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CLEP American Literature

Subjects : clep, literature
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
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  • Match each statement with the correct term.
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This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. People who are best adapted to survive are chosen through the process of natural selection.






2. Wrote 'Songs of Jamaica' - Poetry and 'Harlem Shadows' (first great literary achievement of the Harlem Renaissance. Much of his poetry evokes the rich heritage of Jamaica.






3. (Colonial Period) First writer of American Literature. Wrote 'The Generall Historie of Virginia - New England - and The Summer Isles.' Archetypal American.






4. Wrote 'since feeling is first -' 'somewhere i have never traveled - gladly beyond -' and 'The Enormous Room' - Experimented with : form - punctuation - spelling - typography - grammar - imagery - rhythm - and syntax.






5. A 14-line poem with a set rhythm and rhyme scheme.






6. Movement in the early part of the 20th Century where writers experimented with new themes such as fragmentation - stream of consciousness - and imagery.






7. First Black woman to win the Nobel Prize for literature. Novel focus on black cultural identity in contemporary America. Wrote 'The Bluest Eye -' 'Tar Baby -' and 'Beloved'






8. (Colonial Period) One of the most brilliant of American thinkers. Theologian and philosopher; vigorous defender of Calvinistic orthodoxy at the end of the Puritan era. Influenced major nineteenth century writers such as Emerson - Hawthorne - Melville






9. (Colonial Period) Stands in direct opposition to the principles - personalities and literary styles of William Bradford and John Winthrop. Did not come to settle the land and establish God's Kingdom - but to trade beaver pelts and live pleasantly. Es






10. Anne Bradstreet - Michael Wigglesworth - Edward Taylor






11. Famous for writing - marriages - divorces and media hype. Wrote 'The Executioner's Song.'






12. Clever - memorable sayings.






13. Wrote 'The Call of the Wild -' 'White Fang -' ' Sea Wolf -' and 'To Build a Fire.' Socialist. Naturalist






14. America's most popular humorist in the 30s and 40s. Frequently explored the battle of the sexes. Wrote 'The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.'






15. The repeated use of identical sounds.






16. Ezra Pound and T.S Eliot






17. Wrote 'Grapes of Wrath -' 'Of Mice and Men -' and 'East of Eden -' and 'Winter of Our Discontent.' Awarded Nobel Prize for Literature - Pulitzer and and the National Book Award.






18. Wrote 'Daddy' and 'The Bell Jar' - Confessional Poet






19. Local Colorist Great Niece of Harriet Beecher Stowe. Wrote 'The Yellow Wallpaper'






20. A type of literature win which words are selected and strung together for their beauty - sound - and power to express feelings.






21. Credited with creating: the modern short story and the detective novel - and the entire genre of mystery. Wrote 'The Philosophy of Composition' - 'The Raven' - 'Tell-Tale Heart -' 'The Cask of Amontillado -' and 'The Gold Bug.' (The first detective






22. Writings portray the lives of poor - oppressed black women in the early 1900s.






23. Imagist Poet - Wrote 'In a Station of the Metro -' ' The Pisan Cantos -' 'Hugh Selwyn Mauberly -' and 'Mauberly.' Modeled 'Cantos' after Whitman's 'Leaves of Grass' - Infamous traitor; Staunch supporter of Mussolini during WWII. Didn't speak for the






24. Third US President Referred to as the 'Sage of Monticello'Drafted the Declaration of Independence.






25. A group of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry.






26. Poetry that does not have a regular beat - rhyme or line length. Walt Whitman






27. Genius; called the 'Black Keats' - Worked within traditional poetic forms rather than jazz rhythms. Wrote ' Copper Sun -' and 'The Ballad of the Brown Girl.'






28. Wrote 'Howl -' ' Empty Mirror -' and 'Kaddish and Other Poems' - Poet






29. Wrote 'Native Son -' and 'Black Boy' - First Black Best-Seller - Staunch Communist : Believed it was black America's best hope for equality.






30. Wrote 'The Invisible Man' - Considered a landmark achievement in American literature






31. Created the first American adventure story. First successful American novelist. 'Father of the American novel.' Very litigious - cranky and vain. Most famous for the 'Leatherstocking Tales': A series of five novels about the frontiersman - Natty Bump






32. A stanza.






33. First Black female poet to win a Pulitzer. Best known for her poems 'The Bean Eaters' and 'We Real Cool.'






34. A story told in song form. Ballads often tell stories of adventure and love.






35. Chicago School - Work bridges folk poetry and modernist poems. Used music and strong rhythm - Wrote 'The Congo'






36. A long narrative that represents characters in a high position who take part in a series of adventures of significance.






37. (Colonial Period) 1. God is King and Ruler. 2. Our duty in this world is to see that God's will prevails.3. Man is depraved from birth. 4. Few will be saved. Damned are damned despite their best efforts. Belief in Covenant Theology : God's covenant w






38. The process of reading a poem to figure out it's meter.






39. A literary mask a writer assumes for the purpose of creating a character in a poem.






40. Confessional Poet - Wrote 'Lord Weary's Castle' and 'In Life Studies'






41. Words that carry a strong emotional overtones.






42. People who sang lyrics as they played string-like instruments.






43. Leader of naturalism in American writing. Wrote 'An American Tragedy'






44. Resisted materialism and chose a life of simplicity - close to nature. Walden is a guidebook for life - showing the reader how to live wisely in a world designed to make wise living impossible. 'On the Duty of Civil Disobedience' has become a primer






45. Wrote 'Portnoy's Complaint.' Work reflects the changing attitude of Jews living in post-World War II America.






46. A social and artistic movement of the 1950's stressing unrestrained literary self expression and nonconformity with the mainstream culture






47. 'The Old Man and the Sea -' 'The Sun Also Rises -' 'A Farewell to Arms -' and 'For Whom the Bell Tolls.' Writing style emphasizes: Short sentences - brief paragraphs - active verbs - authenticity - compression - clarity - and immediacy. Produced some






48. Naturalist - Wrote 'McTeague - a Story of San Francisco'






49. Well-known humorists.






50. Coined the term 'Beat Generation' - Wrote 'On the Road' - All of his books are Autobiographical