introduction to literary theory MCQs – Page 3

Practise focused introduction to literary theory questions with marked answers for exam preparation and subject revision.

introduction to literary theory Mcqs

41. According to the Geneva School, what is the function of the reader ?
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A. Entering the authors mind through his or her literary works

B. All of the above.

C. Understanding the authors consciousness

D. Reproducing the authors thoughts in a critical context

42. Which literary theory would most directly explore questions of the role of spatial setting in a poem ?
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A. Ecotheory

B. Game theory

C. Trauma theory

D. Marxist theory

43. What is Christopher Rickss attitude toward literary theory ?
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A. He considers it to be vital in order to understand literary texts.

B. He considers theory to be the only way that literary texts can be interpreted.

C. He feels that literary theory is ultimately too limited in scope to serve as a proper method of interpretation.

D. He has no misgivings about the practical usability of literary theory.

44. Which of the following statements offers the best definition of the concept of strange attractors in chaos theory ?
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A. Strange attractors are mysterious forces that are entirely random.

B. Strange attractors are complex forces that are determined by the laws of physics.

C. Strange attractors are mysterious forces that are both random and determined.

D. Strange attractors are complex forces that are entirely random.

45. From whom did New Historicists draw the idea of self-regulating systems ?
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A. Jacques Derrida

B. Julia Kristeva

C. Theodor W. Adorno

D. Claude Lvi-Strauss

46. How do Marxist theorists react to ideology ?
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A. They subject all ideologies to critique in order to expose biased interests.

B. They promote ideology because it helps to create a dominant social order

C. They accept ideology as an essential, although sometimes problematic, part of society.

D. They reject the idea that ideology has real effects on social progress.

47. What fundamental idea does psychoanalytic criticism hold about literary texts ?
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A. Literary texts should not be read as a projection of the authors psyche.

B. Literary texts reveal secret elements of an authors unconscious.

C. Literary texts are unlike dreams because they have a system of order and produce meaning.

D. Literary texts solely reflect an authors intentions.

48. Which of the following descriptions best defines the literary theory known as formalism ?
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A. An approach that emphasizes the historical context of a text

B. An approach that emphasizes the biographical intent of a text

C. An approach that emphasizes literary devices in a text

D. An approach that emphasizes racial issues in a text

49. What is the main function of postcolonial criticism ?
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A. To explain why there are few examples of successful non-Western literature

B. To show the ways in which mostWestern literature is superior

C. To represent the relationship between colonizers and the colonized

D. To draw attention to the positive effects of colonization on literature

50. Which theorist is most closely associated with the idea of art as imitation ?
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A. Edward Said

B. Stephen Greenblatt

C. Jacques Lacan

D. Plato

51. Which of the following texts is considered the first example of postcolonial criticism ?
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A. Cleanth Brookss Keatss Sylvan Historian

B. Harold Blooms An Elegy for the Canon

C. Jacques Lacans The Mirror Stage

D. Edward Saids Orientalism

52. How does literary theory resemble the practice of philosophy as it was developed by Plato and Aristotle ?
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A. Literary theory asks fundamental questions about literary interpretation, and at the same time builds specific systems of literary interpretation.

B. Literary theory engages with theoretical rather than real-world issues.

C. Literary theory relies totally on speculation rather than history.

D. Literary theory is detached from the reality of politics and the economy.

53. Which of the following theorists is associated with formalism ?
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A. Viktor Shklovsky

B. Judith Butler

C. Cleanth Brooks

D. Terry Eagleton

54. Which of the following writers might be considered one of the early founders of first-wave feminism ?
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A. Lucy Irigaray

B. Hlne Cixous

C. Judith Butler

D. Mary Wollstonecraft

55. In his essay What Is an Author? what position(s) on authorship does Michel Foucault take ?
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A. The author may not always exist.

B. All of the above.

C. The names of authors serve a classificatory function.

D. The author is not a source of infinite meaning.

56. What is the purpose of feminist theory ?
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A. To create literary subjects with which female readers can identify

B. All of the above.

C. To counter stereotypes about women

D. To critique phallocentric assumptions about literature

57. Which of the following is a rule of semiotics ?
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A. All linguistic and social phenomena are texts, and the object of studying these texts is to reveal the underlying codes that make them meaningful.

B. All linguistics is related to history, and therefore the meaning of linguistics relies exclusively on historical context.

C. All linguistics is in some way related to class struggle.

D. All linguistic concepts evolve solely out of the responses of people within a specific historical era.

58. What does Edward Said argue about the concept of the Orient ?
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A. It was produced by Western scholarship.

B. Its literature is less proud that that of the West.

C. It has little relationship to the colonization of Asian countries by the West.

D. It illustrates the fundamental political equality of all nations.

59. Which theorist is associated with the idea that art is a copy of a copy ?
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A. Julia Kristeva

B. Claude Lvi-Strauss

C. Plato

D. Walter Benjamin

60. How are Julia Kristevas psychoanalytic theories distinct from traditional Freudian concepts ?
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A. Kristeva offers a more central place for womens issues within psychological development.

B. Kristeva rejects the idea that neuroses provide insight into the unconscious.

C. Kristeva fundamentally disagrees with the idea of the mirror stage.

D. Kristeva suggests that women are not subject to traditional fetishes.

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