24. What is the difference between denotation and connotation? (1
point)Denotation is a word's literal meaning. Connotation is the attitudes
associated with a word.
Connotation is a word's literal meaning. Denotation is the attitudes
associated with a word.
Denotation is a word's synonym. Connotation is a word's antonym.
Connotation is a word's synonym. Denotation is a word's antonym.
The item below has been reviewed and is scheduled to be updated. All students
will receive full credit for any response to the following.
25. Since words have multiple meanings, the context of a word often clues its
meaning better than the dictionary's definition. In the following lines from
Anne Bradstreet's poem, "To Her Father witih Some Verses," what is the best
definition for principal?
"Most truly honored, and as truly dear,
If worth in me or ought I do appear,
Who can of right better demand the same
Than may your worthy self from whom it came?
The principal might yield a greater sum,
Yet handled ill, amounts but to this crumb;
My stock's so small I know not how to pay,
My bond remains in force unto this day." (1 point)the head of a school
a primary reason
a belief or value
an amount of money
For questions 26–28, choose the meaning of the bold word in each passage.
26. “. . . and on every side of him towered the glaring affirmation of
omnipotence and wealth.” (1 point)power
greed
beauty
humanity
27. Free birth is an alleged requirement for membership in the Blue Vein
Society. (1 point)suspected
said
understood
underplayed
28. "Though Sheila meant no harm in her comment, she had forgotten the
pejorative meaning of her words, and the recipient was quite insulted." (1
point)pleasant
persistent
negative
unwelcome
29. Which of the following adjectives best describes Transcendentalist
beliefs? (1 point)conformist
individualistic
materialistic
passive
30. The suffix ‒ly, as in the word cautiously, means that cautiously is a(n)
(1 point)adjective.
adverb.
verb.
object.
Read the following passage from "Paul's Case" by Willa Cather and answer
questions 31–35.
1 When he awoke, it was three o’clock in the afternoon. He bounded
up with a start; half of one of
2his precious days gone already! He spent more than an hour in dressing,
watching every stage of his
3toilet carefully in the mirror. Everything was quite perfect; he was
exactly the kind of boy he had always
4wanted to be.
5 When he went downstairs Paul took a carriage and drove up Fifth
Avenue toward the Park. The
6snow had somewhat abated; carriages and tradesmen’s wagons were hurrying
soundlessly to and fro
7in the winter twilight; boys in woolen mufflers were shoveling off the
doorsteps; the avenue stages
8made fine spots of color against the white street. Here and there on the
corners were stands, with
9whole flower gardens blooming under glass cases, against the sides of
which the snowflakes stuck and
10melted; violets, roses, carnations, lilies of the valley—somehow vastly
more lovely and alluring that
11they blossomed thus unnaturally in the snow. The Park itself was a
wonderful stage winterpiece.
12 When he returned, the pause of the twilight had ceased and the
tune of the streets had changed.
13The snow was falling faster, lights streamed from the hotels that reared
their dozen stories fearlessly up
14into the storm, defying the raging Atlantic winds. A long, black stream
of carriages poured down the
15avenue, intersected here and there by other streams, tending
horizontally. There were a score of cabs
16about the entrance of his hotel, and his driver had to wait. Boys in
livery were running in and out of
17the awning stretched across the sidewalk, up and down the red velvet
carpet laid from the door to the
18street. Above, about, within it all was the rumble and roar, the hurry
and toss of thousands of human
19beings as hot for pleasure as himself, and on every side of him towered
the glaring affirmation of the
20omnipotence of wealth.
21 The boy set his teeth and drew his shoulders together in a spasm
of realization; the plot of all
22dramas, the text of all romances, the nerve-stuff of all sensations was
whirling about him like the
23snowflakes.
31. What does the passage suggest about Paul’s attitude toward Fifth Avenue?
(1 point)He had been there often.
He was too young to remember having been there.
He dreamed of being there.
He had avoided going there in the past.
32. The phrase “whirling about him like snowflakes” in lines 22 and 23 is an
example of (1 point)allusion.
alliteration.
simile.
onomatopoeia.
33. Lines 13 and 14 offer an example of (1 point)allusion.
alliteration.
simile.
personification.
34. From this passage, the reader can infer that Paul values (1
point)winter more than summer.
roses more than carnations.
fantasy more than reality.
work more than leisure.
35. Context clues suggest that livery, in line 16, means (1 point)pajama.
saddles.
grade school.
distinctive clothing.
For questions 36–39, each sentence contains an appositive phrase. Determine
whether the appositive phrase is essential or non-essential. Mark the sentence
that punctuates the appositive phrase correctly.
The item below has been reviewed and is scheduled to be updated. All students
will receive full credit for any response to the following.
36. (1 point)A delay a serious one occurred because of foot-deep snow.
A delay, a serious one, occurred because of foot-deep snow.
37. (1 point)Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was known for her tough
foreign policy.
Prime Minster, Margaret Thatcher, was known for her tough foreign policy.
38. (1 point)The movie Chariots of Fire is about two British sprinters
competing in the 1924 Olympics.
The movie, Chariots of Fire, is about two British sprinters competing in the
1924 Olympics.
39. (1 point)New skiers, especially those who are older, should not strain
themselves.
New skiers especially those who are older should not strain themselves.
For questions 40–43, select the correct form of the possessive for the
underlined word(s).
40. With Ms. Smith assistance, we learned to paddle a canoe (1 point)Ms
Smith’s
MsSmiths’s
Ms. Smitheses’
Ms Smiths
41. After two weeks vacation, we were happy to be home again. (1
point)week's
weeks'
weeks's
weeks
42. During Professor Jones lecture, we took notes. (1 point)Joneses
Jones’s
Jones’
Jones
43. Tuesday meeting notes will be posted. (1 point)Tuesday’s
Tuesdays’
Tuesdays’s
Tuesdays
Essay
Your teacher will grade your responses to ensure you receive proper credit for
your answers. Your responses should include the following to receive the points
in parentheses:
Respond in a paragraph. Answer is written in complete sentences. (10 pts)
44. In her essay "Writing Short Stories" Flannery O'Connor says this about
characterization:
"You can't cut characters off from their society and say much about them as
individuals."
"You can't say anything meaningful about the mystery of personality unless you
put that personality in a believable and significant social context."
Consider the quotations above. Then pick a story from Semester A and evaluate
how the social context and the characters work together not only to provide a
vivid setting, but also to help explain and develop the characters' thoughts,
words, and actions. (10 points)
Respond in a well-organized essay. Answer is written in complete sentences.
(25 pts)
45. In the middle of the 19th century, political philosopher Alexis de
Tocqueville claimed, "The inhabitants of the United States have...properly
speaking, no literature." Based on what you learned this semester, is this
statement accurate? Evaluate the contributions of two or more writers in this
semester to the development of uniquely American literature. What genres,
subjects, themes, settings, or characters did these writers develop? (25
points)