JAMB Literature in English 1982 past questions and answers

Wordsworth's 'The World is Too Much With Us' is a

1. A.sonnet
2. B.epic
3. C.couplet
4. D.quartrain
5. E.tercet.

'The Thane of Cawdor lives: why do you dress me in borrowed robes? Macbeth is putting this question to

1. A.Banquo
2. B.the witches
3. C.his servant
4. D.Ross and Angus
5. E.Lady Macbeth.

The grave procession in Soyinka's 'Procession I–Hanging Day' is meant to suggest in the entire poem

1. A.the people are walking in the shadow of the walls
2. B.the people are moving slowly in order to avoid the sunny spots
3. C.the people in the procession are solemn
4. D.the people in the procession are solemn and are going to the grave
5. E.the people walk soundlessly.

Gray's 'Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard' can be seen as

1. A.a total condemnation of human life
2. B.lament for the death of the great and powerful
3. C.an attack on social inequality
4. D.a criticism of the poor and unambitious
5. E.a recognition of the worth of a simple and poor life.

In Shakespeare's Macbeth, the central character–Macbeth–is

1. A.a Russian general
2. B.a Scottish general
3. C.a Finnish general
4. D.an English general
5. E.a German general.

The 'Myth of the Bagre' is recited at the

1. A.funeral of young men
2. B.funeral of young women
3. C.funeral of old men and women
4. D.coming of age of young men and women
5. E.return of the ancestors.

Dramatic irony entails

1. A.a statement that means more than is evident to its maker
2. B.a hilarious statement
3. C.satirical comment
4. D.a sarcastic announcement
5. E.praise of the audience.

In 'Salute to the Elephant' the line 'The elephant's head is his burden which he balances' suggests that

1. A.the elephant's head is so big that it does not allow the animal to move elegantly
2. B.the elephant has a big head yet it moves elegantly
3. C.the elephant's head is so big that it makes the animal look clumsy
4. D.the elephant's head is so big that it prevents the animal from moving from one part of the forest to the other
5. E.the elephant's head is like a big instrument for weighing.

What is the subject of Kalu Uka's 'Earth to Earth?

1. A.The size of the universe
2. B.The immensity of Nature
3. C.Death
4. D.Growth
5. E.A long journey.

From Macbeth (Shakespeare)

Which character made the following statement in Macbeth?:

1. A.Macbeth
2. B.Duncan
3. C.Lady Macbeth
4. D.Macduff
5. E.Lennox.

Which character does NOT fit into the group?

1. A.Corin
2. B.Silvius
3. C.William
4. D.Young Siward
5. E.Audrey.

Praise-names from The Marriage of Anansewa

In The Marriage of Anansewa, to which character do the following praise-names refer?

1. A.Togbe Klu IV
2. B.Chief of the Mines
3. C.Chief-Who-Is-Chief
4. D.Chief of Sapa
5. E.Property Man.

The role of the Storyteller in The Marriage of Anansewa is that of a

1. A.bearer of false rumours
2. B.trickster
3. C.commentator
4. D.suitor
5. E.Chief's messenger.

In Oswald Mtshali's 'Nightfall in Soweto', night represents

1. A.the oppression of the whites by the Africans
2. B.white people's fear of the Africans
3. C.the black victimization of white people
4. D.the oppression of the Africans by the white people
5. E.the rebellion of the white people.

Keats' 'Ode to a Nightingale' is a romantic poem because

1. A.it depends a great deal on the poet's spontaneous response to beauty
2. B.it is a poem about love
3. C.nightingale symbolizes love
4. D.it was addressed to one of Keats' friends called Nightingale
5. E.Keats first described the poem as a romantic poem.

From Macbeth (Shakespeare)

'fatal vision' in the second line is a reference to

1. A.the ghost of Banquo
2. B.the ghost of Duncan
3. C.one of the three witches
4. D.an imaginary dagger
5. E.King Duncan's crown.

Which of the following is a major source of interest in As You Like It?

1. A.The effective use of disguise
2. B.The disappointment of lovers
3. C.The fidelity of Shakspeare's characters
4. D.The author's irreverent use of language
5. E.The consistency of roles.

In Mine Boy Peter Abrahams is of the view that in South Africa

1. A.black and white should live and develop separately
2. B.racial harmony is desirable and possible
3. C.black should never cooperate with white
4. D.racial harmony is mere wishful thinking
5. E.the conflict between black and white can never end.

Prose extract (Question 22)

What makes this scene taken from a novel very real to the reader is the writer's use of

1. A.imagery
2. B.simile
3. C.details
4. D.uncommon words
5. E.metaphor.

In these lines, 'the clammy and numbing night fog' (line 3) refers to

1. A.a night in the poet's life
2. B.unpleasant weather conditions
3. C.life's problems and misfortunes
4. D.the state before birth and after death
5. E.darkness after sunset.

The mood registered in these lines is

1. A.excitement
2. B.depression
3. C.gaiety
4. D.happiness
5. E.pessimism.

'So fair fancy few would weave In these years!' The poetic device consciously used here is

1. A.personification
2. B.apostrophe
3. C.alliteration
4. D.oxymoron
5. E.simile.

Prose extract (Question 26)

The literary device predominantly used in this passage is

1. A.hendiadys
2. B.onomatopoeia
3. C.metonymy
4. D.simile
5. E.personification.

From what he says, the kid in this passage

1. A.loves his father
2. B.dislikes his father
3. C.disowns his father
4. D.feels sorry for his father
5. E.is proud of his father.

What the writer feels for or toward the woman in this passage is

1. A.love
2. B.sympathetic understanding
3. C.contempt
4. D.respect
5. E.difference.

The sentiment expressed here about the curse on women is

1. A.that of the writer of the passage
2. B.that of the lady in the passage
3. C.that of the lady's parents
4. D.that of everybody everywhere
5. E.that of an unnamed person.

The man in this passage is obviously

1. A.a rich man
2. B.a poor man
3. C.an ignorant man
4. D.a rich ignorant man
5. E.a poor unthinking man.

To whom does 'her' (line 5) refer?

1. A.Majesty
2. B.World
3. C.Letter
4. D.Nature
5. E.The poet's sister.

The writer of these words is in a state of

1. A.exuberance
2. B.dejection
3. C.despair
4. D.joyful hope
5. E.dismal sorrow.

The dominant rhetorical device used in the poem is

1. A.apostrophe
2. B.personification
3. C.metonymy
4. D.synecdoche
5. E.simile.

The poet suggests that Science

1. A.teaches us everything about life
2. B.deals with the causes of natural phenomena
3. C.does not deal with the causes of natural phenomena
4. D.teaches us how to contemplate
5. E.does not teach us how to contemplate.

To whom does 'they' refer?

1. A.Men
2. B.Girls
3. C.Men and Girls
4. D.The walls
5. E.John and the girls.

In Zambia Shall Be Free Kaunda's 'wandering days' resulted from his

1. A.desire to visit other territories
2. B.need to assert himself by being on his own
3. C.disagreement with the members of his family
4. D.need to join other political parties
5. E.disagreement with his employers.

In The Narrow Path, Nani is transferred very frequently because he is

1. A.a trained teacher
2. B.an untrained teacher
3. C.a lazy worker
4. D.a devoted and hardworking teacher
5. E.a poor man's son.

In Mine Boy, the dominant Shebeen queen who is described as 'tall and big, with the smooth yellowness of the Basuto women...' is

1. A.Ma Plank
2. B.Leah
3. C.Eliza
4. D.Lena
5. E.Maisy.

'Local colour' in a novel or play is that feature which

1. A.defines the nature of the vegetation of the setting
2. B.explains the differences in patterns of behaviour of the characters
3. C.refers to the racial backgrounds of the major characters in the novel or play
4. D.emphazises the customs, norms, values and setting of the novel or play
5. E.hightlights the ethnic origins of the various characters in the novel or play.

'London'

The stanza form in 'London' is referred to as

1. A.a quartet
2. B.a quatrain
3. C.a quadruple
4. D.quintet
5. E.a sestet.

The most important figure of speech in the above passage is

1. A.paradox
2. B.personification
3. C.metaphor
4. D.simile
5. E.onomatopoeia.

The dominant images in the above passage are

1. A.cosmic
2. B.metallic
3. C.harsh
4. D.sensuous
5. E.domestic.

As non-fiction, V.S. Naipaul's The Middle Passage belongs more properly to the genre of

1. A.autobiography
2. B.sermon
3. C.travelogue
4. D.epistle
5. E.biography.

Which of the following comes closest to a correct interpretation of the symbol of the mine dumps in Mine Boy?

1. A.The hope of all workers
2. B.Acknowledgement of the efforts of black South African workers
3. C.The enduring courage of black workers
4. D.The dignity of labour under an oppressive regime
5. E.The exploitation of black labour by an oppressive regime.

When Di says of Eliza, 'That girl is tragedy already' she means

1. A.Eliza faces the threat of premature death
2. B.Eliza is a pathetic victim of culture conflict
3. C.Eliza is the tragic heroine of the novel
4. D.Eliza will not survive her illness
5. E.Eliza is suffering from an undiagnosed disease.

From Kenneth Kaunda's Zambia Shall Be Free (Question 49)

In this passage Kenneth Kaunda makes his account of the fight more vivid through the use of

1. A.repetitious statements
2. B.symbolic reference
3. C.biblical allusion
4. D.deliberate distortion
5. E.hyperbolic comment.