LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 01

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 01

When the ladies removed after dinner, Elizabeth ran up to her sister, and seeing her well guarded from cold, attended her into the drawingroom, where she was welcomed by her two friends with many professions of pleasure; and Elizabeth had never seen them so agreeable as they were 5 during the hour which passed before the gentlemen appeared. Their powers of conversation were considerable. They could describe an entertainment with accuracy, relate an anecdote with humour, and laugh at their acquaintance with spirit. But when the gentlemen entered, Jane was no longer the first object; Miss 10 Bingley’s eyes were instantly turned toward Darcy, and she had something to say to him before he had advanced many steps. He addressed himself to Miss Bennet, with a polite congratulation; Mr. Hurst also made her a slight bow, and said he was “very glad;” but diffuseness and warmth remained for Bingley’s salutation. He was full of joy and attention. The first half- 15 hour was spent in piling up the fire, lest she should suffer from the change of room; and she removed at his desire to the other side of the fireplace, that she might be further from the door. He then sat down by her, and talked scarcely to anyone else. Elizabeth, at work in the opposite corner, saw it all with great delight. 20 When tea was over, Mr. Hurst reminded his sister-in-law of the card table-- but in vain. She had obtained private intelligence that Mr. Darcy did not wish for cards; and Mr. Hurst soon found even his open petition rejected. She assured him that no one intended to play, and the silence of the whole party on the subject seemed to justify her. Mr. Hurst had therefore nothing 25 to do, but to stretch himself on one of the sofas and go to sleep. Darcy took up a book; Miss Bingley did the same; and Mrs. Hurst, principally occupied in playing with her bracelets and rings, joined now and then in her brother’s conversation with Miss Bennet. Miss Bingley’s attention was quite as much engaged in watching Mr. 30 Darcy’s progress through his book, as in reading her own; and she was perpetually either making some inquiry, or looking at his page. She could not win him, however, to any conversation; he merely answered her question, and read on. At length, quite exhausted by the attempt to be amused with her own book, which she had only chosen because it was the 35 second volume of his, she gave a great yawn and said, “How pleasant it is to spend an evening in this way! I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of anything than of a book! When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library.” 40 No one made any reply. She then yawned again, threw aside her book, and cast her eyes round the room in quest for some amusement; when hearing her brother mentioning a ball to Miss Bennet, she turned suddenly towards and said: … Jane Austen Jane Austen 162

Questions 1-10 relate to the short passage above.

1. Each of the following indicates Miss Bingley's disinterest in reading EXCEPT her

a. choice in books b. attempts to engage Mr. Darcy in conversation c. watching Mr. Darcy read d. desire to retire for the evening e. immediate interest in hearing her brother mention a

ball

2. “Elizabeth…saw it all with great delight.” (lines 17-18) MOST LIKELY refers to whose attention to Jane?

a. Mr. Bingley b. Mr. Darcy c. Mr. Hurst d. Mrs. Hurst e. Miss Bingley

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 01 PAGE 2 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 3. The word “diffuseness” (line 13) MOST LIKELY means Mr.

Bingley’s greeting will be

a. grand and verbose b. filtered and thin c. mild and polite d. short and indifferent e. boring and flat

4. Which activity did Mr. Hurst’s sister-in-law thwart by citing the silence of the party?

a. engaging in conversation b. planning a ball c. playing cards d. reading e. sleeping

5. It can be inferred that Miss (Jane) Bennet is MOST LIKELY

a. tired from a long journey b. recovering from an illness c. sensitive to changes in weather d. old and frail e. in need of constant companionship

6. The personality in the room presented as LEAST attractive is

a. Mrs. Hurst b. Miss Bingley c. Mr. Bingley d. Elizabeth e. Mr. Darcy

7. It can be inferred that the author MOST LIKELY feels women are

a. just as capable as men b. disinterested in reading or learning c. petty and obsessed with material wealth d. incapable of holding intelligent conversation e. usually disagreeable and ill-tempered

8. All of the following are part of the author’s style EXCEPT

a. compound sentences b. passive voice c. contradictory facts d. flowery language e. detailed imagery and characterization

9. Miss Bingley seems to be MOST interested in

a. Mr. Darcy’s book b. her sister’s bracelets and rings c. Mr. Darcy’s attention d. avoiding playing cards e. procuring a library of her own

10. Mr. Bingley’s attention to Miss (Jane) Bennet is

a. wildly enthusiastic b. genuine and affectionate c. brief but courteous d. barely civil e. highly complimentary

Questions 11-30 relate to Stephen Crane's novel The Red Badge of Courage

11. At the novel’s onset, Jim Conklin believes he will only run from battle if

a. he is “knock’t t’death’s door” b. their army is outnumbered c. they get caught in an ambush d. the general commands it e. everyone else runs

12. Once the regiment begins marching towards their first battle, they realize that they will

a. attack the enemy’s left flank b. ambush the enemy in the forest c. face the enemy head-on d. come around behind the enemy e. serve as a decoy for the enemy

13. “The officer’s profanity sounded conventional. It was as if he had hit his fingers with a tack hammer at home.” The officer’s profanity results from being

a. shot b. stepped on c. bayoneted d. amputated e. taunted

14. “So it was all over at last! The supreme trial had been passed. The red, formidable difficulties of war had been vanquished. He went into an ecstasy of self-satisfaction.” This passage occurs just after

a. Henry’s first battle b. the last battle c. Henry captures the enemy flag d. Henry returns to camp e. he and Wilson hear of the officers’ praises

15. One of Henry’s rationalizations in deserting the line is that in saving himself he has

a. preserved the story for others b. starved the dragons c. saved a piece of the army d. obeyed his mother’s wishes e. been given the chance to rescue others

16. Once Jim Conklin dies, Henry compares the wounds he sees on Jim’s corpse to something

a. torn by vultures b. eaten by ants c. torn by ogres d. clawed by panthers e. chewed by wolves

17. On his journey back to the regiment, Henry observes the battlefield and compares the movement of a group of infantry to the movement of a

a. sheep b. panther c. serpent d. eagle e. train

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 01 PAGE 3 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 18. “He threaded the mazes of the tangled forest with a strange

fortune. In encounter with the guards and patrols he displayed the keenness of a detective and the valor of a gamin. Obstacles fell before him and became of assistance.” This passage describes

a. Jim Conklin b. the cheery soldier c. Wilson d. the red-bearded officer e. the young lieutenant

19. “There was about him now a fine reliance. He showed a quiet belief in his purposes and his abilities. And this inward confidence evidently enabled him to be indifferent to little words of other men aimed at him.” This passage describes

a. Jim b. Hasbrouck c. Henry d. Simpson e. Wilson

20. At the start of the second day of battle, Henry’s regiment stations itself in some rifle pits and hears a tremendous “fracas” of war sounds

a. on the left b. just in front of them c. on the right d. behind them e. across the stream

21. During Henry’s moment of unconscious bravery at the front of the attack, his actions are compared to those of a

a. “wild boar defending its very life” b. “pagan who defends his religion” c. “lion defending the savannah” d. “goddess defending its chosen people” e. “she-bear defending its cubs”

22. Crane describes which of the following as “yellow tongues”?

a. enemy fire b. enemy tents c. enemy flags d. dry riverbeds e. teamsters

23. In returning to safety after their ill-fated assault, Henry seems most surprised by

a. how short a distance they have traveled b. the familiar faces of the enemy soldiers c. the incompetence of the lieutenant d. his capacity to kill e. Wilson’s maturation as a fighter

24. As color guard, Henry now has the opportunity to

a. see the fighting b. drink from his canteen c. reload others’ ammunition boxes d. stay protected in the rear e. travel to the front

25. The last image of The Red Badge of Courage is of

a. sunlight b. trees c. birds d. a handshake e. fields

26. Which critic called Stephen Crane the first truly American writer?

a. George Wyndham b. Ben Brantley c. Ford Madox Ford d. Brooks Atkinson e. Sydney Brooks

27. Stephen Crane was the son of a

a. journalist b. shipping magnate c. cobbler d. minister e. naval captain

28. One of the most important source materials for Crane’s novel was contained in which periodical?

a. Heritage b. World c. the New York Journal d. Dial e. Century

29. Which of the following is one of Crane’s works of poetry?

a. George’s Mother b. O-Ruddy c. The Third Violet d. Active Service e. War is Kind

30. Which of the following is an example of synesthesia in Crane’s writing?

a. “the tattered man” b. “restless guns” c. “serpentine movement” d. “a crimson roar” e. “machinelike fools”

Questions 31-34 relate to Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and Second Inaugural Address

31. To which of the following books did the young Lincoln NOT have access?

a. Bible b. Robinson Crusoe c. The Pilgrim's Progress d. Walden e. Aesop's Fables

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 01 PAGE 4 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 32. One purpose of the Biblical allusions in the Gettysburg

Address is to

a. invite the audience to reflect on the nature of sin b. give the speech a more solemn tone c. show off the President's knowledge as a scholar d. present the fallen soldiers as holy martyrs e. invoke divine aid in protecting the nation's freedom

33. In his Second Inaugural Address, the word that best sums up Lincoln's attitude toward slavery is

a. providence b. offense c. woe d. toil e. scourge

34. In his Second Inaugural Address, Lincoln uses parallelism to

a. emphasize the differences between North and South b. promise the nation that the war will soon be over c. ensure each side's cause is given equal moral weight d. keep his address concise and to the point e. place blame on the South for seeking out war

Questions 35-37 relate to Frederick Douglass' Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave

35. Which of the following was NOT one of Frederick Douglass's achievements?

a. lecturing in the British Isles b. advising President Lincoln c. holding political office d. self-publishing his autobiography e. founding a newspaper

36. "From this time I was most narrowly watched."

The word "narrowly" in this line from Frederick Douglass's autobiography is closest in meaning to

a. cruelly b. carelessly c. barely d. literally e. closely

37. When he says he was "better off" than the white boys in his neighborhood, Douglass's tone can best be described as

a. resentful b. affectionate c. ironic d. pitying e. humorous

Questions 38-40 relate to Ambrose Bierce's An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge

38. The word that best describes the soldiers in the first section of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" is

a. pitiless b. unknowing c. retiring d. stoic e. deferential

39. The nonlinear structure of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" does NOT

a. create dramatic irony b. invite the reader to make connections c. reflect the story's historical setting d. produce tension and suspense e. lead to a surprise ending

40. In the last section of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge," the references to Farquhar's "superhuman strength" and "preternaturally keen" senses

a. hint that the escape is imaginary b. emphasize his determination to swim free c. suggest that people become stronger when

endangered d. help explain how he was able to reach his home so

quickly e. help the reader visualize his situation more clearly

Questions 41-43 relate to Bruce Catton's Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts

41. Catton's skill as a storyteller comes from his background as a(n)

a. navy man b. radio broadcaster c. journalist d. editor e. minister

42. According to "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts," Grant embodied all the following EXCEPT

a. competition b. economic growth c. chivalry d. modernity e. community

43. According to "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts," the two generals shared

a. an unwillingness to compromise b. an intellectual interest in military tactics c. a fierce determination in the face of setbacks d. a desire to gain the admiration of those they led e. the conviction that they were part of a historical

moment

Questions 44-46 relate to Walt Whitman's O Captain! My Captain!

44. Which of the following is NOT true of Whitman and "O Captain! My Captain!"?

a. He wrote the poem 23 years before publishing it. b. He never grew tired of reciting the poem. c. He revised and corrected the poem many times. d. He felt emotionally connected to the poem. e. He wrote the poem in a style that was unusual for

him.

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 01 PAGE 5 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 45. The type of rhyme used to end the first two lines of the

second stanza in "O Captain! My Captain!" is

a. masculine and slant rhyme b. feminine and slant rhyme c. feminine and eye rhyme d. masculine and assonant rhyme e. masculine and eye rhyme

46. The word that BEST describes the tone of the speaker in "O Captain! My Captain!" is

a. bitter b. critical c. mournful d. pleading e. victorious

Questions 47-49 relate to Paul Laurence Dunbar's The Unsung Heroes

47. The major theme of "The Unsung Heroes" is the

a. importance of remembering those who die in war b. death and destruction brought on by war c. role of poetry in helping to memorialize soldiers d. bravery of African-American soldiers in the Civil War e. fierce fighting between North and South in the Civil

War

48. "They went to the blue lines gladly, and the blue lines took them in..."

The type of figurative language used in this line from "The Unsung Heroes" is called

a. symbolism b. metonymy c. hyperbole d. metaphor e. personification

49. Which of the following types of rhyme is NOT used in the last stanza of "The Unsung Heroes"?

a. masculine rhyme b. internal rhyme c. identical rhyme d. consonance e. perfect rhyme

Question 50 relates to more than one of the short selections.

50. Which of the following contains both parallelism and metonymy?

a. An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge b. O Captain! My Captain! c. The Second Inaugural Address d. Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts e. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An

American Slave


"How deaf and stupid have I been!" he thought, walking swiftly along. "When someone reads a text, wants to discover its meaning, he will not scorn the symbols and letters and call them deceptions, coincidence, and worthless hull, but he will read them, he will study and love them, letter by letter. But I, who wanted to read 5 the book of the world and the book of my own being, I have, for the sake of a meaning I had anticipated before I read, scorned the symbols and letters, I called the visible world a deception, called my eyes and my tongue coincidental and worthless forms without substance. No, this is over, I have awakened, I have indeed awakened and have not been born before this very day." In thinking these thoughts, Siddhartha stopped once again, suddenly, as if there was a snake lying in front of him on the path. Because suddenly, he had also become aware of this: He, who was indeed like someone who had just woken up or like a new-born baby, he had to start his life anew 15 and start again at the very beginning. When he had left in this very morning from the grove Jetavana, the grove of that exalted one, already awakening, already on the path towards himself, he had every intention, regarded as natural and took for granted, that he, after years as an ascetic, would return to his home and his father. But now, only in this moment, when he stopped as if a snake was lying on his path, he also awoke 20 to this realization: "But I am no longer the one I was, I am no ascetic any more, I am not a priest any more, I am no Brahman any more. Whatever should I do at home and at my father's place? Study? Make offerings? Practise meditation? But all this is over, all of this is no longer alongside my path." 25 Motionless, Siddhartha remained standing there, and for the time of one moment and breath, his heart felt cold, he felt a cold in his chest, as a small animal, a bird or a rabbit, would when seeing how alone he was. For many years, he had been without home and had felt nothing. Now, he felt it. Still, even in the deepest meditation, he had been his father's son, had been a Brahman, of a high caste, a cleric. Now, he 30 was nothing but Siddhartha, the awoken one, nothing else was left. Deeply, he inhaled, and for a moment, he felt cold and shivered. Nobody was thus alone as he was. There was no nobleman who did not belong to the noblemen, no worker that did not belong to the workers, and found refuge with them, shared their life, spoke their language. No Brahman, who would not be regarded as Brahmans and lived with 35 them, no ascetic who would not find his refuge in the caste of the Samanas, and even the most forlorn hermit in the forest was not just one and alone, he was also surrounded by a place he belonged to, he also belonged to a caste, in which he was at home. Govinda had become a monk, and a thousand monks were his brothers, wore the same robe as he, believed in his faith, spoke his language. But he, 40 Siddhartha, where did he belong to? With whom would he share his life? Whose Language would he speak? Out of this moment, when the world melted away all around him, when he stood alone like a star in the sky, out of this moment of a cold and despair, Siddhartha 45 emerged, more a self than before, more firmly concentrated. He felt: This had been the last tremor of the awakening, the last struggle of this birth. And it was not long until he walked again in long strides, started to proceed swiftly and impatiently, heading no longer for home, no longer to his father, no longer back Herman Hesse. Herman Hesse 165


1. Siddhartha likens his realization to

a. stopping suddenly b. being homeless c. reading a book d. feeling cold e. being born again

2. What religion is MOST LIKELY being alluded to in the term “exalted one” (line 16)?

a. Islam b. Christianity c. Animism d. Hinduism e. Judaism

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 02 PAGE 2 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 3. What can be inferred as a major theme of this work?

a. the importance of family b. man ultimately alone c. gaining knowledge through study and reading d. the superiority of the Brahmans in the Indian caste

system e. the journey to enlightenment

4. By “I am no ascetic anymore” (line 20) Siddhartha MOST LIKELY means he will no longer

a. study and seek knowledge b. practice his religion c. appreciate art d. practice self-denial e. practice meditation

5. Siddhartha’s peers MOST LIKELY regard him as

a. important b. reclusive c. boring d. wise e. conceited

6. All of the following are features of the writer’s style EXCEPT

a. figurative language b. excessive punctuation c. passive voice d. parenthetical expressions e. unconventional sentence structure

7. The intention of the first paragraph can BEST be interpreted to show the character

a. having a personal crisis b. discovering his love of reading c. having an epiphany regarding life’s meaning d. berating himself for his prior actions e. undergoing a transformation

8. The writer’s tone can BEST be described as

a. nostalgic b. contemptuous c. detached d. reflective e. sympathetic

9. The writer’s comparison of Siddhartha being alone like a star in the sky (line 44) is an example of

a. simile b. paradox c. irony d. synesthesia e. metonymy

10. According to Siddhartha, one is most open to enlightenment when one approaches it

a. through careful study and reading b. like a newborn c. by meditating d. clear of preconceived notions e. by listening to wise teachers


11. In spite of Henry’s desire for a grand departure from home, his mother had

a. “quietly darned socks” b. “sullenly milked the cows” c. “brusquely scrubbed the floor” d. “diligently planted corn” e. “doggedly peeled potatoes”

12. On their way to the first battle, Wilson mentions that the enemy army

a. is dividing its forces in a flanking maneuver b. is already on the retreat c. has taken several regiments captive d. has continually beaten their army e. has lost more men to disease than to gunfire

13. According to rumors, Bill Smithers’ injury will be fixed through

a. cauterization b. splinting c. amputation d. casting e. bloodletting

14. The youth thinks of the artillery fire impact as

a. “smoldering dragon eyes – red and mean” b. “volleys of iron hailing down like Greek thunderbolts” c. “an unbroken stallion, tromping on dry earth” d. “war flowers bursting into fierce bloom” e. “a cathedral of rising pine needles”

15. After fleeing into the forest, Henry enters a field devoid of war noises and thinks of the quiet field as

a. a solemn bed of pine needles b. the religion of peace c. a goddess of mercy d. a low green grave e. the chapel of nature

16. Just before Jim Conklin dies, he expresses the fear that he will be

a. pushed headlong into the river b. shot by the oncoming infantry c. left to die alone in the field d. run over by artillery wagons e. trampled by the the general’s horse

17. “He felt that he was regarding a procession of chosen beings. The separation was as great to him as if they had marched with weapons of flame and banners of sunlight.” This passage describes Henry’s vision of

a. the generals b. enemy soldiers c. his own regiment d. the infantry e. the artillerymen

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 02 PAGE 3 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 18. The cheery soldier guides Henry back to his regiment,

identifying the regiment by their

a. fire b. flag c. tents d. formation e. uniforms

19. In response to Wilson changing Henry’s bandages, Henry

a. yells at Wilson b. protests over receiving so much attention c. thanks Wilson profusely d. feigns indifference e. returns Wilson’s package

20. On the second day of battle, Henry hears the rumors that their army has been defeated and immediately blames

a. the lieutenant b. the cavalry c. his regiment d. himself e. the general

21. Henry compares the experience of fighting bravely in battle to falling asleep and waking up as a

a. king b. prophet c. knight d. god e. saint

22. In his regiment’s doomed assault on the enemy, Henry initially aims for what landmark?

a. a dry riverbank b. a pair of boulders c. a lone fence post d. a white house e. a cluster of trees

23. After the regiment’s failed assault, which character attempts to intercede on Colonel MacChesnay’s behalf when the mounted officer scolds MacChensay?

a. Wilson b. the corporal c. Henry d. the general e. the lieutenant

24. While acting as color guard, Henry witnesses the orderly sergeant being shot through the

a. spine b. wrist c. thigh d. cheeks e. ankle

25. At the conclusion of The Red Badge of Courage Henry seeks a life of peace, having shed what he calls

a. “the iron helm of War” b. “a life of ghosts and nightmares” c. “the icy grasp of Death” d. “the lilac dreams of youth” e. “the red sickness of battle”

26. The Dial, a magazine critical of The Red Badge of Courage, was owned by a retired general named

a. MacGovern b. Brooks c. McClurg d. Maddox e. Sydney

27. Before moving to New York, Crane was expelled from

a. Saint John’s College b. Harvard University c. Rochester University d. Boston College e. Syracuse University

28. Crane covered journalistic assignments in all of the following locales EXCEPT

a. Cuba b. the Balkans c. Mexico d. Turkey e. the Philippines

29. The Red Badge of Courage is considered a Bildungsroman, a novel that presents a

a. coming of age story b. tragedy in war c. common man’s plight d. series of impressions e. series of flashbacks

30. The Red Badge of Courage might be considered an example of impressionism, a movement associated with painters such as Renoir or musicians such as

a. Debussy b. Bach c. Chopin d. Bruckner e. Gershwin


31. Which of the following jobs did Lincoln NOT hold?

a. postmaster b. surveyor c. schoolteacher d. lawyer e. storekeeper

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 02 PAGE 4 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 32. The final clause in the Gettysburg Address does NOT contain

a. a tricolon b. a quotation c. amplification d. alliteration e. an allusion

33. In his Second Inaugural Address, Lincoln says that each side in the conflict "invokes" the aid of God. The word "invokes" could BEST be replaced by

a. hopes for b. asks for c. aspires to d. believes in e. plans on

34. "It may seem strange that any men should dare to ask a just God's assistance in wringing their bread from the sweat of other men's faces..."

In this line from his Second Inaugural Address Lincoln is NOT

a. inviting his audience to reflect on the morality of slavery

b. pointing out that not all prayer reflects just purposes c. explaining that God chooses the prayers he answers d. making an allusion to a specific Biblical verse e. using poetic imagery to refer to the practice of

slavery


35. Which of the following statements about Frederick Douglass is TRUE?

a. He escaped and was caught. b. He was born into a life of slavery. c. He joined the Union army. d. He changed his name to Frederick Bailey. e. He taught himself to read.

36. "Under its influence, the tender heart became stone, and the lamblike disposition gave way to one of tiger-like fierceness."

This line from Frederick Douglass's autobiography contains an example of

a. allusion b. anthropomorphism c. personification d. hyperbole e. irony

37. In the third paragraph of the excerpt from his autobiography, Douglass uses an archaic proverb to emphasize

a. that he had to be furtive when hiding books b. the impropriety of his attempts to educate himself c. the speed with which he learned to read d. how much his mistress taught him e. his determination to become literate


38. The narrative voice in the first section of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" can BEST be described as

a. detached and unreliable b. shifting and ambiguous c. omniscient and sardonic d. unreliable and ambiguous e. omniscient and mysterious

39. Which of these literary devices is found in the description of the ticking of the condemned man's watch in "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"?

a. metaphor b. idiom c. repetition d. onomatopoeia e. simile

40. "He was a Federal scout."

This line from "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" does NOT

a. allow the reader to make connections to past events b. help the reader to predict the events that follow c. conform to the reader's previous expectations d. arouse the reader's pity for the characters e. give the reader more information than the characters


41. Which of the following is NOT the title of a book by Bruce Catton?

a. "America Goes to War" b. "Gettysburg: The Final Fury" c. "The Civil War: A Narrative" d. "Mr. Lincoln's Army" e. "The Hallowed Ground"

42. According to "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts," the meeting of the generals at Appomattox was significant because it symbolized the

a. two men's common sense of national loyalty b. victory of the democratic spirit c. clash between old ideals and a new modern age d. restoration of order to American society e. beginning of the road to true national unity

43. According to"Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts," what Lee most valued was

a. privileges b. influence c. virtue d. freedom e. tradition

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 02 PAGE 5 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 Questions 44-46 relate to Walt Whitman's O Captain! My Captain!

44. "O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done..."

This line from Whitman's poem "O Captain! My Captain!" contains several

a. dactyls and a trochee b. iambs and a spondee c. spondees and an iamb d. trochees and an anapest e. iambs and a trochee

45. The first stanza of "O Captain! My Captain!" does NOT contain

a. an allusion b. internal rhymes c. an apostrophe d. foreshadowing e. a dramatic juxtaposition

46. The extended analogy in "O Captain! My Captain!" allows Whitman to

a. disconnect himself from his grief over Lincoln's death b. call upon the nation to honor Lincoln's achievements c. dramatize the events of Lincoln's assassination d. allude to Lincoln's relationship with the ocean e. emphasize how much the country depended on

Lincoln


47. Paul Laurence Dunbar was influenced by all the following EXCEPT

a. William Wordsworth b. Irwin Russell c. John Keats d. Frederick Douglass e. Sterling Brown

48. "And the song of the thundrous cannon was their sole requiem..."

In this line from "The Unsung Heroes," the word "requiem" is closest in meaning to

a. accompaniment b. consolation c. reward d. lament e. honor

49. The language in "The Unsung Heroes"

a. reflects Dunbar's typical style b. creates a sense of oppressive gloom c. is incongruous with its subject d. befits the poem's powerful theme e. breaks with Romantic conventions


50. Which of the following uses an extended metaphor to refer to a historical event?

a. "O Captain! My Captain!" b. "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" c. "The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An

American Slave" d. "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts" e. "The Gettysburg Address"


As the resting man looked at the barrow he became aware that its summit, hitherto the highest object in the whole prospect round, was surmounted by something higher. It rose from the semi-globular mound like a spike from a helmet. The first instinct of an imaginative stranger might have been to 5 suppose it the person of one of the Celts who built the barrow, so far had all of modern date withdrawn from the scene. It seemed a sort of last man among them, musing for a moment before dropping into eternal night with the rest of his race. There the form stood, motionless as the hill beneath. Above the plain rose 10 the hill, above the hill rose the barrow, and above the barrow rose the figure. Above the figure was nothing that could be mapped elsewhere than on a celestial globe. Such a perfect, delicate, and necessary finish did the figure give to the dark pile of hills that it seemed to be the only obvious justification of their 15 outline. Without it, there was the dome without the lantern; with it the architectural demands of the mass were satisfied. The scene was strangely homogeneous, in that the vale, the upland, the barrow, and the figure above it amounted only to unity. Looking at this or that member of the group was not observing a complete thing, but a fraction of a thing. 20 The form was so much like an organic part of the entire motionless structure that to see it move would have impressed the mind as a strange phenomenon. Immobility being the chief characteristic of that whole which the person formed portion of, the discontinuance of immobility in any quarter suggested confusion. 25 Yet that is what happened. The figure perceptibly gave up its fixity, shifted a step or two, and turned round. As if alarmed, it descended on the right side of the barrow, with the glide of a water-drop down a bud, and then vanished. The movement had been sufficient to show more clearly the characteristics of the figure, and that it was a woman's. 30 The reason of her sudden displacement now appeared. With her dropping out of sight on the right side, a new-comer, bearing a burden, protruded into the sky on the left side, ascended the tumulus, and deposited the burden on the top. A second followed, then a third, a fourth, a fifth, and ultimately the whole barrow was peopled with burdened figures. 35 The only intelligible meaning in this sky-backed pantomime of silhouettes was that the woman had no relation to the forms who had taken her place, was sedulously avoiding these, and had come thither for another object than theirs. The imagination of the observer clung by preference to that vanished, solitary figure, as to something more interesting, more 40 important, more likely to have a history worth knowing than these new- comers, and unconsciously regarded them as intruders. But they remained, and established themselves; and the lonely person who hitherto had been queen of the solitude did not at present seem likely to return.


1. The word “sedulously” (line 37) MOST LIKELY means

a. carefully b. tirelessly c. studiously d. busily e. constantly

2. The narration of the passage can BEST be described as

a. preoccupied b. third person limited c. first person d. third person omniscient e. shifting

3. Why did the figure’s sudden movement “suggest confusion”? (line 24)

a. It was too dark to detect motion. b. The figure had blended into its motionless

surroundings. c. The narrator had previously thought the figure to be

a man. d. The narrator had not noticed a figure at all before it

had moved. e. The narrator was startled by the motion.

4. Which description of the figure is part of a simile?

a. “a water-drop” (line 27) b. “a celestial globe” (line 11) c. “the lantern” (line 15) d. “a spike from a helmet” (lines 3-4) e. a Celt (line 5)

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 03 PAGE 2 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 5. Why did the observer unconsciously prefer the solitary figure

to the burdened figures?

a. The burdened figures were too loud. b. The solitary figure was a friend. c. The burdened figures frightened the solitary figure. d. The solitary figure fit in better with its surroundings. e. The solitary figure was more captivating.

6. The antecedent of “it” (line 3) repeated throughout the first paragraph is

a. “helmet” (line 4) b. “barrow” (line 1) c. “the resting man” (line 1) d. “highest object” (line 2) e. “something higher” (line 3)

7. All of the following are aspects of the writer’s style EXCEPT

a. passive voice b. anaphora c. detailed imagery d. analogy e. figurative language

8. Which central conflict can BEST be inferred?

a. man vs. nature b. man vs. woman c. man vs. his fate d. man vs. history e. man vs. society

9. The author seems to imply that man is at his best when he is

a. unburdened b. resting in stillness c. alone in contemplation d. one with nature e. among friends

10. The focus of the passage shifts from

a. man to society b. nature to celestial c. woman to man d. man to nature e. nature to man


11. “He was a slightly ragged man, who spat skillfully between his shoes and possessed a great fund of bland and infantile assurance. The youth liked him personally.” This description recounts Henry’s first encounter with

a. a Negro teamster b. a general c. the loud soldier d. the tall soldier e. an enemy soldier

12. Before their first battle, Wilson entrusts Henry with a

a. family portrait b. yellow envelope c. silver pocket watch d. letter to his brother e. family Bible

13. Who tends to the lieutenant’s first gunshot wound?

a. the corporal b. the captain c. the cheery soldier d. the loud soldier e. the Negro teamster

14. During Henry’s flight from battle, he loses his

a. canteen b. coat c. left shoe d. powder box e. rifle

15. Henry runs back to the battlegrounds after his respite in the forest because he

a. sees that Jim has been shot b. cannot contain his thirst c. hears the sounds of battle d. sees their flag aloft e. fears the regiment’s derision

16. “There was something rite-like in these movements of the doomed soldier. And there was a resemblance in him to a devotee of a mad religion, blood-sucking, muscle-wrenching, bone-crushing. They were awed and afraid.” In this passage, “they” refers to Henry and the

a. loud soldier b. tattered soldier c. cheery soldier d. fat soldier e. spectral soldier

17. Before Henry rejoins his regiment, he lingers around the battlefield in a manner that Crane describes as

a. bird-like b. mosquito-like c. dog-like d. serpent-like e. moth-like

18. The first person to greet Henry upon his return to the regiment is

a. Hasbrouck b. Smithers c. Conklin d. Simpson e. Wilson

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 03 PAGE 3 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 19. Which of the following characters challenges Wilson to a

fight?

a. Tom Jamison b. Charley Morgan c. Jimmie Rogers d. Henry Fleming e. Bill Smithers

20. Which of the following comments stops Henry from ranting about the incompetence of the generals?

a. “Ye’s mighty brave fer a private, Fleming. Mighty brave ‘n’ mighty senseless.”

b. “Yeh oughta shoot better’n yeh gab before yeh go plannin’ the hull war, Fleming.”

c. “Likelier’n not if you was out on that flank you’da turned tail too.”

d. “Mebbe yeh think yeh kno’ bett’rn the whole lot of ‘em, Fleming.”

e. “Mebbe yeh think yeh fit th’ hull battle yisterday, Fleming.”

21. An officer tells the general that Henry’s regiment fights like a pack of

a. chicken coopers b. farm boys c. mule drivers d. packhorses e. laundry maids

22. “It was a creation of beauty and invulnerability. It was a goddess, radiant, that bended its form with an imperious gesture to him. It was a woman…that called him with the voice of his hopes.” This description refers to

a. the flag b. War c. the country d. the rifle e. Nature

23. After Henry’s brilliant performance as color guard, the lieutenant praises Henry by calling him a

a. dum’ good feller b. jimhickey c. top brass d. jim-dandy e. yankee-doodle

24. While acting as color guard, Henry becomes particularly absorbed by the sight of a battle between

a. an artillery unit and the enemy infantry b. four regiments c. one of their regiments against two of the enemy’s d. the infantry and an enemy artillery unit e. six regiments

25. The last rumor about Bill Smithers recounts how he endures

a. the same food day in and out b. an infirmary full of mosquitoes c. being shelled in the hospital d. cold bedpans and loud nurses e. amputation of the wrong finger

26. All of the following are examples of Crane’s short stories EXCEPT

a. “The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky” b. “The Upturned Face” c. “George’s Mother” d. “The Open Boat” e. “The Blue Hotel”

27. Some of Stephen Crane’s earliest forays into journalism were printed in the

a. New York Journal b. Detroit Free Press c. New York Sun d. Boston Globe e. New York Press

28. Which of the following of Stephen Crane’s works is set during the Greco-Turkish War?

a. Active Service b. “The Open Boat” c. The Third Violet d. O-Ruddy e. George’s Mother

29. Though never mentioned in the novel, it is generally agreed that The Red Badge of Courage is set during a battle in

a. May of 1863 b. September of 1862 c. July of 1860 d. April of 1861 e. March of 1864

30. Which of the following is an example of Crane’s use of the pathetic fallacy?

a. the “crimson roar” of the battle b. a column of soldiers “moving like a snake” c. soldiers that “walked as upon thin ice” d. artillerymen acting like “machinelike fools” e. guns that “argued with abrupt violence”


31. Lincoln was elected to the Illinois state legislature in 1834,

a. the first time he ran b. when he moved to Springfield c. placing first in a field of 13 candidates d. after serving in the Black Hawk War e. immediately before passing the bar exam

32. When Lincoln first became a Congressman, he

a. was sure abolitionist measures could be instituted peacefully

b. worried slavery would never die a "natural death" c. felt Congress had ultimate power to legislate against

slavery d. called for the immediate end of slavery in the South e. opposed the spread of slavery into new territories

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 03 PAGE 4 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 33. Lincoln's central purpose in the Gettysburg Address is to

a. remember the nation's history b. declare the battlefield sacred c. acknowledge the losses of war d. rededicate the nation to freedom e. evoke a sense of Biblical solemnity

34. "With malice toward none, with charity for all..."

The word "malice" from Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address could BEST be replaced with

a. “blame” b. “condemnation” c. “bitterness” d. “disgust” e. “shame”


35. Frederick Douglass's mistress, Miss Sophia, was

a. often in disagreement with her husband b. compassionate but easily influenced c. fierce and violent by nature d. someone whose ideas never changed e. firmly in favor of education for slaves

36. In Frederick Douglass’s autobiography, he writes, “She at first lacked the depravity indispensable to shutting me up in mental darkness.” The word “depravity” here refers to the

a. constant watchfulness of a prison guard b. conviction that comes from strong beliefs c. strength of will required to dominate others d. perverse and vicious slave-owning mindset e. ignorance of one who has never been a slave

37. In his autobiography, Douglass’s tone is ironic when he uses all the following words EXCEPT

a. “duties” b. “incompatible” c. “kindly” d. “danger” e. “apt”


38. Before publishing "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge," Ambrose Bierce had NOT

a. received the nickname "Bitter Bierce" b. suffered a head wound in the war c. sketched for magazines and newspapers d. become apprenticed to a printer e. joined a mapping expedition

39. In the first section of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge," the detailed descriptions of military stances like "support" and "parade rest"

a. evoke an atmosphere of formality b. support the narrator's ironic tone c. give the reader more information about the plot d. clearly indicate the Civil War setting e. interrupt the action of the story

40. "A strange roseate light shone through the spaces among their trunks and the wind made in their branches the music of Aeolian harps."

The surreal mood in this scene from "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" is magnified by the author's use of

a. suggestive imagery b. the passive voice c. rhythmic cadence d. plosive sounds e. chiasmus


41. In his historical biographies, Bruce Catton emphasizes the significance of

a. events b. ideas c. personalities d. settings e. values

42. In "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts," Catton does NOT compare the generals'

a. family histories b. visions of America c. personal convictions d. religious beliefs e. geographical backgrounds

43. "In each man there was an indomitable quality...the born fighter's refusal to give up as long as he can still remain on his feet and lift his two fists."

Catton's tone in this sentence from "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts" can BEST be described as

a. sycophantic b. austere c. theatrical d. admiring e. hyperbolic


44. "O Captain! My Captain!" is a(n)

a. didactic poem b. occasional poem c. allegorical poem d. narrative poem e. lyric poem

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 03 PAGE 5 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 45. "Rise up?for you the flag is flung?for you the bugle trills..."

This line from "O Captain! My Captain!" does NOT contain

a. alliteration b. consonance c. caesuras d. anastrophe e. symbolism

46. What Whitman calls the ship's "fearful trip" in "O Captain! My Captain!" is a reference to

a. a dangerous storm b. the destruction of the Union c. the Civil War d. the Captain's death e. Lincoln's assassination


47. In high school, Paul Laurence Dunbar did NOT

a. edit the school newspaper b. found a black newspaper c. serve as class president d. lead a colored students' group e. publish poems in local newspapers

48. In "The Unsung Heroes," the speaker says the blood of the dead soldiers "poured on a nation's altar, a sacrificial flood..."

Which of the following does this line NOT contain?

a. religious imagery b. hyperbole c. metaphor d. literary allusion e. sibilant sounds

49. In "The Unsung Heroes," the internal rhymes that occur in the last line of every stanza

a. create a rhythmic cadence like a drumbeat b. always make use of alliteration c. alternate between masculine and feminine rhymes d. alternate between perfect and slant rhymes e. create an feeling of tension


50. Which two pieces allude to or make roundabout references to the Civil War rather than naming the war directly?

a. "O Captain! My Captain!" and "The Unsung Heroes" b. "The Unsung Heroes" and "Narrative of the Life of

Frederick Douglass, An American Slave" c. Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address and "The Unsung

Heroes" d. "O Captain! My Captain!" and "Grant and Lee: A

Study in Contrasts" e. "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" and

"Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave"


I should not talk so much about myself if there were anybody else whom I knew as well. Unfortunately, I am confined to this theme by the narrowness of my experience. Moreover, I, on my side, require of every writer, first or last, a simple and sincere account of his own life, and not 5 merely what he has heard of other men's lives; some such account as he would send to his kindred from a distant land; for if he has lived sincerely, it must have been in a distant land to me. Perhaps these pages are more particularly addressed to poor students. As for the rest of my readers, they will accept such portions as apply to them. I trust that none will stretch the 10 seams in putting on the coat, for it may do good service to him whom it fits. I would fain say something, not so much concerning the Chinese and Sandwich Islanders as you who read these pages, who are said to live in New England; something about your condition, especially your outward 15 condition or circumstances in this world, in this town, what it is, whether it is necessary that it be as bad as it is, whether it cannot be improved as well as not. I have travelled a good deal in Concord; and everywhere, in shops, and offices, and fields, the inhabitants have appeared to me to be doing penance in a thousand remarkable ways. What I have heard of Bramins 20 sitting exposed to four fires and looking in the face of the sun; or hanging suspended, with their heads downward, over flames; or looking at the heavens over their shoulders "until it becomes impossible for them to resume their natural position, while from the twist of the neck nothing but liquids can pass into the stomach"; or dwelling, chained for life, at the foot 25 of a tree; or measuring with their bodies, like caterpillars, the breadth of vast empires; or standing on one leg on the tops of pillars -- even these forms of conscious penance are hardly more incredible and astonishing than the scenes which I daily witness. The twelve labors of Hercules were trifling in comparison with those which my neighbors have undertaken; for 30 they were only twelve, and had an end; but I could never see that these men slew or captured any monster or finished any labor. They have no friend Iolaus to burn with a hot iron the root of the hydra's head, but as soon as one head is crushed, two spring up. I see young men, my townsmen, whose misfortune it is to have 35 inherited farms, houses, barns, cattle, and farming tools; for these are more easily acquired than got rid of. Better if they had been born in the open pasture and suckled by a wolf, that they might have seen with clearer eyes what field they were called to labor in. Who made them serfs of the soil? Why should they eat their sixty acres, when man is condemned to eat only 40 his peck of dirt? Why should they begin digging their graves as soon as they are born? They have got to live a man's life, pushing all these things before them, and get on as well as they can. How many a poor immortal soul have I met well-nigh crushed and smothered under its load, creeping down the road of life, pushing before it a barn seventy-five feet by forty, 45 its Augean stables never cleansed, and one hundred acres of land, tillage, mowing, pasture, and woodlot! The portionless, who struggle with no such unnecessary inherited encumbrances, find it labor enough to subdue and cultivate a few cubic feet of flesh. But men labor under a mistake. The better part of the man is soon 50 plowed into the soil for compost. By a seeming fate, commonly called necessity, they are employed, as it says in an old book, laying up treasures which moth and rust will corrupt and thieves break through and steal. It is a fool's life, as they will find when they get to the end of it, if not before. Henry David Thoreau Economy Henry David Thoreau 167

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 04 PAGE 2 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007


1. The first paragraph ends with which literary device?

a. simile b. pun c. paradox d. metaphor e. metonymy

2. “They have no friend Iolaus…” (lines 31-32) is MOST LIKELY a reference to

a. Celtic Lore b. American Lore c. Greek Mythology d. Norse Mythology e. Ancient Egypt

3. Thoreau’s purpose in this passage is to

a. emphasize the importance of one’s self over one’s fortune

b. identify man’s struggle to thrive in society c. persuade the reader that owning land is important d. elaborate on the hardship of living in New England e. implore other writers to write their own memoirs as

part of their collected works

4. All of the following are features of Thoreau’s style EXCEPT

a. detached narrative b. long, compound sentences c. excessive punctuation d. rhetorical questions e. figurative language

5. The word “fain” (line 12) MOST LIKELY means

a. reminiscently b. falsely c. begrudgingly d. reluctantly e. willingly

6. “I have heard of Bramins sitting…” (lines 19-26) MOST LIKELY alludes to which culture?

a. South African b. Irish c. Indian d. Nigerian e. Chinese

7. It can be inferred from the passage that Thoreau valued

a. money b. hard work c. the simple life d. reading e. intelligence

8. Thoreau BEST engages the readers by

a. addressing them in the first person b. suggesting that everyone should keep a journal c. providing examples of human behavior d. describing hardships that many will relate to e. satirizing the importance society places on wealth

9. Thoreau’s tone can BEST be described as

a. joyous b. nostalgic c. satirical d. passive e. bitter

10. The antecedent of “it” repeated throughout the first sentence of the second paragraph is

a. “New England” (line 14) b. “town” (line 15) c. “pages” (line 13) d. “outward condition or circumstances” (lines 14-15) e. “world” (line 15)


11. In the army training camp, Henry’s furniture consists merely of

a. wood stumps b. cracker boxes c. liquor barrels d. powder barrels e. flour tins

12. During the regiment’s march through the woods, whenever the soldiers stop, they

a. lie face up in the dirt b. dig hills out of earth c. refill their canteens d. bury themselves in the underbrush e. erect decoys in the branches

13. What does Henry’s regiment do upon reaching the battlefield and seeing the other regiments fleeing?

a. sneers at the retreating soldiers b. goes to the front lines c. retreats as well d. stands at quiet attention e. begins gossiping

14. When the lieutenant urges Henry not to flee from battle, Henry thinks

a. that the lieutenant will court-marshal him b. of the lieutenant as peculiar c. of the lieutenant as a madman d. that he should sneak away rather than running e. that the lieutenant has become one of the dragons

15. In order to avoid answering the tattered man’s pestering questions, Henry begins

a. fiddling with his buttons b. tying his laces c. whistling a tune d. chewing at his nails e. wrapping his head bandage

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 04 PAGE 3 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 16. When Jim Conklin recounts being shot, his tone is

characterized as

a. haughty b. grim c. mournful d. bewildered e. resentful

17. Which of the following is NOT one of the excuses Henry conjures for why he cannot return to battle?

a. His bones ache. b. He cannot fight without his regiment. c. He is too thirsty. d. He must return Wilson’s package. e. He has no rifle.

18. Just before reuniting with his regiment, Henry considers fleeing again but decides not to because of his

a. loyalty to Wilson b. exhaustion c. leg injury d. conscience e. gratitude to the cheery soldier

19. “Day-b’fore-yesterday,” he finally replied, with boldness, “you would ‘a’ bet you’d lick the hull kit-an’-boodle all by yourself.” Which of the following characters makes this statement?

a. Jimmie Rogers b. the lieutenant c. Wilson d. Corporal Simpson e. Henry

20. In his rant against the battle conditions and the generals, Henry says that being shot at from all sides makes him feel like a

a. “rat in a maze” b. “cooped up old hen” c. “tethered horse” d. “fenced-in pig” e. “kitten in a bag”

21. After announcing to the regiment that they are all headed into battle, Henry and Wilson silently assent to which of the following statements?

a. “That general is one jimhickey.” b. “We’ll rout ‘em sure.” c. “We’ll haf’ta split our force in two.” d. “It cain’t be a true order.” e. “We’ll git swallowed.”

22. “‘Come on yerself, then,’ he yelled. There was a bitter challenge in his voice. They galloped together down the regimental front.” The person being challenged in this passage is

a. Wilson b. the red-bearded officer c. the lieutenant d. Jim e. Henry

23. Following Wilson’s success in battle and Henry’s success as a color guard, the two receive praise from the lieutenant and

a. general b. colonel c. chaplain d. corporal e. mounted officer

24. Though the youth acts as a color bearer, he feels no sense of idleness because he

a. feels absorbed as a spectator b. takes to refilling the canteens c. must rally the troops at the front d. must exercise caution lest he get shot e. takes to refilling the powder boxes

25. At the conclusion of the novel, Henry is most ashamed over

a. abandoning the tattered man b. shooting fellow Americans c. defying his mother’s wishes d. deserting the battlefield e. trying to keep Wilson’s package

26. Stephen Crane’s poetry is often compared to that of

a. Walt Whitman b. Emily Dickinson c. William Carlos Williams d. John Donne e. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

27. Though he had never been a soldier, Stephen Crane claimed to have learned all about human conflict from

a. his brothers b. war reporting c. the Bowery d. marriage e. football

28. All of the following were friends in the literary world that Crane picked up in England EXCEPT

a. Ford Madox Ford b. H. G. Wells c. Henry James d. Joseph Conrad e. Willa Cather

29. Though Crane abstains from mentioning many concrete details, he does include a reference to which river?

a. the Shenandoah b. the Roanoke c. the Rappahannock d. the Appomattox e. the Potomac

30. According to the USAD, In The Red Badge of Courage the sun symbolizes all of the following EXCEPT

a. Henry’s understanding of himself b. the indifference of Nature c. the end of the novel d. Jim Conklin’s death e. Henry and Wilson’s friendship

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 04 PAGE 4 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 Questions 31-34 relate to Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and Second Inaugural Address

31. Which of the following was TRUE when Lincoln was elected to the Presidency?

a. He had not yet married Mary Todd. b. He was a member of the Whig Party. c. Four states had seceded from the Union. d. The Kansas-Nebraska Act had been repealed. e. The Civil War seemed imminent.

32. Lincoln kept his Second Inaugural Address short because

a. he knew Confederate supporters were in the audience

b. he was too busy with his office to write a long speech c. the subject of war was too painful to discuss at length d. he felt uncertain about the path the country should

take e. many speeches had already been made about the Civil

War

33. "Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty..."

This line from the Gettysburg Address does NOT contain

a. birth imagery b. Biblical phrasing c. resurrection imagery d. elevated language e. archaic wording

34. Which of the following words from Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address typically carries a negative connotation?

a. urgent b. insurgents c. fundamental d. deprecated e. judgments


35. According to the excerpt from his autobiography, as a young boy Frederick Douglass was

a. resolute b. manipulative c. docile d. disloyal e. miserable

36. In his autobiography, Frederick Douglass's attitude towards the white boys in his neighborhood is

a. appreciative and affectionate b. cooperative and kindly c. indifferent and reserved d. superior and magnanimous e. magnanimous and cooperative

37. The animal imagery Douglass uses to describe his mistress in his autobiography does NOT

a. vividly evoke her behavior b. allude to imagery in the Bible c. make his language more poetic d. summarize the change in her personality e. imply that she is inhumane by nature


38. Ambrose Bierce is remembered for all the following EXCEPT his

a. acerbic humor b. newspaper columns c. poetry and sketches d. tragic death e. military service

39. In the first section of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge," the third-person narrator

a. explains in detail the crimes of the condemned man b. describes the political views of the condemned man c. emphasizes the prosperous appearance of the

condemned man d. gives information about the family background of the

condemned man e. sympathizes with the plight of the condemned man

40. "He was sure they were arranged in some order which had a secret and malign significance."

The mood created by this sentence from "An Occurrence At Own Creek Bridge" is best described as

a. desperate b. macabre c. confusing d. sinister e. transcendental


41. Bruce Catton worked for all the following periodicals EXCEPT

a. Boston American b. Cleveland Plain Dealer c. Michigan Daily d. American Heritage e. Cleveland News

42. In "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts," Catton describes Lee as coming "from the old age of chivalry, lance in hand, silken banner fluttering over his head." This image can BEST be described as

a. anachronistic b. disparaging c. quaint d. overblown e. earnest

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 04 PAGE 5 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 43. In "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts," the line "No part of

either man's life became him more than the part he played in their brief meeting..." is an allusion to the death of

a. Clarence in "Richard III" b. Lear in "King Lear" c. Desdemona in "Othello" d. Cawdor in "Macbeth" e. Hamlet in "Hamlet"


44. The diction in "O Captain! My Captain!" can BEST be described as

a. abstract b. archaic c. euphemistic d. colloquial e. straightforward

45. The rhymes that end the sixth and eighth lines of each stanza in "O Captain! My Captain!" are

a. masculine and slant rhyme b. masculine and perfect rhyme c. masculine and eye rhyme d. feminine and perfect rhyme e. feminine and slant rhyme

46. "The ship is anchor'd safe and sound, its voyage closed and done..."

The poetic device in this line from "O Captain! My Captain!" is

a. onomatopoeia b. alliteration c. simile d. personification e. hyperbole


47. Dunbar's discomfort with writing poems in black dialect stemmed from

a. the disproportionate praise these poems received b. the way it reinforced negative stereotypes about

blacks c. his greater ease with classical standard English d. his desire to avoid imitating writers like Irwin Russell e. the fear that it would alienate whites

48. The speaker's tone in "The Unsung Heroes" can BEST be described as

a. accusing b. vehement c. disconsolate d. reverent e. regretful

49. "The men who feared the master’s whip but did not fear the fight..."

This line from "The Unsung Heroes" is written in

a. iambic hexameter b. dactylic hexameter c. iambic heptameter d. iambic pentameter e. dactylic pentameter


50. Which of the following represented a departure from the writer's usual style?

a. "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts" b. "O Captain! My Captain!" c. "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" d. Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address e. "The Unsung Heroes"


The passion of rebellion had broken out in him again. That which had seemed incredible in the sober light of day had really come to pass, and he was to assist as a helpless spectator at Mattie's banishment. His manhood was humbled by the part he was compelled to play and by the 5 thought of what Mattie must think of him. Confused impulses struggled in him as he strode along to the village. He had made up his mind to do something, but he did not know what it would be. The early mist had vanished and the fields lay like a silver shield under the sun. It was one of the days when the glitter of winter shines 10 through a pale haze of spring. Every yard of the road was alive with Mattie's presence, and there was hardly a branch against the sky or a tangle of brambles on the bank in which some bright shred of memory was not caught. Once, in the stillness, the call of a bird in a mountain ash was so like her laughter that his heart tightened and then grew large; and all these 15 things made him see that something must be done at once. Suddenly it occurred to him that Andrew Hale, who was a kindhearted man, might be induced to reconsider his refusal and advance a small sum on the lumber if he were told that Zeena's ill-health made it necessary to hire a servant. Hale, after all, knew enough of Ethan's 20 situation to make it possible for the latter to renew his appeal without too much loss of pride; and, moreover, how much did pride count in the ebullition of passions in his breast? The more he considered his plan the more hopeful it seemed. If he could get Mrs. Hale's ear he felt certain of success, and with fifty dollars in 25 his pocket nothing could keep him from Mattie... His first object was to reach Starkfield before Hale had started for his work; he knew the carpenter had a job down the Corbury road and was likely to leave his house early. Ethan's long strides grew more rapid with the accelerated beat of his thoughts, and as he reached the foot of School 30 House Hill he caught sight of Hale's sleigh in the distance. He hurried forward to meet it, but as it drew nearer he saw that it was driven by the carpenter's youngest boy and that the figure at his side, looking like a large upright cocoon in spectacles, was that of Mrs. Hale. Ethan signed to them to stop, and Mrs. Hale leaned forward, her pink wrinkles twinkling with 35 benevolence. Edith Wharton Edith Wharton 160


1. The second paragraph begins with which literary device?

a. litotes b. synecdoche c. personification d. allusion e. simile

2. Ethan’s feelings about Mattie’s looming banishment can BEST be described as

a. excited b. outraged c. rebellious d. complicated e. humbled

3. Which main theme in this passage can BEST be inferred?

a. the struggle for financial independence b. society and morality as an obstacle to the fulfillment

of desire c. love as an inspiring and motivating force d. physical illness and disability as a reflection of a

person’s soul e. winter as a stifling force

4. All of the following are aspects of Wharton’s style EXCEPT

a. chiasmus b. compound sentences c. passive voice d. figurative language e. active voice

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 05 PAGE 2 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 5. The word “ebullition” (line 22) MOST LIKELY means

a. overflow b. lethargy c. expression d. flatness e. lack

6. “…he was to assist as a helpless spectator…” (line 3) is an example of which literary device?

a. peripeteia b. simile c. oxymoron d. metonymy e. paradox

7. The author’s tone can BEST be described as

a. passionate b. malicious c. sympathetic d. reflective e. sarcastic

8. The comparison of Mrs. Hale to “a large upright cocoon in spectacles” (line 32-33) suggests she

a. is in a state of change b. needs assistance c. is fat and ill-proportioned d. is bundled against the cold e. resembles an insect

9. Ethan’s feelings for Mattie indicate that she is MOST LIKELY his

a. lover b. mother c. sister d. daughter e. friend

10. Ethan MOST LIKELY needs money to

a. help Mattie b. hire a servant for Zeena c. hire a sleigh for faster transportation d. hire a carpenter e. buy lumber


11. In Chapter One, the first person to spread the rumor that the army will move is the

a. red-bearded officer b. tall soldier c. loud soldier d. corporal e. youth

12. “And it was as if fate had betrayed the soldier. In death it exposed to his enemies that poverty which in life he had perhaps concealed from his friends.” Henry detects the dead soldier’s poverty through the corpse’s

a. frayed hat b. faded uniform c. worn shoes d. patched trousers e. cheap undercoat

13. Just before his first battle, Henry compares waiting for the enemy to waiting for

a. eagles to land b. the dawning sun c. the circus parade d. the corn to grow e. a hen to lay eggs

14. “He looked to be much harassed. He had the appearance of a business man whose market is swinging up and down.” This description marks Henry’s first encounter with

a. a recruiting officer b. a general c. the lieutenant d. an enemy captive e. the tattered man

15. The tattered man attempts to befriend Henry because he has just been humiliated by

a. the lieutenant b. an army doctor c. an artilleryman d. a sergeant e. the spectral soldier

16. Just before Henry abandons the tattered man in the field, the tattered man grows delirious and begins mistaking Henry for

a. George Roberts b. Bill Smithers c. Will Hasbrouck d. Tom Jamison e. Jim Conklin

17. While observing the battlefield from afar, Henry compares the movement of the wagons to

a. plump pigs b. frantic loons c. fat sheep d. plodding cows e. low toads

18. Which of the following characters examines and triages Henry’s head wound?

a. Wilson b. Smithers c. Simpson d. Saunders e. Whiterside

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 05 PAGE 3 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 19. Henry initially decides not to return Wilson’s package because

he

a. wants to use it as leverage b. wants something in return c. resents Wilson’s loud boasting d. fears Wilson will not keep it safe e. covets its contents

20. On the second day of battle, Henry’s regiment replaces another regiment in some trenches and Wilson

a. prepares coffee b. steadies his gun c. falls asleep d. deepens the trench e. rallies the troops

21. When the lieutenant hears from Henry and Wilson that the general will be deploying their regiment, he reacts with

a. trepidation b. solemnity c. excitement d. disgust e. woe

22. Who is characterized as having a “voice of triple brass?”

a. the lieutenant b. the red-bearded officer c. the cheery soldier d. the loud soldier e. the spectral soldier

23. After a rival regiment taunts Henry’s men for their defeat, who calms down the soldier who wants to fist fight with the rival regiment?

a. Wilson b. the corporal c. the lieutenant d. Henry e. the red-bearded officer

24. Upon taking the enemy’s hold at the fence, Henry’s regiment takes in how many captives?

a. six b. two c. four d. three e. seven

25. Henry’s final sense of self worth boils down to a feeling of

a. quiet manhood b. iron strength c. humble gratitude d. hard-earned courage e. inner bravery

26. While on a war reporting assignment in Cuba, Crane was subjected to a shipwreck aboard the

a. Commodore b. Perry c. Saint Anthony d. Governor e. Maiden

27. Stephen Crane claimed to be dissatisfied with other Civil War books primarily because they neglected to include

a. the war’s historical origins b. why the soldiers enlisted c. how the soldiers felt d. the details of combat e. the soldiers’ family life

28. British critic George Wyndham praised Crane for what aspect of The Red Badge of Courage?

a. the timing b. the natural imagery c. the American focus d. the point of view e. the combat details

29. How does Crane foreshadow the incident in which Henry stumbles upon a dead body in the forest chapel?

a. a frog catches a mosquito b. two squirrels fight c. the woodpeckers go silent d. an animal catches a fish e. two eagles swoop down

30. Which of the following is NOT one of the associations Crane makes in his color symbolism?

a. purple and good deeds b. blue and the Union army c. brown and nature d. yellow and age e. red and war


31. In 1830, Lincoln moved from

a. Kentucky to Louisiana b. Illinois to Kentucky c. Kentucky to Indiana d. Louisiana to Indiana e. Indiana to Illinois

32. Lincoln's debates with Democrat Stephen Douglas did all of the following EXCEPT

a. allow him to speak out against slavery b. helped assure his Presidential nomination c. prove his skill as a rhetorician d. receive feverish attention from the press e. win him the Illinois Senate election

33. According to the Gettysburg Address, the higher purpose of the Civil War is to

a. end the struggle between North and South b. prove that brave men did not die in vain c. test the nation's resolve d. affirm a new vision of equality e. preserve the nation's unity

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 05 PAGE 4 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 34. "Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty

scourge of war may speedily pass away."

This line from Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address does NOT contain

a. consonance b. assonance c. parallelism d. alliteration e. allusion


35. Frederick Douglass published his autobiography

a. in his abolitionist paper b. to raise money to buy his freedom c. to criticize his mistress d. in three separate volumes e. despite the threat of recapture

36. "...she did not seem to perceive that I sustained to her the relation of a mere chattel, and that for her to treat me as a human being was not only wrong, but dangerously so."

Douglass's tone in this line from his autobiography is

a. sharply ironic b. gently cautionary c. sternly disapproving d. deeply sympathetic e. bitterly critical

37. In his autobiography , Frederick Douglass uses a metaphor to compare education to a

a. life-giving sustenance b. powerful light c. precious treasure d. consoling friend e. dangerous secret


38. Bierce's work reminds many of Edgar Allan Poe because both writers

a. write with sympathy about their characters b. use gloomy imagery to describe human fears c. inject their work with light humor d. include military references in all their stories e. focus on details from everyday life

39. "Mrs. Farquhar was only too happy to serve him with her own white hands."

The phrase “white hands” in this sentence from “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” implies that Mrs. Farquhar

a. cannot help being kindhearted b. supports her husband's ambitions c. wishes her husband had joined the army d. is deferential to all soldiers e. would not normally serve a guest herself

40. In the first section of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge," the condemned man

a. distracts himself from thoughts of his family b. vividly imagines his own death c. experiences unusual strength and power d. wears a grim expression e. perceives the stream moving slowly


41. In 1954, Bruce Catton received the Pulitzer Prize for his book about

a. the Battle of Gettysburg b. his own experiences in WWI c. the War Production Board during WWII d. the history of Michigan, his home state e. Grant's campaigns at the end of the Civil War

42. According to "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts," Lee believed that

a. he was a symbol of the Confederacy b. reconciliation with the Union was futile c. being born into the aristocracy came with obligations d. the ideal of equal rights was worth protecting e. the future was more important than the past

43. Which of the following quotations BEST sums up the major theme of "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts"?

a. "Different as they were--in background, in personality, in underlying aspiration--these two great soldiers had much in common.”

b. “They were two strong men, these oddly different generals, and they represented the strengths of two conflicting currents that, through them, had come into final collision.”

c. “Those frontier men were the precise opposites of the tidewater aristocrats.”

d. “Their behavior there put all succeeding generations of Americans in their debt.”

e. “Each man was the perfect champion of his cause, drawing both his strengths and weaknesses from the people he led.”


44. The event that most influenced Whitman's writing was his

a. brother George’s death b. trip along the Mississippi River c. sorrow over the assassination of Lincoln d. partially paralyzing stroke e. experiences during the Civil War

45. The shifts between longer and shorter lines in "O Captain! My Captain!"

a. subvert the traditional verse form b. create a sense of anxiety and confusion c. contrast the ship's joyous return with the captain's

death d. reflect Whitman's predilection for variety e. correspond with changes in the poem's speaker

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 05 PAGE 5 OF 5 DEMIDEC RESOURCES ©2007 46. In "O Captain! My Captain!", all of the following are examples

of anastrophe EXCEPT

a. "he has no pulse nor will" b. "it is some dream that on the deck,/You've fallen" c. "the bells I hear" d. "For you they call, the swaying mass" e. "for you the bugle trills"


47. Poet Paul Laurence Dunbar was disturbed by reviews that

a. attacked his views on civil rights b. encouraged him to focus on standard English writing c. criticized his black dialect poems d. compared him to writer Irwin Russell e. offered condescending praise of his work

48. "When the humblest host that the land could boast went forth to meet the best..."

This line from "The Unsung Heroes" contains

a. identical rhyme and alliteration b. internal rhyme and eye rhyme c. consonance and eye rhyme d. alliteration and consonance e. identical rhyme and consonance

49. "The Unsung Heroes" differs from a traditional ballad by using

a. tetrameter and trimeter and rhyming on adjacent lines

b. hexameter and heptameter and rhyming on adjacent lines

c. hexameter and heptameter and rhyming on alternate lines

d. tetrameter and trimeter and not using internal rhymes

e. hexameter and heptameter and not using internal rhymes


50. Which two pieces raise the theme of commonality across differences?

a. Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address and "O Captain! My Captain!"

b. "The Unsung Heroes" and "The Gettysburg Address" c. "The Gettysburg Address" and "O Captain! My

Captain!" d. Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address and "Grant and

Lee: A Study in Contrasts" e. "Grant and Lee: A Study in Contrasts" and "O

Captain! My Captain!"

LANG & LIT COMPREHENSIVE EXAM 01

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