Jamb Literature in English 1997 Past Questions and Answers

Question 46:

• JAMB 1997

This question is based on Literary Principles.
'Otto's wife was a potter. Nessa remembered Sandra Davis telling her this. Not just a wife, not just a mother - as Nessa's own mother had been, as all the women in her childhood were and were expected to be; cooks and floor scrubbers, fanatical table polishers and chairback starchers, nest builders.
Georgina Hammick, 'Habits'
In the passage above, it can be inferred that Otto's wife

A. Scrubbed floors and polished tables like the other women
B. Was a potter and was thereforespared other domestic jobs
C. Was a potter like Nessa's mother
D. Was a potter in addition to being a wife andmother

Question 47:

• JAMB 1997

This question is based on Literary Principles.
'The reception for this third marriage was being held at the home of the young girl's parents. In this, ancient custom was being more tan just respected, it was revived. The house had been invaded since early morning.
Male female griots welcomed guests'.
Sembene Ousmane, 'Xala'
The atmosphere captured in the passage above is

A. Solemn and gay
B. Joyful and gloomy
C. Grandiose and joyful
D. Gracious and solemn

Question 48:

• JAMB 1997

This question is based on Literary Principles.
'Ocol rejects the old type.
He is in love with a modern woman
He is in love with a beautiful girl
Who speaks English.'
Okot p'Bitek, 'Song of Lawino'
The writer of the lines above

A. Ridicules Ocol's value judgment
B. Is critical of the modern woman
C. Appraises people who speak English
D. Shuns the old type of woman

Question 49:

• JAMB 1997

This question is based on Literary Principles.
'SINCE I am coming to that Holy roome,
Where, with thy Quire of Saints for evermore
I shall be made thy Musique; As I come
I tune the Instrument here at the dore,
And what I must doe then, thinke here before.'
John Donne, 'hymn to God my God'
In the stanza above, the poet recognizes that

A. God is his creator
B. He is a choir master
C. There is music in heaven
D. He is near his death

Question 50:

• JAMB 1997

This question is based on Literary Principles.
'In the arena
They began to sing my song,
We could hear it faintly
Passing through the air'
Okot p'Bitek, 'Song of Lawino'
What is the figure of speech used in the passage above?

A. Metaphor
B. Irony
C. Personification
D. Simile