MCQOPTIONS
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MCQOPTIONS
This section includes 91 Mcqs, each offering curated multiple-choice questions to sharpen your English Literature knowledge and support exam preparation. Choose a topic below to get started.
| 1. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE concerning the Globe theater in Elizabethan England ? |
| A. | It burned down and was reconstructed hundreds of years later. |
| B. | It was situated on the Thames River. |
| C. | It was lit from natural sunlight as well as by candle light. |
| D. | All of the above |
| Answer» E. | |
| 2. |
Which of the following texts is an example of epic poetry ? |
| A. | “Paradise Lost” |
| B. | “The Odyssey” |
| C. | “The Iliad” |
| D. | All of the above |
| Answer» E. | |
| 3. |
Which of the following theaters could be found in England after Queen Elizabeth I came to the throne ? |
| A. | The Curtain |
| B. | The Rose |
| C. | The Globe |
| D. | All of the above |
| Answer» E. | |
| 4. |
Which of the following writers remained a firm believer in the Royal Supremacy ? |
| A. | John Locke |
| B. | John Lyly |
| C. | John Foxe |
| D. | John Milton |
| Answer» D. John Milton | |
| 5. |
Which queen of England attended a number of William Shakespeare’s play ? |
| A. | Queen Elizabeth I |
| B. | Queen Elizabeth II |
| C. | Queen Anne |
| D. | Both A and B |
| Answer» B. Queen Elizabeth II | |
| 6. |
Which writer spent more than twelve years imprisoned in the Tower of London ? |
| A. | Sir Thomas More |
| B. | Sir Walter Raleigh |
| C. | Sir Philip Sidney |
| D. | John Milton |
| Answer» C. Sir Philip Sidney | |
| 7. |
Who became a favorite of Queen Elizabeth I and was knighted and appointed captain of the Queen’s Guard in 1587 ? |
| A. | Sir Thomas More |
| B. | Sir Walter Raleigh |
| C. | Sir Philip Sidney |
| D. | Sir William Shakespeare |
| Answer» C. Sir Philip Sidney | |
| 8. |
Who introduced the Italian sonnet to the British Isles during the reign of King Henry VIII ? |
| A. | Thomas Wyatt |
| B. | Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey |
| C. | John Donne |
| D. | Both A and B |
| Answer» E. | |
| 9. |
Who is largely considered to be the father of epic poetry ? |
| A. | Homer |
| B. | Dante |
| C. | Virgil |
| D. | Milton |
| Answer» B. Dante | |
| 10. |
Who was considered to be England’s first literary celebrity ? |
| A. | John Donne |
| B. | Sir Walter Raleigh |
| C. | Sir Thomas More |
| D. | John Foxe |
| Answer» E. | |
| 11. |
Who was in charge of organizing court festivities and entertainment of the English court ? |
| A. | Court Jester |
| B. | Master of Revels |
| C. | Master of Rebels |
| D. | Master of Ceremonies |
| Answer» C. Master of Rebels | |
| 12. |
Who was King Henry VIII’s first wife ? |
| A. | Catherine of Aragon |
| B. | Anne Boleyn |
| C. | Mary, Queen of Scots |
| D. | Anne of Cleves |
| Answer» B. Anne Boleyn | |
| 13. |
Who was the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn who also reigned as Queen of England from 1558 to1603 ? |
| A. | Elizabeth I |
| B. | Elizabeth II |
| C. | Mary, Queen of Scots |
| D. | Catherine of Aragon |
| Answer» B. Elizabeth II | |
| 14. |
Who wrote “Orlando Furioso” ? |
| A. | John Milton |
| B. | Ludovico Ariosto |
| C. | Sir Philip Sidney |
| D. | William Shakespeare |
| Answer» C. Sir Philip Sidney | |
| 15. |
William Shakespeare’s “Henry V” is an example of what dramatic genre ? |
| A. | Tragedy |
| B. | Comedy |
| C. | Romance |
| D. | History |
| Answer» E. | |
| 16. |
William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” is an example of what dramatic genre ? |
| A. | Tragedy |
| B. | Comedy |
| C. | Romance |
| D. | Satire |
| Answer» B. Comedy | |
| 17. |
Which of the following statements best describes the “Great Chain of Being” ? |
| A. | It regarded human beings as social creatures who could create meaningful lives only in association with other social beings. |
| B. | Its major premise was that every existing thing in the universe had its “place” in a divinely planned hierarchical order which was pictured as a c |
| C. | It could only be achieved through faith in God’s grace. |
| D. | Both A and B |
| Answer» C. It could only be achieved through faith in God’s grace. | |
| 18. |
Which of the following plays were written by Christopher Marlowe ? |
| A. | “The Jew of Malta” |
| B. | “Doctor Faustus” |
| C. | “Edward II” |
| D. | All of the above |
| Answer» E. | |
| 19. |
Which of the following plays by William Shakespeare is a comedy ? |
| A. | “Romeo and Juliet” |
| B. | “Hamlet” |
| C. | “Much Ado about Nothing” |
| D. | “Henry IV, Part I” |
| Answer» D. “Henry IV, Part I” | |
| 20. |
Which of the following is an important component of John Foxe’s martyrology ? |
| A. | Hexagrams |
| B. | Epigrams |
| C. | Heroic couplets |
| D. | All of the above |
| Answer» C. Heroic couplets | |
| 21. |
Which of the following figures was an important political theorist of the Renaissance ? |
| A. | Niccolo Machiavelli |
| B. | Francesco Petrarcha |
| C. | Aristotle |
| D. | Plato |
| Answer» B. Francesco Petrarcha | |
| 22. |
Which of the following critics is a famous Shakespearean scholar ? |
| A. | M. H. Abrams |
| B. | Stephen Greenblatt |
| C. | Helen Vendler |
| D. | Wayne C. Booth |
| Answer» C. Helen Vendler | |
| 23. |
Which of the following controversial ideas surround the life and work of William Shakespeare ? |
| A. | The idea that William Shakespeare never lived. |
| B. | The idea that William Shakespeare was a Catholic. |
| C. | All of the above |
| D. | A and B only |
| Answer» E. | |
| 24. |
Which of the following characters is NOT found in the dramatis personae ofWilliam Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” ? |
| A. | Benvolio |
| B. | Lady Capulet |
| C. | Mercutio |
| D. | Falstaff |
| Answer» E. | |
| 25. |
What text greatly popularized the sonnet form in England during the Elizabethan period ? |
| A. | “Astrophil and Stella” |
| B. | “Utopia” |
| C. | “Paradise Lost” |
| D. | “Canterbury Tales” |
| Answer» B. “Utopia” | |
| 26. |
What Renaissance text uses martyrology as a device to historicize the conflict between the true Church and the false Church in England ? |
| A. | “Euphues” |
| B. | “Paradise Lost” |
| C. | “Paradise Regained” |
| D. | “Acts and Monuments” |
| Answer» E. | |
| 27. |
What genres of plays did William Shakespeare write ? |
| A. | Tragedies |
| B. | Comedies |
| C. | Romances |
| D. | All of the above |
| Answer» E. | |
| 28. |
What doctrine significantly influenced Sir Thomas More’s “Utopia” ? |
| A. | Marxism |
| B. | Christian Humanism |
| C. | Feminism |
| D. | New Historicism |
| Answer» C. Feminism | |
| 29. |
What author wrote the poem “Whoso list to hunt” ? |
| A. | Sir Philip Sidney |
| B. | Sir Thomas More |
| C. | Thomas Wyatt |
| D. | Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey |
| Answer» D. Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey | |
| 30. |
What author defines the function of poetry with reference to the Horatian dictum of “to teach and delight” ? |
| A. | Sir Thomas More |
| B. | Sir Walter Raleigh |
| C. | John Lyly |
| D. | Sir Philip Sidney |
| Answer» E. | |
| 31. |
What author speaks of the exemplary story as a fundamental narrative unit in which it is important to follow chronological order ? |
| A. | John Foxe |
| B. | John Lyly |
| C. | Sir Thomas More |
| D. | Sir Walter Raleigh |
| Answer» B. John Lyly | |
| 32. |
What author fell in love with Anne Boleyn while she was married to King Henry VIII ? |
| A. | Sir Philip Sidney |
| B. | Sir Thomas More |
| C. | Thomas Wyatt |
| D. | Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey |
| Answer» D. Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey | |
| 33. |
There was greater emphasis placed on human potentiality for growth and excellence through Europe by which year ? |
| A. | 1400 |
| B. | 1500 |
| C. | 1600 |
| D. | 1650 |
| Answer» C. 1600 | |
| 34. |
The work of John Foxe was no longer read or heeded in educated circles after which major historical event ? |
| A. | Restoration |
| B. | Glorious Revolution |
| C. | French Revolution |
| D. | Seven Years War |
| Answer» C. French Revolution | |
| 35. |
“The Vision of the Twelve Goddesses” is an example of what dramatic genre ? |
| A. | Masque |
| B. | Satire |
| C. | Burlesque |
| D. | Tragedy |
| Answer» B. Satire | |
| 36. |
The Petrarchan sonnet is composed of how many lines ? |
| A. | 9 |
| B. | 10 |
| C. | 12 |
| D. | 14 |
| Answer» E. | |
| 37. |
The Petrarchan sonnet is typically composed in what form of meter ? |
| A. | Trochaic trimeter |
| B. | Terza rima |
| C. | Iambic pentameter |
| D. | Anapestic pentameter |
| Answer» D. Anapestic pentameter | |
| 38. |
The foundation story of what poem is the Genesis account of the Creation of the world and of Adam and Eve, culminating in the drama of their temptation and fall ? |
| A. | “Canterbury Tales” |
| B. | “The Faerie Queen” |
| C. | “Paradise Lost” |
| D. | “The Prelude” |
| Answer» D. “The Prelude” | |
| 39. |
The distinction between comedy and tragedy which characterized classical drama was first forgotten during what period in England ? |
| A. | Medieval |
| B. | Romantic |
| C. | Victorian |
| D. | Elizabethan |
| Answer» B. Romantic | |
| 40. |
The conceit of the Petrarchan sonnet in English during the Elizabethan period often involves what topic ? |
| A. | Drugs |
| B. | Sex |
| C. | Animals |
| D. | Propaganda |
| Answer» C. Animals | |
| 41. |
The character of Falstaff is important in which play(s) by William Shakespeare ? |
| A. | “Henry IV, Part I” |
| B. | “Henry IV, Part II” |
| C. | “Titus Andronicus” |
| D. | All of the above |
| Answer» E. | |
| 42. |
Romance, classical structure, and festive elements had already begun to come together in drama when what author began writing ? |
| A. | Chaucer |
| B. | Langland |
| C. | Homer |
| D. | Shakespeare |
| Answer» E. | |
| 43. |
On which of the following topics did Sir Thomas More focus in his “Utopia” ? |
| A. | Riches, jewels, and gold |
| B. | Suicide |
| C. | Marriage and divorce |
| D. | All of the above |
| Answer» E. | |
| 44. |
Martin Luther’s translation of what text helped to develop a standard version of the German language and added several principles to the art of translation ? |
| A. | “Paradise Lost” |
| B. | “Canterbury Tales” |
| C. | “The Bible” |
| D. | “Piers Plowman” |
| Answer» D. “Piers Plowman” | |
| 45. |
Many of William Shakespeare’s plays were performed at what theater in Elizabethan England ? |
| A. | “The Curtain” |
| B. | “The Globe” |
| C. | “The Rose” |
| D. | “The Anchor” |
| Answer» C. “The Rose” | |
| 46. |
King Henry VIII adopted what religion ? |
| A. | Catholicism |
| B. | Protestantism |
| C. | Buddhism |
| D. | Roman Catholicism |
| Answer» C. Buddhism | |
| 47. |
John Milton’s “Paradise Lost” focuses attention on the relationship between which opposing entities ? |
| A. | Heaven vs. hell |
| B. | God vs. Satan |
| C. | Good vs. evil |
| D. | All of the above |
| Answer» E. | |
| 48. |
John Milton’s “Lycidas” is what genre of poetry ? |
| A. | A pastoral elegy |
| B. | A satire |
| C. | An epic |
| D. | A mock-epic |
| Answer» B. A satire | |
| 49. |
John Lyly’s work significantly shaped the writing of which famous writer ? |
| A. | William Blake |
| B. | William Wordsworth |
| C. | Samuel Taylor Coleridge |
| D. | William Shakespeare |
| Answer» E. | |
| 50. |
John Lyly became instantly famous with the publication of what text ? |
| A. | “95 Theses” |
| B. | “Utopia” |
| C. | “Euphues, or the Anatomy of Wit” |
| D. | “Paradise Lost” |
| Answer» D. “Paradise Lost” | |