SSCE (WASSCE and NECO) Literature-In-English (2026 – 2030) – Set 3 – Questions with Answers and Explanations

Literary Appreciation (30 Questions ONLY)

The following are techniques employed in drama, except ______

A. aside.
B. flashback.
C. soliloquy.
D. stanza.
E. suspense.

The materials worn by characters on a stage are called _______

A. apparels.
B. camouflages.
C. costume.
D. masks.
E. props.

A dirge is to be sung while an elegy is to be ______

A. acted.
B. danced.
C. memorized.
D. recited.
E. written.

In ode, the tone is usually ______

A. condemning.
B. humiliating.
C. insulting.
D. praising.
E. reprimanding.

A poem of lamentation is known as ______

A. elegy.
B. epic.
C. epitaph.
D. ode.
E. sonnet.

A character who grows and develops during the course of a story is referred to as a _______ character.

A. developing
B. dynamic
C. flat
D. noble
E. round

A dramatic technique by which a character speaks his thoughts alone on the stage is called ______

A. aside.
B. dramatic irony.
C. prologue.
D. prompter.
E. soliloquy.

A song used to lull a baby to sleep is called ______

A. ballad.
B. epic.
C. limerick.
D. lullaby.
E. ode.

"They dropped, as by a thunder-stroke" is an example of ______

A. hyperbole.
B. irony.
C. metaphor.
D. oxymoron.
E. simile.

"She is as healthy as a sickler" is an example of ______

A. hyperbole.
B. irony.
C. metaphor.
D. ode.
E. synecdoche.

Epilogue is used at the _______ of a play.

A. beginning
B. corner.
C. end.
D. front.
E. middle.

The use of mental objects to create effect in poetry is called _______

A. apostrophe.
B. imagery.
C. metonymy.
D. symbolism.
E. synecdoche.

"We wander in a whole wide world" exemplifies the use of _______

A. alliteration.
B. assonance.
C. metaphor.
D. personification.
E. repetition.

"And the name died before the man" is an example of _______

A. alliteration.
B. metaphor.
C. paradox.
D. simile.
E. synecdoche.

An epitaph is ________

A. a poem of fourteen lines.
B. a poem of lamentation.
C. an inscription on a tomb.
D. the beginning of a literary work.
E. the life history of an author.

"As He knows what you reveal; so does He know what you conceal". The above is a/an _____

A. couplet.
B. epigram.
C. epitaph.
D. octave.
E. sonnet.

Pick the ODD one out of the following.

A. Allegory
B. Allusion
C. Dirge
D. Satire
E. Tragedy

A list of characters in a play is called ______

A. actors.
B. cast.
C. dramatists.
D. playwrights.
E. setting.

A character who creates a comic scene in a play is known as a ______

A. clown.
B. hero.
C. heroine.
D. producer.
E. villain.

A sonnet comprises _______ lines.

A. eight
B. fourteen
C. sixteen
D. ten
E. twelve

When two contrasting events occur simultaneously during the course of narrating a story, it is referred to as ______

A. analogue.
B. co-incidence.
C. contrast.
D. flashback.
E. oxymoron.

The point of resolution of conflict in a work of art is called _____

A. anti-climax.
B. catastrophe.
C. conflict end.
D. denouement.
E. point of view.

In a poetic line, the two or more words which follow one another and have similar sounding last consonant is called ______

A. alliteration.
B. assonance.
C. consonance.
D. personification.
E. rhyme.

An epic is a poem that ______

A. celebrates poetry.
B. commemorates birth.
C. commemorates national festival.
D. mourns the dead.
E. praises a hero

The summary or short account of a story is called the _______

A. exposition.
B. plot.
C. setting.
D. synopsis.
E. syntax.

The use of deliberate exaggeration for emphasis without any intention of deceiving is _______

A. contrast.
B. hyperbole.
C. irony.
D. repetition.
E. simile.

A deliberate statement that hurts the feelings of another is called ______

A. dramatic irony.
B. irony.
C. litotes.
D. sarcasm.
E. simile.

A novel is usually written in ______

A. chapters.
B. prose.
C. scenes.
D. stanzas.
E. verses.

The three genres of literature are ______

A. comedy, play and novel.
B. drama, prose and poetry.
C. play, prose and drama.
D. poem, play and novel.
E. tragedy, comedy and tragic-comedy.

A work of art in which actions and characters represent ideas is a/an _______

A. allegory.
B. animation.
C. farce.
D. innuendo.
E. mime

Unseen Poetry

Read the poem and answer the questions (5 Questions ONLY)

Your hand is heavy, Night, upon my brow.
I bear no heart mercuric like the clouds, to dare
Exacerbation from your subtle plough.

Woman as a clam, on the sea's crescent.
I saw your jealous eye quench the sea's
Fluorescence, dance on the pulse incessant
Of the waves. And I stood, drained

Submitting like the sands, blood and brine
Coursing to the roots. Night, you rained
Serrated shadows through dank leaves
Till, bathed in warm suffusion of your dappled cells

Questions

The phrase "your subtle plough" (line 3) is an example of which literary device?

A) Simile
B) Metaphor
C) Onomatopoeia
D) Hyperbole

The comparison of the woman to "a clam" (line 4) primarily suggests:

A) Openness and generosity
B) Secrecy, withdrawal, and self-protection
C) Strength and aggression
D) Beauty and radiance

The phrase "incessant / Of the waves" (lines 6-7) suggests that the waves are:

A) Intermittent and unpredictable
B) Constant, unending, and relentless
C) Gentle and soothing
D) Silent and still

The word "drained" (line 7) in the context of the poem most nearly means:

A) Energized and revitalized
B) Emotionally or physically exhausted and depleted
C) Filled with water
D) Angry and rebellious

The phrase "blood and brine / Coursing to the roots" (lines 8-9) primarily creates an image of:

A) Separation and distance from nature
B) A deep, vital connection between the speaker and the sea
C) A celebration of life and vitality
D) A scientific description of bodily functions

Unseen Prose

Read the passage and answer the questions (5 Questions ONLY)

Bendu tossed and turned in the throes of her nightmare.

The angry villagers were leading her back to Duluma. Back to Commander Cobra and Samson, and the dreaded oven. But then one by one the villagers disappeared, and soon she was walking alone. The sun became a dark orange ball and began to set in a sky turned lilac, with pink and blue streaks. The road began to incline, imperceptibly at first, then more and more until Bendu soon found herself climbing a mountain. The path was worn, and lined on both sides with wildflowers. Pretty butterflies fluttered among the petals and danced in pairs in the twilight. The sun did not set, but stayed suspended above the horizon with the sky changing into ever more brilliant hues. She reached the mountaintop and looked all around at the landscape below. It was beautiful. She was happy, and she was free.

When Bendu woke up she wanted to shout for joy. Her recurring nightmare had a different ending this time. It had become a freedom dream!

REFERENCE

• Author: Elma Shaw
• Book Title: Redemption Road: The Quest for Peace and Justice in Liberia
• Chapter: Chapter 22
• Pages: 140-141

The description of the sun as "a dark orange ball" is an example of _______

The phrase "butterflies fluttered among the petals and danced in pairs in the twilight" employs the literary device of ______

The contrast between the nightmare's usual ending and this "freedom dream" represents Bendu's ______

The description of the setting in the dream—the mountain, wildflowers, butterflies, and brilliant sky—creates a mood of _____

The phrase "She was happy, and she was free" serves as a contrast to Bendu's earlier experiences of _______