British Literature – Previous Year Questions
441 questions from past UGC NET English papers, each with the correct answer. Open any question for its explanation.
Topic-wise mock tests
- Which novel is NOT part of Beckett's trilogy, published in one volume in London in 1959?
- Which stage setting of Pinter's The Birthday Party is INCORRECT?
- Assertion (A): The best-known mystery and miracle cycles come from York, Wakefield and Chester. Reason (R): King Alfred encouraged the vernacular in the late ninth century as second best to Latin.
- Arrange the following novels by Hardy in chronological order: A. The Trumpet-Major B. The Hand of Ethelberta C. Tess of the d'Urbervilles D. The Woodlanders E. The Return of the Native
- A quoted letter, written while its author was at work on Shirley, discusses the difficulty of drawing male as against female characters. Who wrote it, and to whom?
- Which description of a character in Congreve's The Way of the World is INCORRECT?
- Shaw's Pygmalion draws on which tradition's myth of a sculptor who fell in love with his ivory statue?
- Match List I with List II: List I: Kind of poetry List II: Example A. Dub poetry I. 'Tintern Abbey' B. Bucolic poetry II. Ariel C. Confessional poetry III. The Dread Affair D. Topographical poetry IV. Eclogues
- Which of the following is NOT a dystopian novel?
- Which statements are correct? A. The Kailyard school produced sentimental, idealised novels of Scottish small-town life in the 1890s. B. 'Kailyard' means cabbage patch, suggesting parochial concerns. C. Dorothy L. Sayer…
- Assertion (A): Bacon's position as an essayist is peculiar. Reason (R): He bears no resemblance to essayists like Addison or Hazlitt.
- Match List I with List II: List I: Heroine List II: Novel A. Marya Zelli I. After Leaving Mr Mackenzie B. Julia Martin II. The Life and Loves of a She-Devil C. Rosamund Stacey III. Quartet D. Ruth Patchett IV. The Mills…
- Arrange the following facts about Arms and the Man in chronological order: A. First performance at the Avenue Theatre B. British film directed by Cecil Lewis C. German film adaptation nominated for an Academy Award D. A…
- Match List I with List II: List I: Character (The Countess Cathleen) List II: Description A. Shemus Rua I. Foster-mother of the Countess B. Aleel II. Wife of Shemus Rua C. Oona III. A peasant D. Mary IV. A poet
- Assertion (A): English poetry changed after 1945. Reason (R): Some poets carried on the Romantic tradition with personal, elemental themes.
- Which statements about Chaucer are correct? A. The Book of the Duchess commemorates Blanche, wife of John of Gaunt, who died in 1368. B. The House of Fame engages with Dante's Divine Comedy. C. The Canterbury Tales goes…
- Which statement about a Forster novel is INCORRECT?
- Arrange these statements in the order they occur in Bacon's 'Of Studies': A. Their chief use for delight is in privateness and retiring. B. To spend too much time in studies is sloth. C. They perfect nature, and are per…
- Arnold's Empedocles on Etna (1852) is an example of:
- Arrange the following works in chronological order: A. Browne, Religio Medici B. Nashe, The Terrors of the Night C. Lamb, Essays of Elia D. More, Utopia E. Peacock, The Four Ages of Poetry
- Assertion (A): The 9/11 attacks defined the early twenty-first century. Reason (R): Christopher Brookmyre's A Big Boy Did It and Ran Away, published just before them, was prescient.
- Which details from the dramatis personae of The Duchess of Malfi are correct? A. Ferdinand, Duke of Calabria B. The Cardinal, 'Executioner' C. Antonio Bologna, steward of the Duchess's household D. Delio, 'Court Officer…
- In which Dickens novel does fog shroud London in the opening chapter?
- Who speaks the line 'Put out the light, and then put out the light'?
- Arrange the plays from which these lines come in chronological order: A. 'Nothing happens, nobody comes, nobody goes, it's awful!' B. 'All the world's a stage' C. 'Come, violent death, serve for mandragora to make me sl…
- Identify the poem in which these lines occur: 'My babe so beautiful! it thrills my heart / With tender gladness, thus to look at thee'.
- Identify the set of poems all written by W. B. Yeats.
- What is the subtitle of Goldsmith's semi-autobiographical poem The Traveller (1764)?
- Which group of poets is known as the Georgian Poets?
- Who is considered 'the father of South African English poetry'?