Free Literary Terms and Devices MCQs with Answers
330 Literary Terms and Devices MCQs from English Literature, each with the correct answer and a written explanation of why it is correct. Free and unlimited, with no account needed.
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330 questions · page 5 of 17
- A. I began driving at the age of 16 and have never been involved in a serious car accident.
- B. No one under the age of 18 should be allowed to drive.
- C. Research has demonstrated that some people under the age of 18 do not have the proper judgment skills to handle operating a car.
- D. Every year countless people are killed by drivers under the age of 18.
Explanation: Logos persuades through reason and evidence, and the reference to research supplies an evidence-based argument.
Correct answer: Research has demonstrated that some people under the age of 18 do not have the proper judgment skills to handle operating a car.- A. Using informal language
- B. Demonstrating a mastery of the topic
- C. Appealing to the reader's emotions
- D. Using logic and reason
Explanation: Ethos persuades by establishing the writer's credibility and authority.
Correct answer: Demonstrating a mastery of the topic- A. a line.
- B. a foot.
- C. a measure.
- D. a meter.
Explanation: A foot is the smallest recurring unit of metrical rhythm, such as an iamb or a trochee.
Correct answer: a foot.- A. A narrative that introduces readers to the main characters of a story
- B. A narrative that summarizes the plot of the novel
- C. A story within a story
- D. A story that reminds the reader that the story is fictional
Explanation: A frame narrative contains an outer story that introduces or encloses one or more inner stories, as in The Arabian Nights or The…
Correct answer: A story within a story- A. Persuasion is the art of making readers or listeners believe what the writer or speaker is stating.
- B. Persuasion is the art of lying to good effect.
- C. Persuasion is the opposite of rhetoric.
- D. Persuasion is the use of syllogisms to influence the opinions of readers and listeners.
Explanation: Persuasion is the rhetorical effort to lead readers or listeners toward accepting a claim or position.
Correct answer: Persuasion is the art of making readers or listeners believe what the writer or speaker is stating.- A. A noble person who becomes completely corrupted
- B. A cowardly person who doubts himself or herself despite possessing great wealth and political power
- C. A cowardly person who shows some personal strength when faced with a crisis
- D. A noble person who makes a costly mistake
Explanation: A tragic hero is typically a person of high or noble status whose error of judgment, or hamartia, leads to suffering and downfall.
Correct answer: A noble person who makes a costly mistake87. Aristotle felt that ethos was established by a speaker or writer by convincing the audience that ?
- A. the author or speaker was of good mind and character.
- B. the author or speaker was emotionally involved in the topic at hand.
- C. the author or speaker has provided proper logic and evidence in support of his topic.
- D. the author or speaker maintained the appropriate critical distance from the topic.
Explanation: Ethos is persuasive appeal based on the speaker's credibility, good character, and sound judgment.
Correct answer: the author or speaker was of good mind and character.- A. begins at the apparent end of the story.
- B. introduces the characters of the play one by one.
- C. opens by plunging the viewer into a crucial series of events.
- D. begins with a preview of the play's conclusion.Explore Top Audiobooks
Explanation: In medias res means beginning in the middle of the action, so the audience is immediately placed in an important sequence of events.
Correct answer: opens by plunging the viewer into a crucial series of events.- A. "She is a woman of beauty and wonder."
- B. "Death, that which feels nothing."
- C. "Milton, thou shouldst be living at this hour: / England hath need of thee."
- D. "I wandered lonely as a cloud."
Explanation: Apostrophe directly addresses an absent person, dead person, abstract idea, or object, as Wordsworth addresses Milton in the quoted line.
Correct answer: "Milton, thou shouldst be living at this hour: / England hath need of thee."- A. A recurring element in a story that is symbolically significant
- B. A character's fatal flaw
- C. A rhyme scheme
- D. A character's moment of selfrealization in a narrative
Explanation: A motif is a recurring image, idea, action, or element that gains significance through repetition in a work.
Correct answer: A recurring element in a story that is symbolically significant- A. Ethos refers to a writer's presentation of character and image.
- B. Ethos refers to a writer's ability to present evidence.
- C. Ethos refers to a writer's ability to inspire action in readers.
- D. Ethos refers to a writer's ability to inspire emotional responses in readers.
Explanation: Ethos is persuasive force derived from character, credibility, and the image presented by a speaker or writer.
Correct answer: Ethos refers to a writer's presentation of character and image.- A. Pathos refers to a writer's presentation of character and image.
- B. Pathos refers to a writer's ability to present evidence.
- C. Pathos refers to a writer's ability to inspire action in readers.
- D. Pathos refers to a writer's ability to inspire emotional responses in readers.
Explanation: Pathos is an appeal that arouses pity, sympathy, or other strong feelings in an audience.
Correct answer: Pathos refers to a writer's ability to inspire emotional responses in readers.- A. According to research, 22 percent of the American population owns an unsecured handgun.
- B. I own a handgun and keep it in a secure place in my house.
- C. Every month in the United States, at least 100 children are wounded or killed as a result of unsecured handguns.
- D. Handguns don't kill people, people do
Explanation: The reference to children being wounded or killed is designed to arouse fear, pity, and concern, making it an appeal to pathos.
Correct answer: Every month in the United States, at least 100 children are wounded or killed as a result of unsecured handguns.- A. Billy Budd
- B. Hamlet
- C. Captain Ahab
- D. Ophelia
Explanation: Billy Budd is an innocent victim whose execution results from the faults and prejudices of others, making him a classic scapegoat figure.
Correct answer: Billy Budd- A. To miss the mark
- B. Sin
- C. Tragic flaw
- D. Flaws
Explanation: Hamartia comes from a Greek word meaning “to miss the mark,” suggesting an error or failure in judgment.
Correct answer: To miss the mark- A. William Worsworth
- B. Browning
- C. Coleridge
- D. Eliot
Explanation: Coleridge coined “esemplastic” from Greek roots meaning to shape into one, using it to describe the imagination’s power to unify diverse…
Correct answer: Coleridge- A. Oedipus the Rex
- B. Oedipus at Colonus
- C. Antigone
- D. Jocasta, the Queen of Thebes
Explanation: Freud named the Oedipus complex after Sophocles’ tragedy Oedipus Rex, in which Oedipus unknowingly kills his father and marries his…
Correct answer: Oedipus the Rex- A. Perfection
- B. Birth
- C. Evil
- D. Death
Explanation: In archetypal symbolism, seven commonly represents completeness, harmony, or perfection.
Correct answer: Perfection- A. Metahor
- B. Oxymoron
- C. Simile
- D. Irony
Explanation: The comparison uses the word "like" to compare the eyes with frightened beads, which is the defining structure of a simile.
Correct answer: Simile- A. Connotation
- B. Connection
- C. Constitution
- D. Description
Explanation: Connotation is the emotional or associative meaning attached to a word beyond its dictionary definition, or denotation.
Correct answer: Connotation