JAMB Literature in English 2014 past questions and answers

In Women of Owu, Orisaye describes Balogun Kusa as

1. A.a good leader.
2. B.a great warrior.
3. C.an enemy and a butcher.
4. D.a friend in need.

In Women of Owu, Erelu is

1. A.the first wife of the Oba.
2. B.the oldest wife of the Oba Akinjobi.
3. C.a courtier to the Alaafin of Oyo.
4. D.the most brilliant woman in Owu.

In Women of Owu, Balogun Kusa is killed by a

1. A.soldier.
2. B.god.
3. C.herbalist.
4. D.lunatic.

Questions 6 to 10 are based on William Shakespeare's The Tempest. In the play, Ariel is identified as

1. A.assistant to Sycorax.
2. B.leader of the spirits.
3. C.Prospero's daughter.
4. D.Alonso's wife.

In The Tempest, before the shipwreck that occurs at the beginning of the play, Prospero and his daughter have lived in the island for

1. A.eighteen months.
2. B.two decades.
3. C.twelve years.
4. D.forty days.

In The Tempest, Caliban's intention to rape Miranda is born out of the desire to

1. A.marry her.
2. B.destroy the Island.
3. C.compete with Ferdinand.
4. D.populate the Island with Calibans.

In The Tempest, the character associated with savagery in the play is

1. A.Ferdinand.
2. B.Ariel.
3. C.Stephano.
4. D.Caliban.

In The Tempest, Prospero is portrayed as a man who is

1. A.eager to conquer the world.
2. B.full of mistrust for everybody.
3. C.more interested in studying than in governance.
4. D.dependent on the spirits for his survival.

Questions 11 to 13 are based on Asare Konadu's A Woman in Her Prime. The novel explores the theme of

1. A.child quest of an African woman.
2. B.exploitation of the African woman.
3. C.sex discrimination in Ghana.
4. D.women liberation in Nigeria.

According to A Woman in Her Prime, the worst calamity that can befall a woman is

1. A.barreness.
2. B.inability to bear male children.
3. C.inability to marry.
4. D.divorce.

In A Woman in Her Prime, Asogo is a game in which

1. A.mothers lure their babies to sleep.
2. B.fathers narrate animal stories.
3. C.boys abuse girls with music.
4. D.girls sing songs of praise and admonition.

Questions 14 to 16 are based on Chimamanda Adichie's Purple Hibiscus. In the novel, one of the changes introduced into St. Agnes' Church by Father Benedict is that

1. A.everyone must take holy communion.
2. B.there must be fasting every month.
3. C.the Credo must be recited in Igbo.
4. D.the Kyrie must be rendered only in Latin.

Eugene Achike in Purple Hibiscus is portrayed as

1. A.a tough retired soldier.
2. B.a soft and gentle husband.
3. C.an uncompromising traditionalist.
4. D.a fanatical Catholic adherent.

Questions 17 to 20 are based on Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea. In the novel, the type of fish caught by Santiago after days of effort is

1. A.geisha.
2. B.shark.
3. C.iris.
4. D.marlin.

The Old Man and the Sea demonstrates the

1. A.struggle of man against defeat.
2. B.attempt to catch fish.
3. C.desire to understand life.
4. D.influence of the sea on man.

In The Old Man and the Sea, the attitude of the old man toward nature is quite

1. A.warm and friendly.
2. B.cautious and skeptical.
3. C.hostile and callous.
4. D.careless and indifferent.

In The Old Man and the Sea, Santiago's second dream occurs

1. A.when he sleeps on the boat for a few hours.
2. B.the night before his fishing expedition.
3. C.in his house.
4. D.at the end of the book.

Questions 21 to 30 are based on selected poems. The dominant image in Adeoti's Hard Lines is

1. A.tactile.
2. B.auditory.
3. C.gustatory.
4. D.visual.

The tone of Umeh's Ambassadors of Poverty can be described as

1. A.panegyrical.
2. B.metaphorical.
3. C.sarcastic.
4. D.admonitory.

In Owonibi's Homeless, not Hopeless, the persona explains that street beggars

1. A.are concerned with their daily needs.
2. B.always worry about heaven.
3. C.rarely sleep and dream.
4. D.attend conferences in towns.

Cheney-Coker's Myopia is a

1. A.ballad.
2. B.dirge.
3. C.lament.
4. D.sonnet.

Jared Angira is an African Poet from

1. A.Ghana.
2. B.Sierra-Leone.
3. C.Kenya.
4. D.South Africa.

The dominant technique used in Serenade is

1. A.apostrophe.
2. B.metaphor.
3. C.simile.
4. D.oxymoron.

The sun in Donne's The Sun Rising is depicted through the use of

1. A.apostrophe.
2. B.invocation.
3. C.ellipsis.
4. D.enjambment.

In Raleigh's The Soul's Errand, the soul is portrayed as a

1. A.messenger of hope and peace.
2. B.friend of suffering masses.
3. C.fearless message-bearer.
4. D.restorer of lost glory.

The allusion in Hughe's The Negro Speaks of Rivers is mainly

1. A.literacy.
2. B.biblical.
3. C.historical.
4. D.classical.

An action in a play that stimulates the audience to pity a character is

1. A.pyrrhic.
2. B.props.
3. C.pathos.
4. D.parody.

Purgation of emotion, pity and fear is

1. A.catharsis.
2. B.catastrophe.
3. C.epilogue.
4. D.exposition.

A device in drama where a character speaks alone is

1. A.soliloquy.
2. B.aside.
3. C.apostrophe.
4. D.dialogue.

A plot in a literary work is about

1. A.character delineation.
2. B.causal arrangement of events.
3. C.resolution of conflicts.
4. D.law of poetic justice.

Tone and mood of a poem refer to

1. A.locale.
2. B.atmosphere.
3. C.setting.
4. D.space.

A funny incident within a serious situation is

1. A.comedy.
2. B.comic relief.
3. C.tragicomedy.
4. D.tragic hero.

In literature, a flat character can be described as one who

1. A.is undeveloped.
2. B.undergoes changes.
3. C.dies abruptly.
4. D.achieves greatness.

Dramatis personae in a play refers to

1. A.list of characters.
2. B.order of appearance.
3. C.cast list.
4. D.protagonist and antagonist.

The speech made at the end of a dramatic performance is generally called

1. A.a prologue.
2. B.an epilogue.
3. C.a dirge.
4. D.a monologue.

Prose extract for question 41

The persona in the excerpt above is portrayed as

1. A.a soldier.
2. B.abnormal.
3. C.energetic.
4. D.a policeman.

The line above is an example of

1. A.euphemism.
2. B.antithesis.
3. C.epigram.
4. D.oxymoron.

The figure of speech in the line above is

1. A.litotes.
2. B.innuendo.
3. C.hyperbole.
4. D.euphemism.

Horny pads in the lines above is a reference to a

1. A.sole of a pauper.
2. B.sole of a soldier.
3. C.policeman.
4. D.madman.

The stanza above is an example of a

1. A.couplet.
2. B.sestet.
3. C.quatrain.
4. D.sonnet.

The lines are an example of a

1. A.light verse.
2. B.light opera.
3. C.limerick.
4. D.lampoon.

The poet persona expresses dismay about

1. A.grasshoppers.
2. B.bed-bugs.
3. C.bat.
4. D.cockroaches.

The most dominant figure of speech in the excerpt is

1. A.personification.
2. B.hyperbole.
3. C.metaphor.
4. D.simile.

The lines above are good example of

1. A.satire.
2. B.lampoon.
3. C.caricature.
4. D.ridicule.