NJSLA Analyzing Literary Texts 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A story begins in the middle of a battle scene, then uses flashbacks to explain how the characters arrived at this point. This narrative technique is called:
- Foreshadowing
- In medias res (Correct answer)
- Frame narrative
- Anachronism
Correct answer: In medias res
In medias res is a Latin term for 'in the middle of things' — starting a narrative at a dramatic point before providing context.
Question 2: An author writes a novel in which the protagonist's unreliable memories slowly reveal a truth the reader suspects before the character does. Which effect does this technique MOST create?
- Dramatic irony, as the reader knows more than the narrator (Correct answer)
- Situational irony, as events contradict reader expectations
- Verbal irony, as the narrator says the opposite of what is true
- Cosmic irony, as fate controls all outcomes
Correct answer: Dramatic irony, as the reader knows more than the narrator
Dramatic irony occurs when the audience possesses knowledge or understanding that a character lacks.
Question 3: A student analyzing a Langston Hughes poem notes that the speaker's tone shifts from hopeful to bitter by the final stanza. What is the MOST likely reason to examine this shift?
- To identify the poem's rhyme scheme
- To understand how the speaker's attitude changes and what that reveals about the poem's theme (Correct answer)
- To determine the historical period in which the poem was written
- To count the syllables in each line
Correct answer: To understand how the speaker's attitude changes and what that reveals about the poem's theme
Analyzing a tonal shift helps reveal the speaker's evolving perspective and how it connects to the poem's central message.
Question 4: Which of the following sentences contains a SIMILE?
- The night swallowed every last star.
- Her laughter was music to his ears.
- He ran like a cheetah chasing prey. (Correct answer)
- The ancient oak tree stood guard over the field.
Correct answer: He ran like a cheetah chasing prey.
A simile uses 'like' or 'as' to compare two unlike things — 'ran like a cheetah' is a clear example.
Question 5: A myth explains that thunder is caused by a god striking his hammer on an anvil. This type of story that explains natural phenomena through supernatural means is called:
- A parable
- An allegory
- An etiological myth (Correct answer)
- A tall tale
Correct answer: An etiological myth
An etiological myth is a story created to explain the origins of natural phenomena, customs, or place names.
Question 6: In a short story, a recurring image of a locked door appears whenever the protagonist faces a moment of decision. The locked door most likely functions as:
- A plot device to slow the action
- A symbol representing blocked opportunities or suppressed choices (Correct answer)
- An allusion to a well-known fairy tale
- An example of dramatic irony
Correct answer: A symbol representing blocked opportunities or suppressed choices
When a concrete object consistently appears at thematically significant moments, it functions as a symbol carrying deeper meaning.
Question 7: Which of the following BEST describes the purpose of a story's resolution (denouement)?
- To introduce the central conflict of the story
- To build suspense by complicating the plot further
- To tie up loose ends and show how the story's world has changed after the climax (Correct answer)
- To reveal the theme for the first time
Correct answer: To tie up loose ends and show how the story's world has changed after the climax
The resolution follows the climax and shows how conflicts are settled and how characters and situations have changed as a result.
NJSLA Analyzing Literary Texts 5
A story begins in the middle of a battle scene, then uses flashbacks to explain how the characters arrived at this point.
This narrative technique is called: