英国文学试题库

I. Multiple Choice1. Generally speaking, the Renaissance refers to the period between the _and mid-17th centuries.A 13th B 14th C 15th D 16th 2. The Faerie Queene was written by_.A Sir Philip Sidney B W. Shakespeare C E. Spenser D F. Bacon3. _was the first to introduce the sonnet into English literature.A Thomas Wyatt B William Shakespeare C Philip Sidney D Thomas Campion4. Which of the following was not written by Henry Fielding?A The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling B The History of the Adventures of Joseph AndrewC The History of AmeliaD Pamela5. _ compiled The Dictionary of the English Language which became the foundation of all the subsequent English dictionaries.A Ben Jonson B Samuel Johnson C Alexander Pope D John Dryden6. Henry Fiellding was a versatile man. But he was not a(n) _.A novelist B dramatist C essayist D critic7. The Romantic Period began in 1798 with the publication of The Lyrical Ballads which was written by_.1,5,10,12,19,21,23,32,37,39A Wordsworth B Johnson C Coleridge D Wordsworth and Coleridge8. Which of the following is not a novel by Austen?A Pride and Prejudice B Sense and Sensibility C Northanger Abbey D Waverly9. Which of the following is the hero in the novel Jane Eyre?A Mr. Rochester B Heathcliff C Hindley D Silas Marner10. It is Browning who developed the literary form _.A monodrama B dramatic monologue C soliloquy D point of view keyII. Filling the blanks with proper words1. In the year _, at the battle of _, the Normans headed by William, Duke of Normandy, defeated the Anglo-Saxons.2. Chaucer died on the 25th of October, 1400, and was buried in _.3. _ are anonymous narrative songs that have been preserved by oral transmission.4. At the beginning of the 16th century the outstanding humanist_ wrote his Utopia in which he gave a profound and truthful picture of the peoples sufferings and put forward his ideal of a future happy society.5. Edmund Spenser was the author of the greatest epic poem of the time, _.6. During the 22 years of his literary work Shakespeare produced_ play, _narrative poems and _sonnets. 7,11,19,32,35,39,61,90,126,1317. Paradise Lost tells how_ rebelled against God and how Adam and Eve were driven out of_.8. Robinson names_ to commemorate the day of the savages rescue.9. _and _represented the spirit of what is usually called Pre-Romanticism.10. _, _and _were the watchwords of the French Revolution. keyIII. True or False Questions1. The word “essay” was coined by Bacon.2. John Donne is the leading figure of the “metaphysical ” school.3. John Milton completed Paradise Lost after he became totally blind.4. According to the Neoclassicists, all forms of literature were to be modeled after the classical works of the ancient Greek and Roman writers. 5. The Pilgrims Progress is the most successful political allegory in the English language.6. Gullivers Travels was written by Alexander Pope.7. The hero in Robinson Crusoe lived on the island for twenty four years. 3478,1213,15,25,31,328. Drama in the Romantic Period is as successful as fiction, poetry and essay.9. Influenced by both Darwin and Spencer, Hardy became a naturalistic writer.10. Tess was hanged because she killed Angel.IV. Questions for brief answers:1. What is the dominant moral of Dr. Faustus?2. What is the writing style of Bacons essays?3. What are John Miltons literary achievements?4. What are some of the features of Fieldings novels?5. How does Wordsworth define the poet?6. What is a Gothic novel? And name some of Gothic novels and their writers respectively.7. What is an ode?8. When did the Victorian Age begin and end?9. What is Olive Twist famous for?10. Why was Galsworthy a conventional writer?V. Essay questions:1. What is the main idea of The Merchant of Venice?2. Give a very brief account of Paradise Lost.3. Summarize the novel Tom Jones and make some comments on the main characters in it.4. What is Romanticism and what are some of the major features of the Romanticists?5. What is the famous line in Ode to the West Wind? Give your own opinion about it.6. What do you know about critical realism?7. What are the features of Dickenss works?8. Make a brief comment on the Victorian Period.9. Comment briefly on Sons and Lovers.10. What are some of the features of Ulysses?VI. Reading Comprehension:Exercise IThe quality of mercy is not strained;It droppeth as the gentle rain from heavenUpon the place beneath. It is twice blest;It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.Tis mightiest in the mightiest; it becomesThe throned monarch better than his crown.His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,The attribute to awe and majesty,Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;But mercy is above this sceptred sway;It is enthroned in the hearts of kings;It is an attribute to God himself,And earthly power doth then show likest GodsWhen mercy seasons justice. Therefore, Jew,Though justice be thy plea, consider this:That in the course of justice none of usShould see salvation. We do pray for mercy,And that same prayer doth teach us all to renderThe deeds of mercy.QUESTIONS:1. This passage is taken from a play named_.2. The author of the play is_.3. In the play these lines are uttered by_.4. What do you think of the speaker of these lines?Exercise IIShall I compare thee to a summers day?Thou art more lovely and more temperate.Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,And summers lease hath all too short a date:Sometimes too hot the eye of heaven shines,And often is his gold complexion dimmed;And every fair from fair sometime declines,By chance, or natures changing course, untrimmed:But thy eternal summer shall not fade,Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;Nor shall Death brag thou wanderest in his shadeWhen in eternal lines to time thou growest.So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.QUESTIONS:1. This is one of Shakespeares best known_.A. sonnets B. ballads C. songs2. It runs in iambic pentameter rhymed_.3. The fourteen lines include three stanzas according to their content with the last two lines as a _which complete the sense of the above lines.A. prelude B. couplet C. epigraphExercise III Studies serve for delight, for ornament, and for ability. Their chief use for delight is in privateness and retiring; for ornament, is in discourse; and for ability, is in the judgment and disposition of business. To spend too much time in studies is sloth; to use them too much for ornament is affectation; to make judgment wholly by their rules is the humor of a scholar. Crafty men contemn studies, simple men admire them, and wise men use them, for they teach not their own use; but that is a wisdom without them, and above them, won by observationQUESTIONS:1. These words are taken from a famous essay written by_.2. What is the title of this essay?3. What do you think of the language of this essay?Exercise IVDeath be not proud, though some have called theeMighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not soe,For, those, whom thou thinkst, thou dost overthrow,Die not, poore death, nor yet canst thou kill mee;From rest and sleepe, which but thy pictures bee,Much pleasure, them from thee, much more must flow,And soonest our best men with thee doe goe,Rest of their bones, and soules delivered.Thou art slave to Fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,And dost woth poyson, warre, and sicknesse dwell,And poppie, or charmes can make us sleepe as well,And better than thy stroake; why sweest thou then?One short sleepe past, wee wake eternlly,And death shall be no more, Death thou shalt die.QUESTIONS:1. This poem is a _.A song B sonnet C ballad2. Is the rhyme scheme the same with a Shakespearean sonnet?3. Who is the writer of this poem?Exercise VWhat though the field be lost?All is not lost: the unconquerable will,And study of revenge, immortal hate,And courage never to submit or yield:And what is else not to be overcome?That glory never shall his wrath or mightExtort from me. To bow and sue for graceWith suppliant knee, and deify his powerWho, from the terror of this arm, so lateDoubted his empire-that were low indeed;That were an ignominy and shame beneathThis downfall; since, by fate, the strength of godsAnd this empyreal substance, cannot fail;Since, through experience of this great event,In arms not worst, in foresight mich advanced,We may with more successful hope resolveTo wage by force or guile eternal war,Irreconcilable to our grand Foe,Who now triumphs, and in th excess of joySole reighing holds the tyranny of Heaven.QUESTIONS:1. These lines are in _.A blank verse B free verse C villanelle2. In the 2nd line, “the unconquerable will” refers to the will of _.A Zeus B Satan C Adam3. These lines are taken from a famous epic entitled_.4. Who is the author of this passage?5. What is the central theme of these lines?6. What do you think of the writing style of this passage?Exercise VI I had three encouragements. 1. A smooth, calm sea. 2. The tide rising and setting in to the shore. 3. What little wind there was blew me towards the land. And thus, having found two or three broken oars belonging to the boat, and besides the tools which were in the chest, I found two saws, an axe, and a hammer, and with this cargo I put to sea. For a mile or thereabouts my raft went very well, only that I found it drive a little distant from the place where I had landed before, by which I perceived that there was some in-draft of the water, and consequently I hoped to find some creek or river there, which I might make use of as a port to get to land with my cargo.QUESTIONS:1. This passage is taken from a famous novel entitled_.2. The writer of the novel is _.3. The protagonist of the novel is _. That is the “I” in this passage.4. Make a brief comment on the hero of the novel.5. What are the characteristics of the style and language?Exercise VII I lay down on the grass, which was very short and soft, where I slept sounder than ever I remember to have done in my life, and as I reckoned, above nine hours; for when I awaked, it was just daylight. I attempted to rise, but was not able to stir: for as I happened to be on my back, I found my arms and legs were strongly fastened on each side to the ground; and my hair, which was long and thick, tied down in the same manner. I likewise felt several slender ligature across my body, from my armpits to my thighs. I could only look upwards; the sun began to grow hot, and the light offended my eyes. I heard a confused noise about me, but in the posture I lay, could see nothing except the sky. In a little time I felt something alive moving on my left leg, which advancing gently forward over my breast, came almost up to my chin; when bending my eyes downwards as much as I could, I perceived it to be a human creature not six inches high, with a bow and arrow in his hands, and a quiver at his back.QUESTIONS:1. This passage is taken from a well-known novel written by _.2. The “I” in the novel was dropped in a strange country.The countrys name is _.3. The name of the novel is _.4. The name of the “I” in this passage is _.5. What is the writing style ?Exercise VIII A proof that even the humblest fortune may grant happiness, which depends, not on circumstances, but constitution. The place of our retreat was in a little neighbourhood, consisting of farmers, who tilled their own grounds, and were equal strangers to poulence and poverty. As they had almost all the conveniences of life within themselves, they seldom visited towns or cities in search of superfluities. Remote from the polite, they still retained the primeval simplicity of manners; and frugal by habit, they scarcely knew that temperance was a virtue. They wrought with cheerfulness on days of labour; but observed festivals as intervals of idleness and pleasure. They kept up the Christmas carol, sent true-love knots on Valentine morning, ate pancakes on Shrovetide, showed their wit on the first of April, and religiously cracked nuts on Michaelmas Eve. Being apprised of our approach, the whole neighbourhood came out to meet their minister, dressed in their finest clothes, and preceded by a pipe and tabor; a feast was also provided for our reception, at which we sat cheerfully down; and what the conversation wanted in wit was made up in laughter. Our little habitation was situated at the foot of a sloping hill, sheltered with a beautiful underwood behind and a prattling river before; on one side a meadow, on the other a green. My farm consisted of about twenty acres of excellent land, I having given a hundred pounds for my predecessors goodwill. Nothing could exceed the neatness of my little enclosures; the elms and hedgerows appearing with inexpressible beauty.QUESTIONS:1. This passage is taken from a novel entitled_.2. Who is the writer of this novel?3. The story is told in the first person singular by the central character of the novel. Who is he?Exercise IXI wander thro each charterd street,Near where the charterd Thames does flow,And mark in every face I meetMarks of weakness, marks of woe.In ever cry of every man,In every Infants cry of fear,In every voice, in every ban,The mind-forgd manacles I hear.How the Chimney-sweepers cryEvery