93 + Mcqs in African-American Literature in English Literature Page 2 McqOptions

51.	Native Son was written by___________________?
A.	Jean Toomer.
B.	Richard Wright.
C.	Ralph Ellison.
D.	James Baldwin.
Answer» C. Ralph Ellison.

Discussion

52.	Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” King advocates_______________?
A.	Breaking the law.
B.	Using violence when necessary.
C.	Waiting for times to get better.
D.	Disobeying unjust laws.
Answer» E.

Discussion

53.	In writing Beloved, Toni Morrison drew on what for inspiration ?
A.	Her own memories of slavery.
B.	Stories her grandmother told her.
C.	The television series Roots.
D.	Slave narratives.
Answer» E.

Discussion

54.	In what way is Jane Toomer’s Cane an example of Modernism ?
A.	Its fractured, collage effect.
B.	Its insistence on plot.
C.	Its focus on landscape.
D.	Its focus on modern city life.
Answer» B. Its insistence on plot.

Discussion

55.	In the United States, Reconstruction_______________?
A.	Is the time period that followed the Civil War.
B.	Describes the rebuilding after World War I.
C.	Refers to the Civil Rights movement.
D.	Took place only in the North.
Answer» B. Describes the rebuilding after World War I.

Discussion

56.	In the poem “When Malindy Sings,” Paul Laurence Dunbar uses irony and caricature to “signify” on white assumptions about African Americans. What does Henry Louis Gate’s term “signify” mean ?
A.	Giving words double meaning that appear differently to white and black readers.
B.	Fixing words with very specific meanings.
C.	Making sure that what is written makes sense.
D.	Lying to mislead the reader.
Answer» B. Fixing words with very specific meanings.

Discussion

57.	In Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man, living underground is symbolic of_____________?
A.	The narrator’s attempt to stay hidden.
B.	The narrator’s desire to be safe.
C.	The narrator’s invisibility to society.
D.	The narrator’s attempt to stay out of prison.
Answer» D. The narrator’s attempt to stay out of prison.

Discussion

58.	In Paul Laurence Dunbar’s “When Malindy Sings,” what kind of music is Malindy singing ?
A.	Cakewalk tunes.
B.	Gospel.
C.	Jazz.
D.	Blues.
Answer» C. Jazz.

Discussion

59.	In Paul Laurence Dunbar’s “A Cabin Tale,” which character is a trickster figure?
A.	Weasel.
B.	Bear.
C.	The farmer.
D.	The young boy.
Answer» B. Bear.

Discussion

60.	In Octavia Butler’s “Bloodchild,” The Tlick keep the humans happy by_______________?
A.	Supplying them with narcotic eggs.
B.	Letting them choose their own mates.
C.	Freeing the males after they are hosts.
D.	Paying them very well.
Answer» B. Letting them choose their own mates.

Discussion

61.	In Nikki Giovanni’s “The American Vision of Lincoln,” the poet argues that the Capitol needs a statue of _____________next to the one of Abraham Lincoln?
A.	W.E.B. DuBois
B.	Amiri Baraka
C.	Booker T. Washington
D.	Frederick Douglass
Answer» E.

Discussion

62.	In Nella Larsen’s novel Passing, why is Clare afraid to have another child ?
A.	She almost died in childbirth with her first child.
B.	She doesn’t want to lose her figure.
C.	Her husband has threatened to leave her.
D.	She is afraid it may have dark skin.
Answer» E.

Discussion

63.	In Lucille Clifton’s “wishes for son,” the narrator lists what wishes her sons ?
A.	That they learn from her mistakes.
B.	That they have richer lives than hers.
C.	That they have all they ever wished for themselves.
D.	That they experience all the pain and embarrassment of being a woman.
Answer» E.

Discussion

64.	In Jean Toomer’s “Her Lips Are Copper Wires,” a kiss is compared to_______________?
A.	A waterfall.
B.	Electricity.
C.	A war.
D.	A factory.
Answer» C. A war.

Discussion

65.	In Gwendolyn Brooks’ poem, “we real cool,” the Golden Shovel is_______________?
A.	The name of a restaurant the pool players cannot enter.
B.	A metaphor for colossal lies they have been buried with.
C.	A metaphor for the pool players who are trying to dig out of their neighborhood.
D.	The name of a pool hall.
Answer» E.

Discussion

66.	In Gwendolyn Brooks’ poem, “kitchenette building,” what is most important to the building’s inhabitants ?
A.	Having a bathroom with warm water.
B.	Following one’s dreams.
C.	Getting food on the table.
D.	Finding a mate.
Answer» B. Following one’s dreams.

Discussion

67.	In Charles Chesnutt’s “The Goophered Grape Vine,” why does Uncle Julius tell the Northern visitors the story of the spell put on the grapes ?
A.	To describe the horrors of life on the Post-bellum plantation.
B.	To explain his religious views.
C.	To amuse the narrator’s sickly wife.
D.	So they won’t interrupt his income from the neglected grape harvest.
Answer» E.

Discussion

68.	In Chapter XV of William Wells Brown’s Clotel, why was Clotel made to cut her long hair ?
A.	The mistress of the house was afraid her husband would be attracted to Clotel.
B.	To keep the lice away.
C.	So that the other slaves would get along with her.
D.	So she could sell it.
Answer» B. To keep the lice away.

Discussion

69.	In Chapter XV of William Wells Brown’s Clotel, what characteristic of the sentimental novel is evident ?
A.	The scene invokes audience sympathy.
B.	The heroine has to balance autonomy with self-denial.
C.	The heroine conquers her passions.
D.	A and B
E.	B and C
Answer» E. B and C

Discussion

70.	In Chapter XV of William Wells Brown’s Clotel, Clotel is described as a quadroon. What does this mean ?
A.	She is one-quarter Black.
B.	She is one-eighth Black.
C.	She is White.
D.	She cannot be a slave.
Answer» B. She is one-eighth Black.

Discussion

71.	In Chapter XV of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, where did Linda hide ?
A.	Under the floorboards.
B.	With a friend.
C.	In the stables.
D.	In a remote cabin.
Answer» C. In the stables.

Discussion

72.	In Chapter Three of Booker T. Washington’s Up from Slavery, Washington’s primary goal is to______________?
A.	Get an education.
B.	Get a job.
C.	To be clean.
D.	To be a teacher
Answer» B. Get a job.

Discussion

73.	In Chapter 11 of The Autobiography of Malcolm X, how does Malcolm X survive prison ?
A.	Getting an education.
B.	Fighting.
C.	Making friends with the guards.
D.	Contacting famous authors.
Answer» B. Fighting.

Discussion

74.	In “125th Street and Abomey,” Audre Lorde references images from ________________?
A.	African mythology.
B.	African American folktale.
C.	Greek mythology.
D.	Contemporary female artists.
Answer» B. African American folktale.

Discussion

75.	Harriet Jacobs wrote Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl to show______________?
A.	That female slaves were escaping more frequently than men.
B.	How slavery was worse for men.
C.	How females were affected by slavery.
D.	That female slaves were more valuable than male slaves.
Answer» D. That female slaves were more valuable than male slaves.

Discussion

76.	Harriet Jacob’s slave narrative Incidents in the Life differs from Harriet Beecher Stowe’s abolitionist novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin in what way ?
A.	Stowe’s novel is sentimental.
B.	Stowe describes the treatment of slaves.
C.	Stowe describes the escape of slaves.
D.	Uncle Tom’s Cabin was used by abolitionists.
Answer» B. Stowe describes the treatment of slaves.

Discussion

77.	Frederick Douglass argued that slaves sang spirituals for all of the following reasons except______________?
A.	To impress the horrors of slavery on listeners
B.	To ease their pain
C.	To pray for deliverance
D.	To show that they were content in their work
Answer» E.

Discussion

78.	For Booker T. Washington, racial uplift means_______________?
A.	Rejecting all White assistance.
B.	Allowing Whites to help African Americans to reach their potential.
C.	Calling for violent uprisings.
D.	Separating Blacks by income level
Answer» C. Calling for violent uprisings.

Discussion

79.	Etheridge Knight’s “Hard Rock Returns to Prison from the Hospital for the Criminal Insane,” what is Hard Rock’s function in the prison ?
A.	To help the other inmates escape.
B.	To win money by fighting.
C.	To do what the other inmates were afraid to do.
D.	To keep the Blacks and Whites separated.
Answer» D. To keep the Blacks and Whites separated.

Discussion

80.	During the early 20th century, a black person’s purpose in passing might have been_________________?
A.	To obtain justice for black people.
B.	To get better accommodations on the train, better seats in the theatre.
C.	To escape from slavery.
D.	None of the above.
Answer» C. To escape from slavery.

Discussion

81.	David Walker’s “Appeal in Four Articles” argues that_________________?
A.	The races should not intermarry.
B.	Christians the only ones not to blame for the existence of slavery.
C.	Blacks have the duty to resist slavery.
D.	Blacks should return to Africa.
Answer» D. Blacks should return to Africa.

Discussion

82.	Charles W. Chesnutt used vernacular speech to________________?
A.	Explain how African Americans could not learn standard English
B.	Make his written inaccessible to white audiences
C.	To encourage feelings of pride in African American readers
D.	Challenge American stereotypes about race
Answer» E.

Discussion

83.	Brer Rabbit is an example of what kind of character ?
A.	Trickster
B.	Victim
C.	Representation of the slave master
D.	“Uncle Tom” character who feels slavery is best for the African American
Answer» B. Victim

Discussion

84.	Booker T. Washington’s message in Up from Slavery is_______________?
A.	Whites should pay reparations to former slaves.
B.	African Americans should acculturate to mainstream White culture.
C.	White institutions should reform to meet African American needs.
D.	African Americans will have to help themselves by becoming educated.
Answer» E.

Discussion

85.	Arna Bontemps’s “A Summer Tragedy” attacks the institution of________________?
A.	Sharecropping.
B.	Slavery.
C.	Segregation.
D.	Prostitution.
Answer» B. Slavery.

Discussion

86.	Although different in tone, Soujourner Truth’s “Ain’t I a Woman” and David Walker’s “Appeal in Four Articles” are similar in what way ?
A.	Their belief in necessary violence.
B.	Their belief that women should have equal rights.
C.	Their appeals to Christians.
D.	Their belief that African Americans should govern themselves.
Answer» D. Their belief that African Americans should govern themselves.

Discussion

87.	Although Charles Johnson’s Oxherding Tales is based on his Buddhist beliefs, he meant the novel to be a reworking of an American genre, the slave narrative. In what way is the novel, despite its philosophical underpinnings, an exemplar of the slave narrative ?
A.	Its character’s movement from slavery to freedom.
B.	Its emphasis on Christian ideals.
C.	The novel’s sensationalist scenes of violence.
D.	Its didactic (teaching) tone of voice.
Answer» B. Its emphasis on Christian ideals.

Discussion

88.	All of the following are characteristics of the African American tradition of the toast except_____________?
A.	Toasting is oral
B.	Toasting is a male event
C.	Toasting glorifies women
D.	Toasting provides cultural identification
Answer» D. Toasting provides cultural identification

Discussion

89.	Alice Walker’s story, “Everyday Use,” includes which “Womanist” concern ?
A.	The importance of men to the African American family.
B.	The negative consequences of feminism on the African American family.
C.	The importance of African religious influence in America.
D.	The importance of African American craftsmanship.
Answer» C. The importance of African religious influence in America.

Discussion

90.	Alice Walker’s novels often explore the abuse experienced by African American women. What is the only abuse Celie does not experience The Color Purple ?
A.	Betrayal by the educational system.
B.	Betrayal by her sister.
C.	Betrayal by her community.
D.	Betrayal by a family member.
Answer» C. Betrayal by her community.

Discussion

91.	African American dialects grew out of_______________?
A.	The 1960s protest movements
B.	The attempts of African slaves to communicate with each other
C.	Slave owners teaching slaves Elizabethan English
D.	Slaves’ attempts to keep their conversations secret
Answer» C. Slave owners teaching slaves Elizabethan English

Discussion

92.	According to Larry Neal, the primary goal of the Black Arts Movement is_______________?
A.	To speak to the spiritual and cultural needs of African Americans.
B.	To raise awareness of violence in African American youth.
C.	To support the Back to Africa Movement.
D.	To raise money for Sickle Cell Anemia research.
Answer» B. To raise awareness of violence in African American youth.

Discussion

93.	According to Henry Louis Gates, Jr., reconstructing black people into the “New Negro” has been a matter of_______________?
A.	Redefining black people in terms of a presence, not an absence.
B.	Working against the existing racist stereotypes.
C.	A struggle ongoing since 1619.
D.	All of the above
Answer» E.

Discussion

Explore topic-wise MCQs in English Literature .

Native Son was written by___________________?

Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” King advocates_______________?

In writing Beloved, Toni Morrison drew on what for inspiration ?

In what way is Jane Toomer’s Cane an example of Modernism ?

In the United States, Reconstruction_______________?

In the poem “When Malindy Sings,” Paul Laurence Dunbar uses irony and caricature to “signify” on white assumptions about African Americans. What does Henry Louis Gate’s term “signify” mean ?

In Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man, living underground is symbolic of_____________?

In Paul Laurence Dunbar’s “When Malindy Sings,” what kind of music is Malindy singing ?

In Paul Laurence Dunbar’s “A Cabin Tale,” which character is a trickster figure?

In Octavia Butler’s “Bloodchild,” The Tlick keep the humans happy by_______________?

In Nikki Giovanni’s “The American Vision of Lincoln,” the poet argues that the Capitol needs a statue of _____________next to the one of Abraham Lincoln?

In Nella Larsen’s novel Passing, why is Clare afraid to have another child ?

In Lucille Clifton’s “wishes for son,” the narrator lists what wishes her sons ?

In Jean Toomer’s “Her Lips Are Copper Wires,” a kiss is compared to_______________?

In Gwendolyn Brooks’ poem, “we real cool,” the Golden Shovel is_______________?

In Gwendolyn Brooks’ poem, “kitchenette building,” what is most important to the building’s inhabitants ?

In Charles Chesnutt’s “The Goophered Grape Vine,” why does Uncle Julius tell the Northern visitors the story of the spell put on the grapes ?

In Chapter XV of William Wells Brown’s Clotel, why was Clotel made to cut her long hair ?

In Chapter XV of William Wells Brown’s Clotel, what characteristic of the sentimental novel is evident ?

In Chapter XV of William Wells Brown’s Clotel, Clotel is described as a quadroon. What does this mean ?

In Chapter XV of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, where did Linda hide ?

In Chapter Three of Booker T. Washington’s Up from Slavery, Washington’s primary goal is to______________?

In Chapter 11 of The Autobiography of Malcolm X, how does Malcolm X survive prison ?

In “125th Street and Abomey,” Audre Lorde references images from ________________?

Harriet Jacobs wrote Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl to show______________?

Harriet Jacob’s slave narrative Incidents in the Life differs from Harriet Beecher Stowe’s abolitionist novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin in what way ?

Frederick Douglass argued that slaves sang spirituals for all of the following reasons except______________?

For Booker T. Washington, racial uplift means_______________?

Etheridge Knight’s “Hard Rock Returns to Prison from the Hospital for the Criminal Insane,” what is Hard Rock’s function in the prison ?

During the early 20th century, a black person’s purpose in passing might have been_________________?

David Walker’s “Appeal in Four Articles” argues that_________________?

Charles W. Chesnutt used vernacular speech to________________?

Brer Rabbit is an example of what kind of character ?

Booker T. Washington’s message in Up from Slavery is_______________?

Arna Bontemps’s “A Summer Tragedy” attacks the institution of________________?

Although different in tone, Soujourner Truth’s “Ain’t I a Woman” and David Walker’s “Appeal in Four Articles” are similar in what way ?

Although Charles Johnson’s Oxherding Tales is based on his Buddhist beliefs, he meant the novel to be a reworking of an American genre, the slave narrative. In what way is the novel, despite its philosophical underpinnings, an exemplar of the slave narrative ?

All of the following are characteristics of the African American tradition of the toast except_____________?

Alice Walker’s story, “Everyday Use,” includes which “Womanist” concern ?

Alice Walker’s novels often explore the abuse experienced by African American women. What is the only abuse Celie does not experience The Color Purple ?

African American dialects grew out of_______________?

According to Larry Neal, the primary goal of the Black Arts Movement is_______________?

According to Henry Louis Gates, Jr., reconstructing black people into the “New Negro” has been a matter of_______________?