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English 11 American Literature Final Exam 2014 Ford Total Points: 100 Points
I. Literary Terms and Reading Comprehension: Read the below article and answer the questions that follow.
Budget Mix-Up Provides Nation's Schools With Enough Money To Properly Educate Students
May 9, 2011 | ISSUE 47•19
Members of Congress say they are “mortified” to be associated with a bill that gives more money to schools.
WASHINGTON—According to bewildered and contrite legislators, a major budgetary mix-up this week inadvertently provided the nation's public schools with enough funding and resources to properly educate students.
Sources in the Congressional Budget Office reported that as a result of a clerical error, $80 billion earmarked for national defense was accidentally sent to the Department of Education, furnishing schools with the necessary funds to buy new textbooks, offer more academic resources, hire better teachers, promote student achievement, and foster educational excellence—an oversight that apologetic officials called a "huge mistake."
"Obviously, we did not intend for this to happen, and we are doing everything in our power to right the situation and discipline whoever is responsible," said House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI), expressing remorse for the error. "I want to apologize to the American people. The last thing we wanted was for schools to upgrade their technology and lower student-to-teacher ratios in hopes of raising a generation of well-educated, ambitious, and skilled young Americans."
"That's the type of irresponsible misspending that I've been focused on eliminating for my entire political career," Ryan added.
Ryan went on to tell reporters that the $80 billion budget slip-up will "unfortunately" help schools nationwide to supply students with modernized classrooms and instructional materials. Struggling to control his frustration, Ryan said he prayed the costly mistake would not allow millions of American students to graduate with strong language skills.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) called for a full investigation into how the nation's schools were able to secure the necessary funds to monitor teachers and pay salaries based on performance.
"The fact that this careless mistake also ended up financing new teacher training programs, allowing educators to become more than just glorified babysitters, is disgraceful," Reid said. "Now we are left with a situation where schools can attract talented professionals who really want to teach our children, which will in turn create smarter and more motivated students who wish to one day make a contribution to society."
"In all my years in government I have never seen such a shameful error," Reid added. "Our appropriations process has gone horribly awry and I for one demand to know how it happened."
House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) echoed congressional leaders and vowed to do "everything in [his] power" to resolve the costly error that led to schools updating their curriculums to emphasize math, science, and language arts, and provided students with instruction on how to use newly purchased computers to aid their research.
"Once these kids learn to read and think critically, you can never undo that," Boehner said. "In 20 years, we could be looking at a nightmare scenario in which vast segments of our populace are fully prepared to compete in the new global marketplace."
"It could take a whole generation to cancel out the effects of this," Boehner added.
Congressional leaders also stressed that providing the nation's students with an adequate education that prepared them for college or supplied them with a solid grasp of basic knowledge could also have a devastating impact on the economy by creating a new class of citizens uninterested in settling for fast food meals and useless plastic knickknacks.
"And politicians will be adversely affected as well," Boehner said. "What will our nation do if the next generation knows that all we care about is our own selfish interests and pandering to the wealthy elite? Is that the future you want? Not me."
1. Sources in the Congressional Budget Office reported that as a result of a clerical error, $80 billion earmarked for national defense was accidentally sent to the Department of Education, furnishing schools with the necessary funds to buy new textbooks, offer more academic resources, hire better teachers, promote student achievement, and foster educational excellence—an oversight that apologetic officials called a "huge mistake."
1. The passage ends by stating it is a “huge mistake.” This satirical passage has a ______.
a. simile
b. hyperbole
c. metaphor
d. understatement
2. "Obviously, we did not intend for this to happen, and we are doing everything in our power to right the situation and discipline whoever is responsible," said House Budget Committee chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI), expressing remorse for the error.
Remorse in the described passage mostly closely means
a. happiness
b. sadness
c. humor
d. anger
3. Struggling to control his frustration, Ryan said he prayed the costly mistake would not allow millions of American students to graduate with strong language skills.
This verbal irony represents ______.
a. allusion
b. personification
c. paradox
d. sarcasm
4. "In all my years in government I have never seen such a shameful error," Reid added. "Our appropriations process has gone horribly awry and I for one demand to know how it happened."
Awry most nearly means
a. right
b. wrong
5. House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) echoed congressional leaders and vowed to do "everything in [his] power" to resolve the costly error that led to schools updating their curriculums to emphasize math, science, and language arts, and provided students with instruction on how to use newly purchased computers to aid their research.
The tone of the passage reflects ______
a. anger
b. humor
c. sadness
d. affection
6. "Once these kids learn to read and think critically, you can never undo that," Boehner said. "In 20 years, we could be looking at a nightmare scenario in which vast segments of our populace are fully prepared to compete in the new global marketplace."
This satirical passage infers that kids in 20 years will ______.
a. rely on the government
b. rely on families
c. develop independence skills
d. develop educational skills
7. Congressional leaders also stressed that providing the nation's students with an adequate education that prepared them for college or supplied them with a solid grasp of basic knowledge could also have a devastating impact on the economy by creating a new class of citizens uninterested in settling for fast food meals and useless plastic knickknacks.
From this passage, the reader can conclude that ______.
a. fast food is a wonderful option for eating
b. society will love fast food eating decades from now
c. society-- decades from now—will choose better food options
d. society will be greener and energy conscious
8. "What will our nation do if the next generation knows that all we care about is our own selfish interests and pandering to the wealthy elite?
This statement contains a(n)
a. simile
b. metaphor
c. rhetorical question
d. personification
II. Compare/Contrast Questions (Synthesis/Paired Passage SOL): Choose the best answer.
9. Huckleberry Finn is narrated from Huck’s point of view in a novel format; however, Raisin in the Sun is a play told in third person omniscient. Which piece of literature allows the reader to better understand several characters’ inner conflicts?
a. Huckleberry Finn
b. Raisin in the Sun
10. The universal theme of race inequality is portrayed in both Huck Finn (set in the 1800s) and Raisin in the Sun (set in the 1900s). In what way is race inequality similar in both texts?
a. White people are mostly employed as service people (i.e. maids and chauffeurs)
b. African American homes are in the inner cities, and white people live in the suburbs
c. African Americans must buy their families
d. White people have more money and power than African Americans
11. In Huck Finn, Jim has a conflict with his antagonist - society. In Raisin in the Sun, the main antagonist to the Younger family is society as well. Which character best represents “society” in Raisin in the Sun as the Younger’s antagonist?
a. George Murchinson
b. Willy Harris
c. Bobo
d. Karl Linder
12. Society always controls how people view major social issues; thus, how are African Americans viewed differently in Huck Finn (Jim in 1800s) compared to Raisin in the Sun (Walter in 1900s)?
a. Jim is respected by society, but Walter is not
b. Walter has the same opportunities as a white man, but Jim does not
c. Jim can find a new job, but Walter can not
d. Jim has to buy his family, Walter does not
13. In Raisin in the Sun, Walter wants to own a business. In Huck Finn, Jim wants his independence. Despite the different time periods, both reflect ______.
a. personal values
b. family values
c. governmental values
d. material values
14. Why were the women characters stronger (important) in Raisin in the Sun than in Huck Finn ?
a. Womens’ roles are more valued in 1900s compared to the 1800s.
b. Women were more educated in the 1800s, but not in the 1900s.
c. Women had equal rights in both the 1800s and the 1900s
d. Women did not have equal rights in the 1800s and the 1900s.
15. Jim in Huck Finn and Walter Younger in Raisin in the Sun lived very different lives, yet they both pursued their American dream. Which of the following three adjectives is most true of both Jim and Walter Younger?
a. ambitious, trusting, sophisticated
b. dreamer, ambitious, trusting
c. family-oriented, sophisticated, optimistic
d. trusting, ambitious, realist
16. Mama and Beneatha from Raisin in the Sun ______.
a. both are independent, modern women
b. differ in that Mama values happiness, while Beneatha only values education.
c. both focus on the happiness of others
d. differ in that Beneatha is doesn’t recognize limitations in life, while Mama does.
III. Literary Terms and Examples: Choose the best literary term relating to the quotations from Huck Finn.
17. When Pap confronts Huck about getting an education, he is quite unhappy. Pap says, "You think you're better than me now, don't you? You drop that school, you hear?" (Twain 13).
a. oxymoron
b. metaphor
c. rhetorical question
d. euphemism
18. Twain writes, "But by and by, Pap got too handy with his hickory switch" (Twain 19).
a. euphemism
b. alliteration
c. oxymoron
d. dramatic irony
19. In this quote, Twain uses figurative language. “The wind screamed along. Every second or two, there come a glare that lit up the whitecaps for half a mile around. You’d see islands looking dusty through the rain, and trees thrashing around in the wind” (Twain 101).
a. simile
b. oxymoron
c. personification
d. metaphor
20. Blodgett and Bridgewater’s “performance” was nothing like anyone expected. “[Bridgewater] went up on the stage, stood before the curtain, and said that people was about to see a thrilling spectacle. Then he rolled up the curtain. The next minute Blodgett come prancing out on all fours, naked. He was painted all over with different color stripes” (Twain 105).
a. dramatic irony
b. conflict
c. situational irony
d. hyperbole
21. After this “performance” described in #30, the townspeople decide they don’t want to look foolish to the other people in town. “We’ve been swindled, but we don’t want to be laughingstocks of this town and never hear the end of this. No. What we should do is go out of here quiet and talk up this show. Sell the rest of the town on it. Then we’ll all be in the same boat” (Twain 106).
a. dramatic irony
b. conflict
c. situational irony
d. characterization
22. When Tom tells the Phelps all about how Tom and Huck helped Jim escape, Mrs. Phelps exclaims, “You turned
everybody’s wits clean inside out and scared us all almost to death” (Twain 166).
a. euphemism
b. hyperbole
c. alliteration
d. metaphor
23. Twain’s writing demonstrates his love for nature. “Sometimes we had that whole river all to ourselves for the longest time. Yonder, across the water, was the banks and the islands—and maybe a spark, which was a candle in a cabin window” ( Twain 95). “…It’s lovely to live on a raft. We had the sky up there, all speckled with stars” (Twain 95).
These quotes identify the writing period/style as ______.
a. Modernism
b. Romanticism/Transcendentalism
c. Industrialism
d. Post-Modernism
24. “I’d done a low-down thing, but I’d been fine with it as long as I could hide it. The more I thought about this, the more my conscience went to grinding me, and the more wicked I got to feeling. Suddenly it hit me: here was the plain hand of God slapping me in the face and letting me know that my wickedness was being watched all the time from up there in Heaven. I’d stole the nigger of a poor old woman that hadn’t ever done me no harm” (Twain 113).
In this quote, Huck is struggling with what type of conflict?
a. man vs. man
b. man vs society
c. man vs nature
d. man vs self
25. Jim says, “Remember de house dat was floatin’ down de river? Remember dere was a man in dere, covered up, an’ I went in an’ uncovered him and didn’t let you come in? Well, you can git your money when you wants it because dat was your pap” (Twain 171).
What kind of irony does this quote from the final chapter represent?
a. Situational
b. Dramatic
c. Verbal
d. It is not irony.
26. "There was heaps of old greasy cards scattered over the floor and old whisky bottles. All over the walls was the ignorantest kind of words and pictures made with charcoal..." (Twain 47).
How is the information given about the house in the quote organized?
a. chronologically
b. compare/contrast
c. cause/effect
d. spatially
IV. Research
Directions: Read the report and answer the questions that follow. The following is a draft of a report written by a tenth-grade student for his geography class.
Jason Wong Wong 1
Mrs. Jefferson
World Geography
16 April 2009
The Mysterious Creature of Lake Champlain