New Curriculum First Term Literature-in-English examination for SS 1

Class: SS 1
Term: First Term
Subject: Literature in English
Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Total Marks: 70

SECTION A: OBJECTIVES (40 Marks)
Instruction: Answer all 40 questions. Each question carries 1 mark.

TEXT FOR CLOSE READING

Read this original prose extract and answer Questions 1–8.

On the morning the bridge was closed, Amara arrived at the market carrying a basket of yams. Everyone in the town had heard that the river was rising, but the traders continued to bargain as though the warning belonged to another place. Amara’s father had urged her to return home; she stayed because the money from one more sale would pay her brother’s examination fee. At noon a messenger announced that the final canoe had left. The market fell silent. Amara looked towards the flooded path and understood that the price of staying was no longer measured in naira. She lifted her basket and asked the other traders to help carry supplies to the school building on higher ground.

1. In the extract, Amara’s decision to remain at the market is driven mainly by … (a) the conflict between family need and approaching danger   (b) her wish to keep earning despite an official evacuation   (c) a misunderstanding about the cost of the examination fee   (d) the belief that the market provides reliable shelter
2. The rising river most clearly functions as … (a) a conflict inside Amara between guilt and pride   (b) a stable setting with little influence on plot   (c) an escalating external conflict   (d) an image signalling that the market is flourishing
3. Which detail best foreshadows the traders’ later difficulty? (a) the traders bargaining as usual   (b) Amara lifting her basket to help   (c) The warning that the river was rising   (d) the eventual use of the school building
4. What change in Amara’s priorities occurs by the conclusion? (a) she stops caring about the threat to the market   (b) she decides to confront her father over the examination fee   (c) she chooses to defend the market’s right to stay open   (d) She moves from an individual sale to collective safety
5. The expression “the price of staying was no longer measured in naira” implies … (a) the traders have agreed to exchange food rather than cash   (b) currency loses its value during a flood   (c) the consequences have become personal and physical, not merely financial   (d) the sale would no longer cover the examination fee
6. Which account of the plot is most accurate? (a) a crisis that exposes the consequences of delay   (b) Warning, delayed response, crisis and purposeful action   (c) a character decision that changes the direction of the plot   (d) a later act of cooperation that follows the emergency
7. Which of these details does NOT establish the setting of the supplied extract? (a) the swollen river near the town   (b) the school building on higher ground   (c) the market in which neighbours bargain   (d) the precise future salary of Amara’s brother
8. A defensible theme of the passage is that … (a) warnings are unimportant when traders cooperate   (b) private needs and community responsibilities may conflict in a crisis   (c) every practical responsibility should yield to family finance   (d) private generosity always removes danger immediately
9. ________ makes a literary text different from a purely factual notice by allowing imaginative representation of experience. (a) a document written solely to record market prices   (b) neutral presentation that avoids character motivation   (c) Creative language and narrative shaping   (d) exact historical reporting of a real flood
10. Which reading task requires interpretation rather than bare recall? (a) Identifying the person who delivers the warning   (b) Naming the building used as temporary refuge   (c) Recalling the location of the central event   (d) Explaining why the narrator places the warning before the crisis
11. A prose narrative differs structurally from a stage play chiefly because … (a) drama can never use a narrator as a stage device   (b) a stage script cannot describe setting   (c) prose can describe actions through a narrator without stage directions   (d) prose must employ direct speech in every paragraph
12. A dramatic performance communicates conflict through … (a) a continuous description of thoughts without stageable conflict   (b) a chronological report written for a newspaper   (c) characters’ dialogue and actions on stage   (d) extended narration in which characters do not speak
13. Which feature is more typical of lyric poetry than conventional prose? (a) a full cast list and stage directions   (b) Concentrated imagery and patterned verbal rhythm   (c) an unbroken narrator explaining every event   (d) continuous exposition in ordinary paragraphs
14. The term “genre” is best understood as … (a) the specific historical period shown in the setting   (b) the moral lesson stated by the protagonist   (c) the role a character plays in the conflict   (d) a category distinguished by literary conventions
15. All of these may be forms of prose fiction except … (a) a dramatic stage script written for performance   (b) the narrator’s later judgment of the conflict   (c) a description of a minor character’s physical appearance   (d) the chronological arrangement of the opening scene
16. An author uses dialogue without a narrator between scenes and expects actors to perform the text. The work is most likely … (a) drama   (b) poetry narrated through an elaborate stanza pattern   (c) prose fiction retold through an omniscient narrator   (d) a lyric monologue with no represented stage action
17. The main reason for studying literary genres is to … (a) avoid considering a work in its historical context   (b) understand how form shapes the presentation of experience   (c) replace close interpretation with terminology   (d) show that every literary text conveys the same message
18. A plot is more than a list of events because it also reveals … (a) the complete list of minor characters in order of appearance   (b) connections of cause, conflict and consequence   (c) the exact times at which scenes occur without their causal relation   (d) the work’s broader moral ideas apart from event sequence
19. The ________ of a conventional plot introduces the principal situation and characters. (a) complication   (b) denouement   (c) climax   (d) exposition
20. Which event most naturally serves as a turning point or climax? (a) an ordinary description of the setting before conflict grows   (b) A concealed identity is revealed during a decisive confrontation   (c) the final explanation of consequences after the main danger   (d) the first introduction of a relatively minor supporting character
21. A story begins with a courtroom verdict, then returns to the events leading to it. This arrangement is an example of … (a) a plot with no central conflict   (b) an entirely episodic narrative without flashback   (c) a predictable chronological sequence   (d) non-linear plotting through flashback
22. The correct step when analysing plot structure is to … (a) trace major events and explain how each changes the conflict   (b) Resolution heightens uncertainty while climax always ends the story   (c) Climax provides background; resolution is the first complication   (d) Climax is a minor digression; resolution supplies unrelated events
23. Which statement distinguishes climax from resolution? (a) a single phrase quoted without any surrounding evidence   (b) the narrator’s stated belief treated as unquestionably correct   (c) Climax marks highest tension; resolution shows how conflict concludes   (d) the title interpreted apart from action or character
24. The main theme of a narrative should be inferred from … (a) recurring conflicts, choices and their consequences   (b) the movement between flashback and chronological action   (c) a contrast between omniscient and limited narration   (d) the arrangement of five plot stages
25. A story in which generosity exposes the cruelty of greed chiefly develops a theme of … (a) treating a character’s explicit opinion as the author’s final judgment   (b) ignoring contradictions elsewhere in the story   (c) moral responsibility and self-interest   (d) relying entirely on the work’s title
26. All of the following can support a thematic interpretation except ________. (a) conflicts that connect different episodes   (b) ignoring events that contradict the proposed reading   (c) repeated choices made by the principal characters   (d) recurring details that complicate the central concern
27. The ________ is a subsidiary idea that supports a text’s central concern. (a) sub-theme   (b) stage direction   (c) climax   (d) subplot
28. Which approach most convincingly justifies a theme? (a) Describe the ending alone and ignore earlier developments   (b) Repeat a character’s claim without evaluating its truth   (c) Connect a claim about the text to several relevant actions and details   (d) List themes that could fit any work without evidence
29. A protagonist is best identified by … (a) repeat an asserted moral without examining detail   (b) treat one minor incident as the entire thematic argument   (c) base the conclusion on a character’s name alone   (d) the central role played in the unfolding conflict
30. An antagonist may be a person, institution or force because … (a) opposition to the protagonist need not be another individual   (b) the narrator who speaks the final sentence   (c) the character with the largest number of speeches   (d) the person who opposes the story’s central character
31. A seemingly minor character who exposes the protagonist’s selfishness through contrasting generosity acts as … (a) a foil   (b) a character who briefly appears in the exposition   (c) the strongest supporter of the protagonist   (d) the sole narrator of the story
32. Which evidence best demonstrates character development? (a) a minor character whose feelings remain unknown   (b) The character reconsiders a belief after facing consequences   (c) the protagonist whose viewpoint shapes the narrative   (d) a narrator who explains every character’s actions
33. A flat character differs from a round character chiefly in … (a) the author directly names the trait in an explanatory sentence   (b) the narrator gives an explicit list of the character’s qualities   (c) the complexity of traits represented   (d) a chapter heading identifies the character as courageous
34. A character described through decisions and speech rather than an author’s direct adjectives is presented by … (a) whether a narrator describes it directly   (b) whether it is always morally admirable   (c) the number of scenes in which it appears   (d) indirect characterisation
35. Which inference about a character is justified by repeated acts of sharing scarce food? (a) The actions suggest generosity despite personal cost   (b) a supporting character describes it as untrustworthy   (c) the narrator explicitly announces its moral importance   (d) the character has a single trait expressed only once
36. The setting of a work includes … (a) The character must be the story’s narrator   (b) Repeated generosity prevents any later change of character   (c) The same behaviour proves the character has no conflict   (d) time, place and relevant social conditions
37. A story set during a prolonged drought can develop conflict by … (a) creating scarcity that tests characters’ choices   (b) only the social status of the protagonist   (c) only the historical date mentioned in the opening   (d) only the physical geography of the story
38. ________ can become a symbol when a recurring location represents an idea beyond its physical features. (a) a subplot that always substitutes for the central conflict   (b) the sole reason the protagonist has a name   (c) the final event that explains a mystery   (d) Setting
39. An author moves a confrontation from a private home to a crowded market. This change may alter … (a) the author must intend the location literally and symbolically in every case   (b) how public pressure shapes the characters’ behaviour   (c) a symbol cannot recur in a realist narrative   (d) a location becomes symbolic only when directly named by the narrator
40. Which claim best integrates setting, plot and theme? (a) The market setting alone proves that trade is the work’s sole theme   (b) Flood conditions intensify the conflict and expose the need for cooperation   (c) The river functions only as scenery without an effect on action   (d) Cooperation occurs independently of any pressure created by place

SECTION B: THEORY (30 Marks)
Instruction: Answer Question 1 and any other TWO questions. Each question is worth 10 marks.

Question 1. Using the supplied Amara passage:
(a) Trace two turning points in the plot and explain their effect on the conflict (6 marks)
(b) State one defensible theme and support it with two details (4 marks)

Question 2. Discuss how narrative form influences interpretation:
(a) Distinguish prose, drama and poetry using one structural feature of each (6 marks)
(b) Explain how a single event might be represented differently in two genres (4 marks)

Question 3. Analyse characterisation and thematic development:
(a) Using a story known from the taught lessons, explain how conflict can reveal a protagonist and antagonist (6 marks)
(b) Explain how a foil can reveal a character trait (4 marks)

Question 4. Examine setting as a force in narrative:
(a) Describe three components of setting, giving an appropriate example of each (6 marks)
(b) Explain two ways in which a change of setting may alter plot or mood (4 marks)

Objective Marking Scheme
Question 1 – ✅ (a) the conflict between family need and approaching danger
Question 2 – ✅ (c) an escalating external conflict
Question 3 – ✅ (c) The warning that the river was rising
Question 4 – ✅ (d) She moves from an individual sale to collective safety
Question 5 – ✅ (c) the consequences have become personal and physical, not merely financial
Question 6 – ✅ (b) Warning, delayed response, crisis and purposeful action
Question 7 – ✅ (d) the precise future salary of Amara’s brother
Question 8 – ✅ (b) private needs and community responsibilities may conflict in a crisis
Question 9 – ✅ (c) Creative language and narrative shaping
Question 10 – ✅ (d) Explaining why the narrator places the warning before the crisis
Question 11 – ✅ (c) prose can describe actions through a narrator without stage directions
Question 12 – ✅ (c) characters’ dialogue and actions on stage
Question 13 – ✅ (b) Concentrated imagery and patterned verbal rhythm
Question 14 – ✅ (d) a category distinguished by literary conventions
Question 15 – ✅ (a) a dramatic stage script written for performance
Question 16 – ✅ (a) drama
Question 17 – ✅ (b) understand how form shapes the presentation of experience
Question 18 – ✅ (b) connections of cause, conflict and consequence
Question 19 – ✅ (d) exposition
Question 20 – ✅ (b) A concealed identity is revealed during a decisive confrontation
Question 21 – ✅ (d) non-linear plotting through flashback
Question 22 – ✅ (a) trace major events and explain how each changes the conflict
Question 23 – ✅ (c) Climax marks highest tension; resolution shows how conflict concludes
Question 24 – ✅ (a) recurring conflicts, choices and their consequences
Question 25 – ✅ (c) moral responsibility and self-interest
Question 26 – ✅ (b) ignoring events that contradict the proposed reading
Question 27 – ✅ (a) sub-theme
Question 28 – ✅ (c) Connect a claim about the text to several relevant actions and details
Question 29 – ✅ (d) the central role played in the unfolding conflict
Question 30 – ✅ (a) opposition to the protagonist need not be another individual
Question 31 – ✅ (a) a foil
Question 32 – ✅ (b) The character reconsiders a belief after facing consequences
Question 33 – ✅ (c) the complexity of traits represented
Question 34 – ✅ (d) indirect characterisation
Question 35 – ✅ (a) The actions suggest generosity despite personal cost
Question 36 – ✅ (d) time, place and relevant social conditions
Question 37 – ✅ (a) creating scarcity that tests characters’ choices
Question 38 – ✅ (d) Setting
Question 39 – ✅ (b) how public pressure shapes the characters’ behaviour
Question 40 – ✅ (b) Flood conditions intensify the conflict and expose the need for cooperation

Theory Marking Scheme
Question 1
(a) Identify warning-to-delay and crisis-to-cooperation turning points; 3 marks each for event and effect — 6 marks.
(b) Theme of competing responsibilities/cooperation 2; two supporting details 1+1 — 4 marks.

Question 2
(a) Prose narration; drama dialogue/staging; poetry sound/lineation, 2 each — 6 marks.
(b) Two relevant, compared genre-based choices, 2+2 — 4 marks.

Question 3
(a) Relevant example with correct roles and evidence: 3+3 — 6 marks.
(b) Definition 1; text-based contrasting behaviour and significance 3 — 4 marks.

Question 4
(a) Time, place, social conditions: 2 each — 6 marks.
(b) Two plausible causal explanations: 2 each — 4 marks.