SSCE (WASSCE and NECO) Literature-In-English (2026 – 2030) – Set 4 – Questions with Answers and Explanations

Literary Appreciation (30 Questions ONLY)

"In the bomb blast, lives were lost, houses destroyed and cars damaged" exemplifies the use of ______

A. anti-climax.
B. antithesis.
C. climax.
D. paradox.
E. resolution.

Which of the following is the earliest form of literature?

A. Dance drama
B. Oral literature
C. Performing art
D. Sung literature
E. Written literature

A poem of seven lines is a ______

A. couplet.
B. quintet.
C. septet.
D. sextet.
E. triplet.

Pick the odd item from the following.

A. Alliteration
B. Irony
C. Metaphor
D. Simile
E. Stage

A romantic poem focuses on ______

A. heroism.
B. nature.
C. rhythm.
D. romance.
E. war.

The sequential arrangement of events in a literary text is referred to as _______

A. form.
B. plot.
C. setting.
D. style.
E. theme.

Stanza is to poetry what _______ is to prose.

A. chapter
B. line
C. movement
D. scene
E. verse

The emotional quality of a literary piece is called ______

A. effect.
B. mood.
C. subject matter.
D. theme.
E. thesis.

Characterization in a literary work means the ______

A. introductory remarks at the beginning of a play.
B. list of characters.
C. peculiar characteristics of the narrator.
D. resolution of conflicts among the characters.
E. way individuals are presented in the story.

The term used in literature to designate the major types into which literary pieces are grouped is _______

A. class.
B. code.
C. feature.
D. genre.
E. style.

A novelette focuses on sensational issues like ______

A. dance and song.
B. gain and loss.
C. love and hate.
D. marriage and divorce.
E. peace and war.

A dirge is sung to _____

A. celebrate birth.
B. celebrate heroes.
C. lull a baby to sleep.
D. mourn the dead.
E. praise nature.

"I made the scandal an open secret" exemplifies the use of _______

A. euphemism.
B. irony.
C. metaphor.
D. oxymoron.
E. paradox.

A dramatic composition in which music is used with little or no spoken language is ______

A. burlesque.
B. farce.
C. melodrama.
D. mime.
E. opera.

The discourse in a non-fiction is usually based on ______

A. action thrills.
B. animal ordeals.
C. imaginary events.
D. love adventures.
E. real-life events.

When the events in a novel are structured in a linear or chronological order, it is said to have a _______ plot.

A. complex
B. complicated
C. disjointed
D. multiple
E. simple

The major male character in a story is the _____

A. actor.
B. clown.
C. foil.
D. hero.
E. heroine.

Dirge differs from elegy in that the former is ______

A. composed.
B. danced.
C. played.
D. sung.
E. written.

The privilege which poets enjoy in departing from the normal grammatical order to achieve a desired effect is known as ______

A. poetic laxity.
B. poetic license.
C. poetic privilege.
D. poetic right.
E. poetic wisdom.

An imitation of a serious literary composition in a humorous manner is called _______

A. fable.
B. fiction.
C. melodrama.
D. mimesis.
E. parody.

The device used in literature to bring past events to the present is _______

A. flashacross.
B. flashback.
C. flashforward.
D. forecast.
E. foreshadowing.

Which of the following is the odd item?

A. Act
B. Interlude
C. Scene
D. Stage
E. Verse

"I sat singing songs of sorrow" is an example of ______

A. alliteration.
B. assonance.
C. onomatopoeia.
D. pun.
E. repetition.

A short play is called a/an ______

A. comedy.
B. farce.
C. melodrama.
D. opera.
E. playlet.

The technique used to sustain the attention of the audience in a literary piece is ______

A. flashback.
B. point of view.
C. repetition.
D. stream of consciousness.
E. suspense.

The point at which conflict is resolved in a play is referred to as ______

A. anti-climax.
B. catharsis.
C. crisis.
D. denouement.
E. deus ex machina.

Which of the following is not related to drama?

A. Act
B. Cast
C. Chapter
D. Scene
E. Stage

A song that celebrates the exploits of a warrior is known as _________

A. dirge.
B. elegy.
C. lullaby.
D. ode.
E. panegyric.

"I shall not be ungrateful if you leave me alone" illustrates the use of ________

A. euphemism.
B. irony.
C. litotes.
D. paradox.
E. pun.

A poem that portrays the beauty of nature is _____

A. corrective.
B. educative.
C. informative.
D. panegyric.
E. romantic.

Unseen Poetry

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

They picked Akanni up one morning
Beat him soft like clay
And stuffed him down the belly
Of a waiting jeep.
What business of mine is it
So long they don’t take the yam
From my savouring mouth?

Chinwe went to work one day
Only to find her job was gone:
No query, no warning, no probe –
Just one neat sack for a stainless record.
What business of mine is it
So long they don’t take the yam
From my savouring mouth?

Questions

The repetition of the phrase "What business of mine is it / So long they don’t take the yam / From my savouring mouth?" is an example of which literary device?

The line "Beat him soft like clay" contains an example of which literary device?

The "yam" in the refrain is best interpreted as a symbol for which of the following?

The overall tone of the speaker in the extract can be best described as ________

The phrase "stuffed him down the belly / Of a waiting jeep" is an example of which literary device?

Unseen Prose

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

Far away and long ago, there was a village in which only women lived. It was called Musudugu. The women of this village could do everything as well as, if not better than, the men of neighboring villages. Envious, men tried many times to conquer Musudugu, but they failed because the women defended their village with great courage. The village was protected by the Virgin Girl, who gave them only one command: darkness must never cover a man in Musudugu. Whenever a woman gave birth to a boy, she was allowed to care for him only until he was old enough to stand and pass water without soaking his feet. Then he had to be taken to his father outside the village. Though the mothers wept when their sons departed, most women remained loyal to Musudugu because it was a place of harmony, sharing, singing, dancing, and mutual care.

What is the primary setting of the passage?

Why were the men unable to conquer Musudugu?

The instruction that "darkness must never cover a man in Musudugu" suggests that

What literary device is most evident in the description of Musudugu as "a place of harmony, sharing, singing and dancing"?

Which theme is best reflected in the passage?