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Best literary questions

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Literature has always been a fascinating realm where authors explore the depths of human emotions, challenge societal norms, and transport readers to different worlds through their words. However, as readers delve into the complex narratives and intricate characters, numerous questions arise. These literary questions not only enhance our understanding of the text but also stimulate critical thinking and encourage discussions about the underlying themes and motifs. In this article, we will explore some of the most thought-provoking literary questions that have captivated readers for generations.

Why did William Shakespeare use a mixture of prose and verse in his plays? How does the use of symbolism contribute to the overall meaning of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter”? What is the significance of the green light in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby”? These are just a few examples of the countless literary questions that arise from reading literature. Each question invites readers to delve deeper into the text, analyze the author’s choices, and form their own interpretations.

Literary questions not only pertain to the technical aspects of a text but also explore its philosophical and moral implications. Why did George Orwell choose to write “Animal Farm” as an allegory? What does Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” say about justice and prejudice? These questions encourage readers to reflect on the broader themes and messages conveyed by the authors, provoking discussions that transcend the boundaries of the written word.

See these literary questions

What is the role of the supernatural in Macbeth?
How does symbolism enhance the meaning of “The Catcher in the Rye”?
What is the significance of the white whale in “Moby-Dick”?
Why did J.R.R. Tolkien create different languages for Middle-earth?
How does the use of stream of consciousness contribute to the narrative in “Mrs. Dalloway”?
What is the significance of the title “Pride and Prejudice”?
Why did Ernest Hemingway choose to write in a minimalist style?
What is the role of fate in “Romeo and Juliet”?
How does the setting contribute to the overall atmosphere in “Wuthering Heights”?
What is the meaning behind the “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost?
Why did Gabriel García Márquez use magical realism in “One Hundred Years of Solitude”?
How does the narrative structure enhance the mystery in “Gone Girl” by Gillian Flynn?
What is the significance of the conch shell in “Lord of the Flies”?
Why did Jane Austen focus on the social class in her novels?
What is the role of justice in “Crime and Punishment” by Fyodor Dostoevsky?
How does the use of satire contribute to the social commentary in “Gulliver’s Travels”?
What is the symbolism behind the “green light” in “The Great Gatsby”?
Why did William Golding choose to write about a group of boys stranded on an island in “Lord of the Flies”?
How does the use of foreshadowing impact the suspense in “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe?
What is the significance of the “yellow wallpaper” in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s story?
Why did Harper Lee choose to tell the story from the perspective of a child in “To Kill a Mockingbird”?
How does the use of irony contribute to the overall theme of “The Importance of Being Earnest” by Oscar Wilde?
What is the meaning behind the “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe?
Why did Herman Melville choose to write about the whaling industry in “Moby-Dick”?
How does the use of allusion enhance the understanding of “The Waste Land” by T.S. Eliot?
What is the significance of the scarlet letter in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel?
Why did Franz Kafka write about absurd situations in “The Metamorphosis”?
How does the use of imagery contribute to the emotional impact of “The Picture of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde?
What is the role of the three witches in “Macbeth”?
Why did Emily Brontë choose to write about such dark and complex characters in “Wuthering Heights”?
How does the use of first-person narration enhance the reader’s connection to the protagonist in “To Kill a Mockingbird”?
What is the meaning behind the “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T.S. Eliot?
Why did George Orwell choose to write “Animal Farm” as an allegory?
How does the use of flashback contribute to the character development in “The Great Gatsby”?
What is the significance of the “Big Brother” concept in George Orwell’s “1984”?
Why did Mary Shelley choose to write a novel about the creation of life in “Frankenstein”?
How does the use of repetition enhance the poetic effect of “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe?
What is the symbolism behind the “white rabbit” in Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”?
Why did F. Scott Fitzgerald choose to write about the Jazz Age in “The Great Gatsby”?
How does the use of multiple narrators contribute to the understanding of “Wuthering Heights”?
What is the role of the American Dream in “The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck?
Why did Oscar Wilde use satire in “The Importance of Being Earnest”?
How does the use of foreshadowing contribute to the suspense in “Rebecca” by Daphne du Maurier?
What is the significance of the “Eye of Sauron” in J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings”?
Why did Virginia Woolf choose to use a stream of consciousness narrative in “To the Lighthouse”?
How does the use of motifs enhance the understanding of “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley?
What is the role of religion in “The Brothers Karamazov” by Fyodor Dostoevsky?

These literary questions are just a glimpse into the vast array of inquiries that arise from reading literature. They invite readers to explore the depths of the text, challenge their own perspectives, and engage in meaningful discussions. So, the next time you pick up a book, don’t shy away from these literary questions. Embrace them, for they are the key to unlocking the hidden treasures within the pages.

50 Literature Quiz Questions and Answers

Is curling up with a good book your idea of heaven? Do you marvel at the literary greats and love finding a new classic?

If you answered an enthusiastic yes to the above, we’ve put together the perfect rainy day activity for you (apart from reading, of course!), with our 50 literature quiz questions and answers.

Through our literature quiz, we’ll test your knowledge of all the classics – both modern and old-school – as well as quiz you on all the hottest books right now. We take a look at authors, sagas and all the good stuff that makes reading so magical.

There’s something for everyone in our literature quiz questions and answers, and who knows, maybe you’ll even find some new inspiration for your reading bucket list while you’re at it…

Literature Quiz Questions and Answers

Who wrote the classic novel ‘The Catcher in the Rye’?
Winston Smith is the protagonist of which George Orwell novel?
What magazine does Stieg Larsson’s character Mikael Blomkvist work at, and part own in ‘The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo’ and its subsequent novels?
Which small Yorkshire town inspired the setting for Emily Bronte’s ‘Wuthering Heights’?
Where does Connell move to in the conclusion of Sally Rooney’s ‘Normal People’?
Jacob Marley and Bob Cratchit are characters from which Charles Dickens novel?
In ‘Gone Girl’, what type of “girl” does Amy pretend to be when she first meets Nick?
Answering to the nearest 100, how many pages long is Stephen King’s ‘IT’?
James Joyce’s ‘Ulysses’ is loosely based on which epic poem?
What job does Louisa take on a whim after being fired as a waitress in ‘Me Before You’?
Who wrote the critically acclaimed 2015 novel ‘A Little Life’?
In which mythical land are the ‘Lord of the Rings’ books set?
In ‘Pride and Prejudice’, what is the full name of Elizabeth Bennet’s love interest?
Co-written with John Fletcher, what is the last surviving play written by William Shakespeare, before his subsequent retirement and death two years later?
How many books are there in the Harry Potter series?
In whose thriller series do we follow Oslo detective Harry Hole, as he investigates violent crimes in the Norwegian capital?
In ‘The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe’, which of the Pevensie siblings first enters Narnia?
On which African river is Agatha Christie’s 1937 novel set?
What is the name of Harper Lee’s debut novel?
Who controversially won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2016, making him one of only two songwriters to ever win the prestigious literary award?
Natasha Rostov is the heroine of which classic Russian novel?
In ‘The Great Gatsby’, what is located at the end of Daisy Buchanan’s dock?
Which astronomically popular series of books, released in the 2000s, begins with a teenage girl moving to the small town of Forks, Washington?
Where in Spain is ‘Don Quixote’ set?
What do George Eliot, George Sand and Acton Bell all have in common?
‘Good Omens’, ‘American Gods’ and ‘Coraline’ are all books written by which author?
What is the title of the first book to feature the character Sherlock Holmes?
‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time’ was written by which British author?
In ‘Red, White & Royal Blue’, who does Alex fall in love with?
In ‘The Kite Runner’, how are Amir and Hassan related?
What genre of book does Danielle Steel primarily write?
Anastacia Steele is the main protagonist in which series of books?
As of August 2023, whose autobiography was the fastest-selling non-fiction book ever?
Humbert Humbert is the unreliable narrator and main character of which book by Vladimir Nabokov?
What is the main character and narrator called in Daphne du Maurier’s ‘Rebecca’?
What literary movement does Ryū Murakami belong to?
Which Bronte sister wrote the novel ‘Villette’?
How many books are there in ‘The Hunger Games’ series of novels?
The Republic of Gilead is a totalitarian and theocratic state in which dystopian novel published in 1985?
Who wrote the novel ‘Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy’?
Which book by Mary Shelley is often regarded as the first science fiction novel?
What kind of ‘phile’ is somebody who loves to read regularly?
Which of the following is NOT a book by John Green; ‘The Fault in Our Stars’, ‘Paper Towns’, or ‘The Sun Is Also a Star’?
Who is attributed to the following quote: “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one”?
How many husbands did Evelyn Hugo have?
Which of the following pieces of literature was NOT a book in its original format; ‘Gone with the Wind’, ‘Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’, ‘Oh, the Places You’ll Go!’ or ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’?
Elio and Oliver are the main characters in which LGBTQ book?
Answering to the nearest five, what year was ‘The Bell Jar’ by Sylvia Plath originally published?
Which of the following detective characters features in Jefferey Deaver’s novels; Alex Cross, Lincoln Rhyme, or Myron Bolitar?
What is the most printed book of all time?

D. Salinger
A Christmas Carol
A cool girl
The Odyssey
Carer/Caretaker
Hanya Yanagihara
Middle-earth
Fitzwilliam Darcy
The Two Noble Kinsmen
River Nile (for ‘Death on the Nile’)
To Kill A Mockingbird
War and Peace
The Green Light
They are male pseudonyms used by female authors
Neil Gaiman
A Study in Scarlet
Mark Haddon
Prince Henry
They are half-brothers
Fifty Shades of Grey
Prince Harry
We never learn her name
Postmodernism
Charlotte Bronte
The Handmaid’s Tale
John le Carré
Frankenstein
Bibliophile
The Sun Is Also a Star
George R. R. Martin
Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Call Me By Your Name
Lincoln Rhyme

If you enjoyed these literature quiz questions and answers, why not check out some of our other quizzes? Here’s some of our favourites!

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Add your guide, you are here:, fiction discussion questions.

These questions are meant to be used with works of fiction. It is likely that you won't get to all of them during your meeting. Choose the questions that you think are most appropriate to your group and the book you've read, and feel free to modify them any way you need to.

For the person who chose this book: What made you want to read it? What made you suggest it to the group for discussion? Did it live up to your expectations? Why or why not? Are you sorry/glad that you suggested it to the group (ask again after the discussion)?

Did you think the characters and their problems/decisions/relationships were believable or realistic? If not, was the author trying to make them realistic, and why did he or she fail? Did the male/female author draw realistic male and female characters? Which character could you relate to best and why? Talk about the secondary characters. Were they important to the story? Did any stand out for you?

How was the book structured? Did the author use any structural or narrative devices like flashbacks or multiple voices in telling the story? How did this affect the story and your appreciation of the book? Do you think the author did a good job with it? Whose voice was the story told in (from whose point of view is the story told)? How do you think it might have been different if another character was telling the story?

Talk about the author's use of language/writing style. Have each member read their favorite couple of passages out loud. (You might want to warn them ahead of time that they'll be doing this so they'll be prepared.) Was the language appropriate to the story? Was it more poetic or vernacular? Did it stand in the way of your appreciation of the story, or enhance your enjoyment of the book? If poetic, did the characters speak in vernacular language, or in the poetic language of the author? Was the dialogue realistic sounding? Was there a rhythm to the authors style, or anything else that might be considered unique about it?

Was the author fairly descriptive? Was he or she better at describing the concrete or the abstract? Was the author clear about what he or she was trying to say, or were you confused by some of what you read? How did this affect your reading of the book?

Talk about the plot. What was more important, the characters or the plot? Was the plot moved forward by decisions of the characters, or were the characters at the mercy of the plot? Was the action believable? What events in the story stand out for you as memorable? Was the story chronological? Was there foreshadowing and suspense or did the author give things away at the beginning of the book? Was this effective? How did it affect your enjoyment of the book?

What were some of the major themes of the book? Are they relevant in your life? Did the author effectively develop these themes? If so, how? If not, why not? Was there redemption in the book? For any of the characters? Is this important to you when reading a book? Did you think the story was funny, sad, touching, disturbing, moving? Why or why not?

Compare this book to others your group has read. Is it similar to any of them? Did you like it more or less than other books you've read? What do you think will be your lasting impression of the book? What will be your most vivid memories of it a year from now? Or will it just leave a vague impression, and what will that be? Or will you not think of it at all in a year's time?

Talk about the location. Was it important to the story? Was the author's description of the landscape/community a good one? Talk about the time period of the story (if appropriate). Was it important to the story? Did the author convey the era well? Did the author provide enough background information for you to understand the events in the story? Why or why not for all of the above? Was pertinent information lumped altogether, or integrated into the story? How did this affect your appreciation of the book?

Finally, what else struck you about the book as good or bad? What did you like or dislike about it that we haven't discussed already? Were you glad you read this book? Would you recommend it to a friend? Did this book make you want to read more work by this author?

If you need further assistance in leading your discussions, keep the following in mind:

Questions that allow your members to express their opinions work better than those that simply have them pull answers from the book (like a high school exam). Ask your group to back up their comments with specific examples from the book. Sometimes it might even help to play devil's advocate with the group. Take a stance that's different from the consensus of the group (if there is one) and force the members of your group to defend their opinions of the book.

Another option is to go through the book, chapter by chapter, pointing out scenes or passages that were especially touching/memorable/interesting to you, and then asking the group what their reaction to these selections are. And don't be afraid to let the discussion go where it will --- if one particular aspect of the book really captures your group member's attention, allow them to stay on this theme, rather than rushing them through all the questions you have prepared.

Finally, if all else fails, you may want to ask each member to bring a couple of questions of their own to the discussion.

-- Prepared by Liz Keuffer

Monthly Contest: What's Your Book Group Reading This Month?

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20 literature questions for your home pub quiz

Here are 20 pub quiz questions for all the bookworms among you

Lauren Morris
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As pub evenings are no longer feasible thanks to the coronavirus lockdown, many quizzers have put down the pint and picked up a book instead (or at least intended to at some point during self-isolation).

For those of you that have sped through what was going to be your holiday reading list, we've got the perfect quiz questions for you to flex your literary knowledge during your next Zoom/FaceTime/Houseparty pub quiz.

And once you’re done, why not try our TV pub quiz , film pub quiz , music quiz or sport pub quiz for size? Plus there's many, many more pub quizzes available as part of our bumper general knowledge pub quiz .

For the latest news and expert tips on getting the best deals this year, take a look at our Black Friday 2021 and Cyber Monday 2021 guides.
In Pride and Prejudice, who does Jane Bennet marry?
Name all four March sisters in Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women.
Which Sally Rooney novel has recently been adapted into a BBC Three drama?
Who is the current Poet Laureate?
What is the name of Harper Lee’s second novel, published in 2015
In The Great Gatsby, which Long Island village does Jay Gatsby live in?
Which two authors won the Booker Prize in 2019?
What is the name of the fourth book in the Harry Potter series?
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is the autobiography of which American writer and poet?
Which country is Aesop’s Fables believed to originate from?
What is the novel Frankenstein’s alternative name?
Which Emily Brontë novel is the inspiration for a Kate Bush song?
The Hunger Games young adult series was written by which author?
Fifty Shades of Grey by E L James was originally fan fiction based on which popular supernatural book series?
George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four was published in which year?
What is the name of the pig in EB White’s Charlotte’s Web
How many novels did Roald Dahl write?
Name all three books in Phillip Pullman’s His Dark Materials series.
What is the name of the publication for which William Boot works in Evelyn Waugh’s Scoop?
Who wrote The Picture of Dorian Gray?
Charles Bingley
Margaret/Meg, Josephine/Jo, Elizabeth/Beth and Amy
Normal People
Simon Armitage
Go Set a Watchman
Margaret Atwood and Bernadine Evaristo
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Maya Angelou
The Modern Prometheus
Wuthering Heights
Suzanne Collins
The Twilight Saga
Northern Lights (UK)/The Golden Compass (US), The Subtle Knife, The Amber Spyglass
Daily Beast
Oscar Wilde

Can't get enough quizzing? Try some of our other quizzes now:

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125 Literary Jeopardy Answers To Test Your Bookish Trivia

Kelly Jensen

Kelly is a former librarian and a long-time blogger at STACKED. She's the editor/author of (DON'T) CALL ME CRAZY: 33 VOICES START THE CONVERSATION ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH and the editor/author of HERE WE ARE: FEMINISM FOR THE REAL WORLD. Her next book, BODY TALK, will publish in Fall 2020. Follow her on Instagram @heykellyjensen .

View All posts by Kelly Jensen

A few years back, in honor of the 50th anniversary of Jeopardy on television. I pulled together a set of posts featuring Literary Jeopardy final answers. Given that bookish trivia continues to be a powerhouse on the show, it seems about time to revisit some of the best book category answers and put your question skills to the test.

For those who don’t know how Jeopardy works, each of the clues are an answer. Your job is to come up with the question. Here’s an example: “This is the largest independent book website in North America” is the answer. The correct question would be “What is Book Riot?”

J-Archive has the most comprehensive record of Jeopardy’s games and players, and all of the answers and questions were sourced from them. Find below answers by category, with corresponding questions listed by category at the bottom half of the post.

Get ready. Get set. It’s literary Jeopardy!

Literary Jeopardy Answers

From page to screen, literary ladies, numeric lit, non-adverb “-ly” words, international literature, one-word book titles, the book nook, read any bestsellers lately, characters in the work, biographers, literary narrators, books for younger readers, 20th century novels, books going back in time, american poets laureate, the non-fiction book’s subtitle, ban that book, a tree grows in book land, ancient rome fiction, book numbers, the national book awards, fictional characters, her first published book, quotable books, literary jeopardy questions.

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50 Modern Literature Quiz Questions and Answers

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no extra cost for you

Table of Contents

Round 1: Easy Modern Literature Trivia Questions

What kind of animal is Pi trapped on a lifeboat with throughout most of Life of Pi?
What school do Harry, Ron and Hermione attend in the Harry Potter series?
In which country is The Kite Runner primarily set?
What colour do the handmaids wear in The Handmaid’s Tale?
What disability does the protagonist of A Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime live with?
Wolf Hall is a historical novel set at the court of which British monarch?
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was originally published in which language?
In which Niel Gaiman novel do half of the characters have buttons for eyes?
Which classic novel is Bridget Jones’ Diary based on?
In Steven King’s 11.22.63, the characters go back in time to stop which historical event from happening?

Round 1: Easy Modern Literature Trivia Questions and Answers

What kind of animal is Pi trapped on a lifeboat with throughout most of Life of Pi? A tiger
What school do Harry, Ron and Hermione attend in the Harry Potter series ? Hogwarts
In which country is The Kite Runner primarily set? Afghanistan
What colour do the handmaids wear in The Handmaid’s Tale? Red
What disability does the protagonist of A Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime live with? Autism
Wolf Hall is a historical novel set at the court of which British monarch ? Henry VIII
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was originally published in which language? Swedish
In which Niel Gaiman novel do half of the characters have buttons for eyes? Coraline
Which classic novel is Bridget Jones’ Diary based on? Pride and Prejudice
In Steven King’s 11.22.63, the characters go back in time to stop which historical event from happening? The assassination of JFK

Round 2: Modern Literature Multiple-Choice Questions

Historical Fiction
The Anthropocene Reviewed
Turtles all the way down
An Abundance of Katherines
An Absolutely Remarkable Thing
Short story collection
Poetry collection
Epistolary novel
Graphic novel
Klara and the Sun
The Remains of the Day
A Pale View of Hills
Never Let Me Go
The Acropolis
The Egyptian Pyramids
The Great Wall of China
Haruki Murakami
Orhan Parmuk
Milan Kundera
Margaret Atwood
Afghanistan
South Africa
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
The Da Vinci Code
Fifty Shades of Grey

Round 2: Modern Literature Multiple-Choice Questions and Answers

What genre is Colleen Hoover primarily known for? D. Romance
Water for Elephants is a love story between two people working in …. C. A circus
Which of the following books was not written by John Green? A. An Absolutely Remarkable Thing
What format is Marjane Satrapi’s autobiography Persepolis delivered in? D. Graphic novel
Which Kazuo Ishiguro novel is narrated by an ‘artificial friend’? A. Klara and the Sun
The Alchemist follows an Andalusian shepherd in his journey to… b. The Egyptian Pyramids
Which of the following acclaimed novelists has won the Nobel Prize for literature? B. Orhan Parmuk
Which country is Half of a Yellow Sun primarily set in? C. Nigeria
How old is Adrian Mole in the first book in the Adrian Mole series? A. 13 ¾
What is the best-selling book written since 2000? B. The Da Vinci Code

Round 3: Modern Literature Quiz – True or False

Contemporary literature is generally understood as works of fiction published since 1970.
Memoirs of a Geisha is the autobiography of Sakamoto Chiya, who worked as a geisha in Tokyo during WWII.
A Thousand Splendid Suns is the sequel to The Kite Runner.
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara is over 800 pages long.
The Secret History by Donna Tartt is set at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.
Literary fiction and romance novelist Jodi Picoult has also written several editions of Wonder Woman.
Gone Girl is not based on any true crime case.
The Color Purple is set in rural Mississippi.
All of the ‘Old Gods’ in Neil Gaiman’s American Gods are based on real deities from religions around the world.
The Name of the Rose was Umberto Eco’s debut novel.

Round 3: Modern Literature Quiz Answers – True or False

Contemporary literature is generally understood as works of fiction published since 1970. False, it’s works of prose, poetry and drama published since 1945
Memoirs of a Geisha is the autobiography of Sakamoto Chiya, who worked as a geisha in Tokyo during WWII. False, Memoirs of a Geisha is fiction
A Thousand Splendid Suns is the sequel to The Kite Runner. False
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara is over 800 pages long. True
The Secret History by Donna Tartt is set at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. False, it’s set at a fictional university based on Bennington College.
Literary fiction and romance novelist Jodi Picoult has also written several editions of Wonder Woman. True
Gone Girl is not based on any true crime case. True
The Color Purple is set in rural Mississippi. False, it’s set in Georgia
All of the ‘Old Gods’ in Neil Gaiman’s American Gods are based on real deities from religions around the world. True
The Name of the Rose was Umberto Eco’s debut novel. True

Round 4: Medium Modern Literature Trivia Questions

library and literature, woman reading a book

The Northern Lights, the Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass are all part of which series?
Who is the narrator of The Book Thief?
Which Malories Blackman novel is set in an alternative Britain where black people hold the power and white people are marginalised?
The Silence of the Girls and A Thousand Ships both describe which historical event from a woman’s perspective?
What is the final book in The Hunger Games series?
Art Spiegelman’s Maus brought which literary format into the mainstream?
Beloved by Toni Morrison is set in the aftermath of which conflict?
Which Kurt Vonnegut novel relates the experiences of an American prisoner of war during WWII?
Which Patrick Süskind novel follows an anti-hero with a super-human sense of smell?
What language was My Brilliant Friend originally written in?

Round 4: Medium Modern Literature Trivia Questions and Answers

The Northern Lights, the Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass are all part of which series? His Dark Materials
Who is the narrator of The Book Thief? Death (the Grim Reaper)
Which Malories Blackman novel is set in an alternative Britain where black people hold the power and white people are marginalised? Noughts and Crosses
The Silence of the Girls and A Thousand Ships both describe which historical event from a woman’s perspective? The Trojan War
What is the final book in The Hunger Games series? Mockingjay
Art Spiegelman’s Maus brought which literary format into the mainstream? Graphic novels
Beloved by Toni Morrison is set in the aftermath of which conflict? The American Civil war
Which Kurt Vonnegut novel relates the experiences of an American prisoner of war during WWII? Slaughterhouse Five
Which Patrick Süskind novel follows an anti-hero with a super-human sense of smell? Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
What language was My Brilliant Friend originally written in? Italian

Round 5: Hard Modern Literature Trivia Questions

‘The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing,’ ‘Letters from Zedelghem’ and ‘An Orison of Sonmi~451’ are three of the interconnected stories in which 2004 novel?
Chocolat by Joanne Harris is set during which Christian festival?
Who wrote The Time Traveler’s Wife?
What is the name of the circus in The Night Circus?
Which Kazuo Ishiuro novel tells the story of a butler in an English stately home?
What was Haruki Murakami’s debut novel?
What is Renée’s job in The Elegance of the Hedgehog?
The protagonist of The Red Tent is the sister of which famous biblical figure?
Which country is Station Eleven set in?
What kind of animal is Karenin in The Unbearable Lightness of Being?
Who is Catalina’s love interest in ‘ The Spanish Love Deception ‘?

Round 5: Hard Modern Literature Trivia Questions and Answers

‘The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing,’ ‘Letters from Zedelghem’ and ‘An Orison of Sonmi~451’ are three of the interconnected stories in which 2004 novel? Cloud Atlas
Chocolat by Joanne Harris is set during which Christian festival? Lent
Who wrote The Time Traveler’s Wife? Audrey Niffenegger
What is the name of the circus in The Night Circus? Le Cirque des Rêves
Which Kazuo Ishiuro novel tells the story of a butler in an English stately home? The Remains of the Day
What was Haruki Murakami’s debut novel? Hear the Wind Sing
What is Renée’s job in The Elegance of the Hedgehog? Concierge
The protagonist of The Red Tent is the sister of which famous biblical figure? Joseph (Genesis)
Which country is Station Eleven set in? Canada
What kind of animal is Karenin in The Unbearable Lightness of Being? A Dog
Who is Catalina’s love interest in ‘ The Spanish Love Deception ‘? Aaron Blackford

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Last updated on Feb 07, 2023

What is Literary Fiction? The Ultimate Guide in 2024

Literary fiction is a category of novels that emphasize style, character, and theme over plot. Lit fic is often defined in contrast to genre fiction and commercial fiction , which involve certain tropes and expectations for the storyline; literary fiction has no such plot-based hallmarks.

Though it's a tough category to define, you can certainly spot literary fiction once you know what you're looking for. Intrigued? In this short guide, we’ll unpack this elusive category and give you tips for writing with literary readers in mind.

Literary fiction is not a standalone genre

You will rarely see novels marketed as ‘literary fiction’, or even shelved that way in a bookstore. This is because literary fiction still shares some features with genre and commercial fiction, though they’re presented more subtly in lit fic. But even when it’s shelved alongside commercial fiction, literary fiction has a few telltale signs, as you’ll soon see.

It’s considered a prestige category

Literary fiction novels are often seen as prestige items in a publisher’s list: cutting-edge works of ‘serious fiction’ by artists of the written word. As a result, literary fiction — even from debut authors — will often get an initial hardback release. If you see a new hardcover on prominent display at the bookstore, it’s almost guaranteed to be literary fiction.

This strategy not only gives it a chance to be seen by plenty of devoted readers, it also increases the book’s chances of being reviewed. According to the editor of The Bookseller in 2018, some literary editors will only review novels launched in hardback .

Books in this category are also privy to publishing’s biggest prizes, such as the Booker Prize and the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. So if you see a sticker on the cover boasting that it’s been nominated for a prestigious award, you’re likely looking at a work of literary fiction.

Style and theme take priority

Another key quality of literary fiction is its attention to style, which in turn underscores major themes. Of course, when thinking of literary fiction, people tend to imagine ‘highbrow’ or difficult prose. This has led to generations of aspiring literary authors packing their prose with run-on sentences, florid metaphors, and other rhetorical bells and whistles.

While this stereotype is certainly true of some novelists (James Joyce, for example, was no stranger to run-on sentences), many literary authors favor concise prose over fancy linguistic flourishes. Take it from George Orwell, who lived by the maxim “never use a complicated word when a simple one will do” — or Hemingway, whose famously lean prose has taught generations of writers that less is more.

Basically, though you may associate literary fiction with insufferable purple prose , it doesn’t have to be that way. The defining feature of literary fiction isn’t one specific style of prose, but rather its impact on the reader, and its ability to deliver or embody the book’s theme.

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Themes are explored in depth

Indeed, literary fiction isn’t all style over substance: meaningful themes are just as important in this category. After all, what use is an interesting voice if you don’t have anything to say?

Literary fiction commonly examines ‘serious’ concepts like politics, social issues, and psychological conflict. But what makes the themes in literary fiction stand apart from those in genre fiction is the level of detail and narrative weight they’re given.

For example, Orwell’s Animal Farm is defined by its commentary on political structures. The plot and characters are just small parts that build the novel’s overarching metaphor for the Russian Revolution, as seen through Orwell’s satirical lens.

As you can probably guess, the level of nuance required to explore serious themes calls for a great deal of time and effort on the author’s part. After all, it’s not easy to have a strong take on a weighty topic, and (crucially) understand how impacted characters would think, feel, and react — so if you intend to write literary fiction with big themes, make sure you’ve thought deeply about the real-world consequences.

They often drill into a single theme

Now, one might argue that The Hunger Games also tackles serious themes of social inequality — so how come it’s not considered literary fiction? Well, because this dystopian novel more strongly foregrounds elements of romance, coming of age, and an action-packed plot. The social themes, in many ways, are garnishes rather than the main course.

In short, genre fiction’s focus on story means that it will rarely explore themes in as much depth as literary fiction. This thematic intensity doesn't make literary fiction “better” than genre fiction, or vice-versa — it just goes to show that there are many different approaches out there to meet the varied needs of different readers.

Character studies are its bread and butter

While authors of genre fiction certainly can’t ignore character development , their equal (or greater) focus on plot gives them less opportunity to drill deep into a character’s inner life. What’s more, most genre fiction has a protagonist who is lovable by design.

Meanwhile, in literary fiction, you’re much more likely to encounter morally gray and flawed characters , and find yourself absorbed by their history and psyche. That’s not to say every character in this category is inherently evil, incredibly flawed, or unlikable — they're just far more likely to be approached in a more complex way that exposes their faults, thus giving you the tools to dissect them.

Take The Catcher in the Rye as an example. J.D. Salinger’s hero is Holden Caulfield, a seventeen-year-old boarding school drop-out. Holden isn’t necessarily likable — in fact, he often alienates others by judging superficial characteristics extremely critically — but readers are intrigued by the book’s psychological insights into his personality. Though Holden is quick to judge others, particularly those he views as “phony”, he’s far from perfect himself; this makes trying to understand his behavior even more compelling.

Instead of making Holden likable, Salinger makes the reader empathize with him despite his personality and actions — something that’s arguably much harder to do as an author. This challenging, thought-provoking nature is a definite hallmark of literary fiction.

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The tone is often realistic and introspective

What do Of Mice and Men, Mrs Dalloway, The Remains of the Day have in common besides their dark elements and focus on longing? While none of these books would be mistaken for nonfiction , they are all grounded in a certain realism — their writers have taken special care in exploring the emotions and reactions of their characters in very specific settings.

Considering this, it won’t surprise you that literary fiction tends to rely on internal conflict of a character to drive the plot. In Of Mice and Men, for example, migrant farm worker George Milton is torn between his survival instincts and his loyalty to his simple (yet dangerous) friend, Lenny. While the novel arguably does have a villain — the landowner’s cruel son — the story’s true conflict takes place in George’s mind.

You might also look to Mrs Dalloway as a good example of realistic introspection. In this book, readers follow a single day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, culminating in her finally reconciling herself with life in the present — despite her strong attachments to the past.

The Remains of the Day creates a similar air of realism by exploring the human psyche: we follow the butler of a grand English estate as he comes to terms with how his unhealthy devotion to his work, subsequent repression, and his fears of intimacy have held him back for years.

It’s about the journey

But while the resolutions of all these stories may be melancholy and uncertain, sad endings alone don’t make them lit fic — it’s about the characters’ journeys to get there.

Good literary fiction feels so real because there isn’t that certainty of a happily ever after. After this, the characters will continue on their journey, and readers can only imagine where they might go. They want to wonder what will happen to the characters based on what they’ve learned through the story, rather than simply arrive at an ending that’s wrapped up in a bow.

That literary fiction writers allude to this “to be continued” reality in their novels, makes them that much more believable.

But it can also be fanciful!

Literary fiction isn’t all dark character studies about people living on the verge of despair, mumbling to each other in a studio apartment. On the contrary, literary fiction can absolutely be fantastical while simultaneously presenting people and themes in a believable way — and what better way to study human nature than by throwing your characters into highly unusual situations?

Plenty of literary fiction writers actually specialize in playing with genre tropes and devising the most inventive concepts. One recent example of fantasy-infused literary fiction is Susanna Clarke’s Piranesi , which follows Piranesi — a man who seemingly lives alone in a vast, statue-filled labyrinth that periodically floods to dangerous levels. Let’s be honest, not much besides the human insight is realistic in this novel (unless you happen to holiday in similar dangerous labyrinths). But the outlandish premise makes the perfect playground for Clarke to explore themes of personhood and isolation.

You might also point to Susan Hill’s The Woman in Black , a novel which is equal parts literary fiction and Gothic horror. Arthur Kipps is a young lawyer investigating a creepy house on a remote island — one that belonged to his deceased client.

Through Kipps’s seemingly supernatural experiences at the house, readers are asked to consider bigger questions about sanity and objectivity. While the harrowing events in this novel are hardly realistic in the way that a Sally Rooney novel might be, its rich narration, focus on human psychology, and themes of isolation align it with literary fiction.

Authors are more free to experiment

Writers of literary fiction benefit from the fact that their readers tend to enjoy more challenging works. In genre and commercial fiction, there is an expectation that the writer will always engage the reader, propelling them through the book with quickly mounting tension. In contrast, literary fiction readers are more flexible in their initial expectations — understanding that a slow start can still build to a satisfying reveal later.

A great example of slow-burn literary fiction is Margaret Atwood’s The Blind Assassin , in which elderly Iris Chase recounts her dramatic life and the events leading up to her sister's death. Though this novel has received wide critical acclaim, a lot of readers have unfortunately placed this challenging book back on the shelf early because of its slow-paced beginning. However, the novel’s unique ‘memory recall’ structure needs that time to build the twisting mysteries which ultimately make it a true page turner.

Indeed, literary fiction readers often expect some level of experimentation that subverts the formal conventions of storytelling. Sarah Waters’s The Night Watch overturns readers' expectations by telling its story in reverse, moving backwards through the 1940s, starting in 1947. Waters’s unconventional style challenges readers by asking them to forget their curiosity about the future and try to focus solely on unraveling the past.

Literary Fiction | We Need To Talk About Kevin

Of course, experimental or unusual structures aren’t just used in literary fiction for the sake of challenging readers. Typically, a nuanced structure works towards immersing the reader in the character or world of the book.

For example, a long stream of consciousness narrative (think Jean Rhys’s Wide Sargasso Sea , in which the narrator’s thoughts gradually become harder to follow) might be a great way to make readers lose themselves in the narrator’s mental decline. Or utilizing an epistolary structure (as in Lionel Shriver’s We Need to Talk About Kevin , which is told through a series of letters penned by a grieving mother) can really make the stakes feel tangible as readers dig through years of correspondence.

Literary fiction is a broad and diverse genre, so it’s pretty difficult to track down an exact definition ― but hopefully, equipped with this field guide to lit fic, you’ll feel more confident identifying it when you come across it in the wild.

If all this literary talk has you feeling inspired, make sure to head over to the next part of our guide, where you can learn 10 insightful tips for writing your own literary fiction!

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201 Literature Trivia Questions (Ranked From Easiest to Hardest)

The best literature trivia questions bring together quotes, authors, books, and characters in a way that's both entertaining and educational.

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201 Literature Trivia Questions Ranked From Easiest to Hardest (Updated for 2024)

You get a book! You get a book! You get a book! For 15 years, starting in 1996, what daytime talk show megastar’s book club recommended a total of 70 books leading to total sales of over 55 million copies? Answer: Oprah Winfrey
The author of novels like "Snow" and "My Name is Red," Orhan Pamuk was the first Turkish person to win what prestigious literature award given out by the Swedish Academy? They also give out awards for medicine, chemistry, and peace. Answer: Nobel Prize
A young boy takes a train to the North Pole on Christmas Eve in what classic 1985 children's book by Chris Van Allsburg? Answer: The Polar Express
What classic Leo Tolstoy novel, first released serially from 1873-1877, tells the story of a titular woman and her affair with Count Vronsky? Keira Knightley played the title character in a 2012 movie adaptation directed by Joe Wright. Answer: Anna Karenina
The Shujing, Chunqiu, and Shijing are considered the foundations of the literary tradition in what country? Answer: China
In the classic 1957 children's book, "How the Grinch Stole Christmas," what is the name of the town the Grinch steals holiday presents and decorations from? Answer: Whoville
While promoting his sprawling novel "Freedom" in 2010, Jonathan Franzen was the first American novelist to appear on the cover of Time magazine since what legendary horror writer in 2000? Answer: Stephen King
What is the name of the third book in the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer? Scientifically, this title signifies an occurrence in which an astronomical object is temporarily obscured. Answer: Eclipse
Literally the study of whales, "Cetology" is the title of the 32nd chapter of what lengthy American novel? Answer: Moby Dick
Iambic pentameter is a type of metric line used in English verse, most famously by William Shakespeare. While "iambic" describes the unstressed/stressed pattern of each two-syllable "foot," the word "pentameter" indicates that there are how many feet within a given line? Answer: Five
In "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe," what magical country does the White Witch put a spell on so that it is always winter but never Christmas? Answer: Narnia
"Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus," translated as "Never Tickle A Sleeping Dragon," is the official motto for what fictional place of learning? Answer: Hogwarts
20th century Georgian writer Flannery O'Connor is well-known for her short stories in the Southern Gothic style. Her most famous collection of stories was published in 1955 under the title "A Good M______ Is Hard to Find." What word fills in the blank? Answer: Man
Oakland, California features a neighborhood named after what author of "The Call of the Wild," who often frequented the area? Answer: Jack London
At the conclusion of an 1835 literary fairy tale, a small object is placed in a museum because of its critical role in finding a suitable princess to marry a prince. What is this object that was placed under dozens of mattresses earlier in the tale? Answer: Pea
Thestrals and Floo Powder are both forms of transportation invented by what internationally-renowned author? Answer: JK Rowling
What 1847 Emily Bronte classic deals with two West Yorkshire families, the Earnshaws and the Lintons, and in particular the adopted Earnshaw, Heathcliff? It was also a 1939 William Wyler film with Oscar-winning cinematography, starring Laurence Olivier and David Niven. Answer: Wuthering Heights
Henry David Thoreau wrote about life in the woods in Massachusetts in what iconic 1854 work of nonfiction literature? Answer: Walden
A large portion of what 2001 Yann Martel novel features the title character stranded on a lifeboat after a shipwreck with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker? Answer: Life of Pi
First appearing in the children's book "Cecily G. and the Nine Monkeys", what is the most famous character created by H. A. and Margaret Rey? Answer: Curious George
Named after a London railway station, what fictional literary bear was originally a stowaway from "Darkest Peru?" Answer: Paddington Bear
The international publishing group Random House merged with what "aviary" publisher in 2013 resulting in a new, merged publishing conglomerate? Answer: Penguin Group
What color is the "badge of courage" in Stephen Crane's famous Civil War novel? The "badge" represents a battlefield wound. Answer: Red
“______, 1916” is a 1921 poem by William Butler Yeats about an uprising in Ireland against British rule. Fill in the blank, also a major Christian holiday. Answer: Easter
The Nike Literary Award (technically Nagroda Literacka Nike) is one of the most prestigious awards for literature in what European country? Past winners include Wieslaw Mysliwski, Jaroslaw Marek Rymkiewicz, and Karol Modzelewski. Answer: Poland
Aunt Em and Uncle Henry are the caretakers of what famed female protagonist played by Judy Garland? Answer: Dorothy Gale
Famed American author Louisa May Alcott lived in Boston for much of her life, but based her most famous novel on events from her childhood in Concord, MA. This novel about the March sisters had its eighth film rendition released in December 2019. What is this novel? Answer: Little Women
The Berenstain Bears (we know it's weird, but it is spelled that way) live in what interesting type of home? Answer: Treehouse
"The Cricket on the Hearth" is a holiday novel, not nearly as well known as "A Christmas Carol," by what British author? Answer: Charles Dickens
Not signifying someone smart with Lincolns, but rather a sewer-dweller, what is the name of the dancing clown in Stephen King's famed horror novel "It?" Answer: Pennywise
B.F. Skinner wrote a utopian novel in 1948, about an ideal place whose citizens are led to happier lives by structural implementation of behavioral psychology, called “______ Two.” Fill in the blank, also the one world title of Henry David Thoreau’s book about living the woods. Answer: Walden
"Dog doo good god!" is a sentence that reads the same backwards and forwards. This is an example of what literary device? Answer: Palindrome
What literary "S" term is intended to be both critical and humorous while poking fun at an institution or idea? Answer: Satire
Prolific author Carl Hiaasen wrote more than a dozen humor-inflected novels dealing with crime, environmentalism, and political corruption in his native Florida. In 2002, he made his first foray into young adult fiction with what four-letter owl-centric novel that was named a Newbery Medal honor book? Answer: Hoot
The Imagination Library is a free children's book gifting program started by what famous singer in 1995? The program started by offering a monthly book to each child in Sevier County, Tennessee regardless of family income. Answer: Dolly Parton
In Herman Melville's famous "Moby-Dick," what species of whale is the "white whale?" The name comes from the semi-liquid, waxy substance found within the whale's head. Answer: Sperm whale
Code-switching and police violence are major themes in what 2017 young-adult novel by Angie Thomas? Answer: The Hate U Give
What internationally-renowned British author coined the following secret phrase? "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." Answer: JK Rowling
Two displaced migrant ranch workers are the dual protagonists of what 1937 novella with a title that starts with a preposition? Answer: Of Mice and Men
In the late 14th century, Dirc Potter van der Loo, lord of Waddinxveen, wrote a poem of Biblically based amorous adventures called “The ______ Of Love.” Fill in the blank with a “C” word, sometimes used to refer to a path or a particular educational class. Answer: Course
Jesse Andrews made his novel debut in 2012 with “Me and ______ and the Dying Girl.” Fill in the one word “E” blank, also a British title above viscount and below marquess. Answer: Me And Earl And The Dying Girl
In her novel "Bridget Jones's Diary," author Helen Fielding named love interest Mark Darcy after a character from what classic Jane Austen novel? Answer: Pride and Prejudice
Where does the Wizard live in The Wizard of Oz? Answer: The Emerald City
In his obituary in 1991, the New York Times said "English was too skimpy for his rich imagination." and that "his meter was irresistible." Who is this children's author? Answer: Dr. Seuss
What British author wrote the classic 1964 children's novel "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory?" Answer: Roald Dahl
Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa against author Salman Rushdie after the publication of what 1989 novel that mocked the prophet Muhammad? Answer: The Satanic Verses
Aimed at an adult audience, the 1998 novel "Summer Sisters" is by what American author better known for children's and young-adult literature like "Superfudge" and "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret?" Answer: Judy Blume
What is the titular city in "Tales of the City," a classic work of queer literature published in 1978 by American author Armistead Maupin? Answer: San Francisco
The decade-long Trojan War was instigated by the eloping of a famous couple. With one guess, name either member of this couple. Answer: Helen and Paris
Mr. C. Hillegass, an employee at the Nebraska Book Company in 1958, started a series of study guides in his basement with his wife. Often associated with shirking homework assignments, what is the common name associated with these guides? Answer: CliffsNotes
Jack, Simon, Piggy, and Roger are four of the young characters that make up the cast in what 1954 novel? Answer: Lord of the Flies
Indian author Vikas Swarup wrote a 2005 novel titled "Q & A" involving a game show that was (loosely) adapted into a 2008 British film that later won the Academy Award for Best Picture. What was the name of the adaptation? Answer: Slumdog Millionaire
The ladies of Amy Tan's "Joy Luck Club" meet to play what game with plum blossom and chrysanthemum tiles? Answer: Mahjong
The five categories in which Nobel Prizes are awarded are Peace, Chemistry, Literature, Physiology/Medicine, and what? Note that the Noble Memorial Prize in Economics does not count because it is technically a different reward. Answer: Physics
Dwalin, Smaug's Delight, and Thorin Oakenshield are sandwiches at a Houston cafe named for what 1937 novel? Answer: The Hobbit (There and Back Again)
What 1938 Daphne Du Maurier novel is about a woman who marries a wealthy widower, only to find that he and his house are haunted by the titular dead wife’s memory? A movie adaptation directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Joan Fontaine won the Best Picture Oscar in 1940. Answer: Rebecca
A monk Of Egmond who wrote a history of Holland in 1305, later published in 1591 as “Verse Chronicle”, was Melis ______. Fill in the last name, also an “S” verb for adding coal to a fire. Answer: Stoke
According to 18th-century satirist Jonathan Swift, "he was a bold man that first ate" what bivalve that comes in Bluepoint and Kumamoto varieties? Answer: Oyster
"Alarm Will HOWL," reads an emergency exit warning at a San Francisco museum dedicated to what mid-20th century literary movement? Answer: Beat
What 1995 coming-of-age comedy set in California is loosely based on Jane Austin's 1815 novel Emma? Answer: Clueless
What 1945 British novel depicting animalian life was often accompanied with the subtitle "A Contemporary Satire?" Answer: Animal Farm
What famously violent barber character was first introduced in "The String of Pearls" Victorian serial in 1846? The character also featured in a Tony award-winning musical and a 2007 film rendition. Answer: Sweeney Todd
The title character of what Charlotte Bronte novel asks Mr. Rochester, "Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless?" Answer: Jane Eyre
What "phony" and "lousy" book by J.D. Salinger was Mark David Chapman holding when he killed John Lennon? Answer: Catcher in the Rye
The most notable brewery in literature might be the abandoned, rusted-over operation once run by Miss Havisham, the eccentric woman young Pip meets in what 1860 novel by Charles Dickens? Answer: Great Expectations
Although written under a "citrus-y" pen name, Daniel Handler was technically the author of a set of 13 books detailing the story of Sunny, Klaus and Violet Baudelaire and their struggles to escape their unpleasant circumstances. What is the name of this series? Oh, and here's a fun fact: each of the 13 novels includes a newly-discovered library as part of the plot. Again, we are looking for the name of the series, not the author's pseudonym. Answer: A Series of Unfortunate Events
What English writer was born Adeline Virginia Stephen in 1882 and is considered one of the most important 20th century modernist writers? She's also considered a pioneer of stream of consciousness writing, and wrote novels including "The Voyage Out" and "The Waves." Answer: Virginia Woolf
What was the profession of Marilyn Monroe’s last husband, Arthur Miller, who she divorced in 1961, a year before her death? Miller, meanwhile, did not die for another 44 years when he passed in Connecticut. Answer: Playwright
What education-related word has two distinct meanings both related to books? The first is simply an organized listing of books (often at the end of a piece of research) and the second is a more systematic description of books as physical objects. Answer: Bibliography
What author, famous for writing “The Outsiders” and “Rumble Fish”, set her 2004 novel, “Hawkes Harbor”, in Delaware? Answer: S.E. Hinton
"Out, damn'd spot! out, I say!" is one of the most famous lines from what Shakespearean character? Answer: Lady Macbeth
"Going to the mattresses," or hiding out from enemies, was a term popularized by what 1969 Mario Puzo novel and its film adaptation? Answer: The Godfather
What American author, popularly known by a pseudonym, considered Hartford the most beautiful city in the United States and settled there to write what are considered his bildungsroman masterpieces? Coincidentally, this Missouri-born man lived next door to Harriet Beecher Stowe while in Hartford. Answer: Mark Twain
Likenesses of Ramona Quimby and Henry Huggins splash in puddles in a Portland sculpture garden dedicated to what beloved childrens' lit author? Answer: Beverly Cleary
The winner of the 1994 Newbery Medal was ranked as the fourth best children's novel of all time by a 2012 US survey. What is this Lois Lowry-penned book which centers on protagonist Jonas's apprenticeship as his community's "Receiver of Memory?" Answer: The Giver
"Sanditon," which she began in 1817 but did not finish before she died the same year, was the last novel by what English author? Answer: Jane Austen
Which author wrote all her books (including Mrs. Dalloway) while standing? Answer: Virginia Woolf
One of the youthful finders of a golden ticket in Roald Dahl's "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" was a "great big greedy nincompoop" 9-year-old from the fictional town of Dusselheim, Germany. Who is this? Answer: Augustus Gloop
Widely considered the best-selling true crime book in history, what 1974 book was co-written by the prosecutor in the 1970 trial of Charles Manson? The work shares its name with a Beatles song considered influential in the evolution of heavy metal music. Answer: Helter Skelter
A "cranioectomy" on Violet Baudelaire is attempted for a live audience in an operating theater in the eight installment of what morbidly funny series of children's books? Answer: A Series of Unfortunate Events
"Agnes Grey" and "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall" are the only two novels by an English author who was the younger sister of Charlotte and Emily Brontë. What was her first name? Answer: Anne (Brontë)
The town of Pepin, Wisconsin is home to a museum honoring what author of the Little House books, most famously "Little House on the Prairie"? Answer: Laura Ingalls Wilder
What classic literary villain, described as a “Machiavellian schemer and manipulator” shares his name with an avian sidekick in the Disney film "Aladdin?" Answer: Iago
What Canadian author, poet, and environmentalist with a "forested" name reached new levels of fame in 2017 after her award-winning 1985 dystopian political novel was released as a smash-hit television series on Hulu? Answer: Margaret Atwood
What famous poet who went by his initials stated: "I have measured out my life with coffee spoons"? Well-known works include "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" and "The Waste Land." Answer: T.S. Eliot
First mentioned in "The Goblet of Fire," what is the name for a magically enchanted object in the Harry Potter universe that allows for the apparition-less transportation of multiple people at once upon touching the object? Answer: Portkey
Since 2011, author George R.R. Martin has been working on the sixth installment of his A Song of Ice and Fire series, a novel alliteratively titled The Winds of ______. What word fills in the blank? Answer: Winter
During his embassy days in Rome, 14th and 15th century Dutch erotic poet-slash-diplomat Dirc Potter van der Loo found inspiration for his epic poem "The Course of Love" in the works of what saucy Florentine "Decameron" writer? Answer: Giovanni Boccaccio
What 1937 book with a four-word title by Napoleon Hill, which purports to teach the secrets that can make you wealthy, has been called "the granddaddy of all motivational literature?" Answer: Think and Grow Rich
Reminiscent of something that might be used by someone with alopecia, what was the name of the snowy owl which Harry Potter received as an eleventh birthday present from Hagrid? Answer: Hedwig
What famed Boston author of "Little Women" was previously taught by Henry David Thoreau and even penned him a poem titled "Thoreau's Flute?"? Answer: Louisa May Alcott
"Little Women" is typically considered an autobiographical or semi-autobiographical novel based on the 19th century life of what American author? Answer: Louisa May Alcott
A famous fictional member of the Army Air Forces is Capt. John Yossarian, a 28-year-old World War 2 bombardier in what Joseph Heller satirical novel? Answer: Catch 22
The previously domestic Buck channels his feral instincts and ends up killing others as he ascends to the role of pack leader in what Jack London novel? Answer: The Call of the Wild
What New England-born poet was famously prolific, but having written nearly 1,800 poems had fewer than a dozen published during her lifetime? Famous poems include "Because I could not stop for Death" and "Tell all the truth but tell it slant." Answer: Emily Dickinson
What epic John Milton poem, first published in 1667, concerns the fall of Lucifer from Heaven, and Adam and Eve’s expulsion from the Garden of Eden? Answer: Paradise Lost
What author created the child protagonist who promptly explains his nickname to the reader in the following manner? “My father's family name being Pirrip, and my Christian name Philip, my infant tongue could make of both names nothing longer or more explicit than Pip. So, I called myself Pip.” Answer: Charles Dickens
Johannes Gutenberg gets oodles of history book credit, but in fact there is clear documentation that movable type was invented 400 years earlier (circa AD 1045) in what country? Answer: China
What science fiction-infused anti-war novel by Kurt Vonnegut published in 1969 opens with the line, “All this happened, more or less”? Answer: Slaughterhouse-five
Although her life tragically ended at the age of 30, what American poet and short-story writer is credited with advancing the genre of confessional poetry and is best known for collections such as "The Bell Jar?" She posthumously won a Pulitzer Prize in 1982 for her collected poems. Answer: Sylvia Plath
What 2014 Liane Moriarty novel is set in Australia, although its HBO TV adaptation moved the setting to Monterey, California? Answer: Big Little Lies
What is the title of the popular book and recent TV series about two families living in 1990s Shaker Heights that opens with a family home catching fire? Answer: Little Fires Everywhere
What famously witty American, who occasionally went by the pen name of Thomas Jefferson Snodgrass, wrote the following line to describe early-model, "high-wheeler" bicycles? "Get a bicycle. You will not regret it, if you live." Answer: Mark Twain
What American novelist was born in 1931 and is known for her prolific writings including "The Bluest Eye," "Song of Solomon," and "Beloved?" That last book was made into a 1996 movie produced by Oprah Winfrey. This Ohioan won both a Nobel Prize and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Answer: Toni Morrison
Stonehead McGurney and Sir Harry the Muse are owls in what colorfully-named fantasy novel series by Brian Jacques? Answer: Redwall
According to ancient Greek literature, Argos, the dog of what wayward king of Ithaca, died of joy after seeing his master for the first time in decades? Answer: Odysseus
The O.W.L.s (Ordinary Wizarding Levels) are a set of standardized tests in the wizarding world that are traditionally taken at Hogwarts at the end of which school year? Answer: Fifth year
According to the Harry Potter books, how many total balls are used in a standard Quidditch match? Answer: Four
Justin Trudeau has a bachelor of arts degree in literature from what school? Answer: McGill University
Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons are the famous writer-artist pair behind what graphic novel that is frequently considered the magnum opus of its medium? In fact, it was the only graphic novel to appear on Time's 2005 list of the "All-Time 100 Greatest Novels" list. Answer: Watchmen
Pierre Bezukhov and Andrei Bolkonsky are both characters in what classic work of European literature? The book was partially released in serial format as "The Year 1805" and was published in its entirety in 1869. Answer: War and Peace
Fittingly, considering its definition, what literary term has roots in the Greek words for both "sharp" and "dull?" Answer: Oxymoron
Presidential candidate Andrew Jarrett uses the slogan "Make America Great Again" in "The Parable of the Talents," a 1998 dystopian novel by what sci-fi author? Answer: Octavia E. Butler
What novel begins with the following line?“If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you’ll probably want to know is where I was born and what my lousy childhood was like …” Answer: The Catcher in the Rye
"Hello, goodbye" was the greeting of the Tralfamadorians in what novel by Kurt Vonnegut? Answer: Slaughterhouse Five
In 1832, at the age of 21, a member of a prominent religious family moved to Cincinnati to join her father, who had become the president of a theological seminary. Her religious conviction, progressive inclinations, the recently-passed Fugitive Slave Act, and the death of her own 18-month-old-son were said to be key influences for one of the most influential novels in American history. What is this novel? Answer: Uncle Tom's Cabin
What acclaimed children's author and poet spent much of his career as a cartoonist for Playboy and also wrote songs for the 1960s folk scene? Answer: Shel Silverstein
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi was an animal character created by Rudyard Kipling in his anthology "The Jungle Book." What type of animal is Rikki-Tikki-Tavi? Answer: Mongoose
French citizens have won it a record 16 times, but this year Annie Ernaux became the first female French recipient of the Nobel Prize in which category? Answer: Literature
What famed children's author said the following? "I answer all my children's letters – sometimes very hastily – but this one I lingered over. I sent him a card and I drew a picture of a Wild Thing on it. I wrote, 'Dear Jim: I loved your card.' Then I got a letter back from his mother and she said: 'Jim loved your card so much he ate it.' That to me was one of the highest compliments I've ever received." Answer: Maurice Sendak
Experiences with a commanding officer in World War II helped Richard Adams form the character of Hazel the rabbit, in what 1972 novel? Answer: Watership Down
What author, who is far more famous for creating another character of page and screen, wrote the novel "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" in 1964? Many of the characters this author created were known by a single letter or a number. Answer: Ian Fleming
J.K. Rowling is rumored (and has since denied) to have written the first part of “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” on what uncommon writing surface? Answer: a napkin
What Roman emperor from 161 to 180, who was also a Stoic philosopher, wrote the book “Meditations?” These self-explorations helped him guide and improve himself, and is used as a tool for leaders to this day. Answer: Marcus Aurelius
Typically priced between five and 25 cents, small paperback books sent by mail were extremely popular in the early 20th century and known by what monetary name? Answer: Dime novels
1982 saw the release of “The Little Drummer Girl”, about an English actress who is drawn into a plot to help capture a Palestinian terrorist. This book was written by what by British novelist, famed for his espionage novels such as “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.” Answer: John Le Carre
What is the name of the narrator in "The Great Gatsby?" This man's last name sounds a bit like departing while holding an object. Answer: Nick Carraway
In Cervantes's iconic work "Don Quixote," who is Quixote's companion who regularly quotes proverbs and rides a donkey? Answer: Sancho Panza
Elisha Otis wouldn't approve of the meditation techniques used in Colson Whitehead's novel "The Intuitionist" to inspect what pieces of infrastructure? Answer: Elevators
Lilly “Shug” Avery is the free-spirited singer known for both her beautiful voice and scandalous lifestyle for the 1930s American South (specifically, Georgia) in what award-winning epistolary novel by writer Alice Walker? Answer: The Color Purple
The term "robot" was introduced in what form of literature (novel, play, short story, article, book, poem) by Czech writer, Karel Capek, in 1920? Answer: Play
A classic of LGBTQ literature, "Orlando: A Biography" is a 1928 novel by what British author who also wrote "A Room of One's Own?" Answer: Virginia Woolf
What "cold-blooded" American author wrote the short story "A Christmas Memory" about making fruitcakes from scratch in Alabama? Answer: Truman Capote
Set just before the American Revolution, what Newbery-winning Esther Forbes novel's title character is a silversmith's apprentice who takes part in the Boston Tea Party? Answer: Johnny Tremain
What author wrote "I'm right and you're wrong, I'm big and you're small, and there's nothing you can do about it?" In the 1996 movie adaptation of the novel, the line was uttered by actor-director Danny Devito. Answer: Roald Dahl
Dmitri, Ivan, and Alexei are the three familial title characters in what 1879 novel? Answer: The Brothers Karamazov
Although more well-known for his fiction and character creations, what famous author was also an ophthalmologist? He studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh in the 1870s, was a determined supporter of compulsory vaccination, and partially based his most famous character on a former university teacher. Answer: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Although he was not able to speak English fluently until his mid-twenties, this Polish-British writer is often considered one of the great masters of the English language. He helped popularize the concept of an anti-hero, frequently featured nautical settings, and wrote both "The Secret Agent," "The Secret Sharer," and "The Heart of Darkness." Who is this author? Answer: Joseph Conrad
______ is the part of the sentence that contains a verb, and it typically consists of both a subject and a predicate. What word six-letter word fills in the blank? Answer: Clause
Although he published over 60 books under a different name, who published 13 books under the name Theo LeSieg and one book under the name Rosetta Stone? Answer: Dr. Seuss
What Shakespearean play, in which two couples wind up marrying, coined a modern day term for an unnecessary dispute? Answer: Much Ado About Nothing
"Bless Me, Ultima" is a famous coming-of-age novel by Rudolfo Anaya centering on a young Antonio and his mentor Ultima along with her pet owl. The book is one of the most widely read and critically acclaimed novel in the Chicano literary canon. In what U.S. state is the book set? Answer: New Mexico
What 2014 bestseller by Emily St. John Mandel opens with a performance of "King Lear," in which the death of the actor playing Lear is one of the first in an apocalyptic swine flu pandemic? Answer: Station Eleven
What is the one-word title of the Detroit-centric Pulitzer Prize-winning 2002 novel written by Jeffrey Eugenides that is largely a bildungsroman and family saga centered on the intersex protagonist Cal Stephanides? Answer: Middlesex
Because it was the setting for many of her stories, the city of Eatonville, Florida hosts an annual festival dedicated to her. She's often considered a central figure of the Harlem Renaissanc and 1937's "Their Eyes Were Watching God" remains the most popular of her 50+ published works. Who is she? Answer: Zora Neale Hurston
"The Fire Next Time," "If Beale Street Could Talk," and "Giovanni's Room" are all books by what acclaimed Black American author that spent most of his professional life in France rather than the U.S. due to the racial discrimination he faced in the U.S.? Answer: James Baldwin
What novel traverses a century of the Buendías while surfacing the tales of seven generations of the Latin American family? Answer: 100 Years of Solitude
The 1965 science fiction novel "Dune" was the winner of the inaugural Nebula Award for Best Novel and was considered at one point as the world's best-selling science fiction novel. It is also being adapted into a film with a scheduled 2020 release. Who authored this work? Answer: Frank Herbert
Named in part for the color of the Confederate flag, what is the name of the Scarlett and Rhett's child in "Gone with the Wind?" Answer: Bonnie
Who wrote “Beauty is truth, truth beauty” in his poem, “Ode on a Grecian Urn?” Answer: John Keats
The 1999 novel "Girl With a Pearl Earring" by Tracy Chevalier was inspired by a painting with the same title by what Dutch artist? Answer: Johannes Vermeer
What writer's works were printed over 100 million times by 2000, leading to the unusual honor of having a new dinosaur species after him? Answer: Michael Crichton
What man committed suicide at the age of 31 and posthumously won a Pulitzer Prize for fiction after his mother doggedly convinced a publisher to print his novel "A Confederacy of Dunces"? Answer: John Kennedy Toole
“Samuel Spade’s jaw was long and bony” is the first line of what famous detective novel with a bird's name in the title? Answer: The Maltese Falcon
In 1971, John Gardner wrote a novel from the perspective of what monster from an ancient British poem? In the British poem, the hero was eventually killed by a monster known simply as “______’s Mother.” Answer: Grendel
Lake Wobegon is a fictional, small rural town created by what famous Midwestern author and storyteller? Answer: Garrison Keillor
What classic kiddie-lit book by Virginia Lee Burton features title characters who are a construction worker and a piece of construction equipment he calls Mary Anne? Answer: Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel
The title character works as a maid at Talbothays Dairy in the third part of what 1891 novel by Thomas Hardy? Answer: Tess of the D'Urbervilles
What Latina and Chicago native wrote "Caramelo," a novel about a Mexican-American family in Chicago who takes an annual road trip to visit their “Awful Grandmother” in Mexico City? Answer: Sandra Cisneros
Bigger Thomas, a young Black man living in poverty in Chicago in the 1930s, is the title character of what novel by Richard Wright? Answer: Native Son
Rachel Verinder wears the titular gem to her birthday party and loses it the same evening at the start of what 1868 novel by Wilkie Collins? Answer: The Moonstone
Considered a partially fictional autobiography by Charles Dickens, what are the two words missing from this well-known literary title of the 19th century? "The Personal History, Adventures, Experience and Observation of ______ ______ the Younger of Blunderstone Rookery." Answer: David Copperfield
The impolite, unpleasant Katherina is referred to metaphorically by the name of a small mammal in the name of what Shakespeare play? Answer: The Taming of the Shrew
Although it sounds like a friendless novel about a critical human organ, Carson McCullers's 1940 debut novel is actually about an isolated misfit in a Georgia town. What is the novel? Answer: The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter
Truman Capote's famous non-fiction work "In Cold Blood" describes a burglary and grisly quadruple murder by Richard Hickock and Perry Smith in what state? Answer: Kansas
The son of a literature professor and a dancer/choreographer, Cage has family roots in the movies through his uncle. What famous director is the brother of Nicolas Cage's father? Answer: Francis Ford Coppola
Molly Bolt's coming of age is the focus of what 1973 classic of LGBTQ literature by Rita Mae Brown? Answer: Rubyfruit Jungle
What repetitively named William Faulkner novel is told as a series of flashbacks from narrator Quentin Compson to his roommate at Harvard? Answer: Absalom, Absalom!
What author earned his MD in California and practiced medicine for a decade before his breakout novel allowed him to pursue writing full time? The 2003 novel followed the story of a young Afghan boy Amir. We're looking for the name of the author, not the book. Answer: Khaled Hosseini
What famed British poet had the middle name Bysshe? In fact, his first, middle, and last names all contained the letter "Y." Answer: Percy Bysshe Shelley
Sometimes considered the quintessential novel of the 1980s, what NYC-set satirical work centered on greed, racism, and social class through the lens of a lawyer, investment banker, and journalist? The book's title is a reference to an actual 1497 conflagration. Answer: The Bonfire of the Vanities
Set in the Indian state of Kerala, what "divine" 1997 debut novel by Arundhati Roy won a Man Booker Prize? Answer: The God of Small Things
An experience as a young seaman being captured in the South Pacific by cannibals and imprisoned for mutiny inspired material for what American author for his future maritime fiction? Answer: Herman Melville
The name of which punctuation mark is Greek for "together?" Answer: Hyphen
What Boston neighborhood was home to Sylvia Plath, Robert Frost, and Louisa May Alcott for portions of their lives? Alcott published her first story while living in the neighborhood while Plath and Frost lived here later in life. Answer: Beacon Hill
"The Pittsburgh Cycle" consists of ten plays about the Black American experience, including "Fences" and "The Piano Lesson," by what playwright? Answer: August Wilson
What American novelist is well-known for his sparse use of punctuation and once claimed that to use quotation marks is to "blot the page up with weird little marks?" This author is associated with the Southern Gothic, Western, and post-apocalyptic genres. Answer: Cormac McCarthy
What Anthony Horowitz-created character is sometimes referred to as a “Teenage James Bond?” He is the main character in a series of books that starts with “Stormbreaker.” Answer: Alex Rider
Charles and Caroline Ingalls, the parents from the “Little House on the Prairie” series of books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, are buried in which northern state, which also served as the setting for the last 5 books in the series? Answer: South Dakota
The collective name for owls is parliament. This noun arose because of a description of a meeting of owls in what author's works? Answer: C.S. Lewis
Considered one of the innovators of creative nonfiction via New Journalism, what American author's best-known work "The Executioner's Song" won the 1979 Pulitzer Prize for fiction? This "postal" author also ran in the Democratic primary for NYC's mayoral race of 1969 with a platform including the secession of New York City as the 51st US state. Answer: Norman Mailer
Orleanna Price and her four daughters (Rachel, Leah, Adah and Ruth May) are living in the Belgian Congo near the Kwilu River in what 1998 award-winning novel by Barbara Kingsolver? Answer: The Poisonwood Bible
Author John Green set his tearjerking 2012 bestseller, "The Fault in Our Stars," in what state capital that is also Green's hometown? Answer: Indianapolis
Adapted into a 2020 Netflix film, "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" is one of the ten plays about the Black American experience known as the Pittsburgh Cycle, by what playwright? Answer: August Wilson
The most famous work of what Roman poet born in 43 BC begins "My intention is to tell of bodies changed to different forms?" Answer: Ovid
What 13-letter German loanword means a novel that focuses on the psychological and personal growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood? Answer: Bildungsroman
"Hell is other people" is the most famous line to come out of what Sartre play about three sinners trapped together forever? Answer: No Exit
Although it is set in Harlem, New York City, what 1974 novel by James Baldwin has a title that refers to a thoroughfare in Memphis, Tennessee? Answer: If Beale Street Could Talk
Set on the fictional Australian sheep station of Drogheda, what 1977 novel by Colleen McCullough was adapted into a miniseries starring Richard Chamberlain and Rachel Ward? Answer: The Thorn Birds
Although this Thomas Pynchon novel was considered one of the "All-Time Greatest 100 Novels" by Time, the 1974 Pulitzer Prize jury on fiction was offended by its content, some of which was described as "unreadable, overwritten, and obscene." What is this two-word novel? Answer: Gravity's Rainbow
"A Raisin in the Sun," the first play written by an African American woman to be produced on Broadway, opened in March 1959. The author was a 29-year-old woman who won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Play. Name the author. Answer: Lorraine Hansberry
What language, in which "doubleplusungood" means "very bad," does the government of Oceania use to establish thought control in George Orwell's novel "1984?" Answer: Newspeak
What author penned the best-selling 21st century NYC novel "Let the Great World Spin"? Answer: Colum McCann
What 20th century Cuban poet was a rebellious critic of the Cuban government and Fidel Castro? His books include “Before Night Falls” and “El Color Del Verano.” Answer: Reinaldo Arenas
Fittingly, what is the name of the hero of John Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress" who flees from the City of Destiny to the Celestial City? Answer: Christian
Born in Cambridgeport, MA, the first full-time American female book reviewer in journalism wrote "Woman in the Nineteenth Century" which is often considered the first major feminist work in the United States. Who was this native New Englander? Answer: Margaret Fuller
"A Visit from the Goon Squad" won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and intersected across characters and formats while the titular "goon squad" was simply time itself. What woman penned this novel? Answer: Jennifer Egan
In what 1995 poem did Maya Angelou declare, "Pretty women wonder where my secret lies / I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size?" Answer: Phenomenal Woman
What native Minnesotan won the Nobel Prize for Literature for his novel “Main Street”? Answer: Sinclair Lewis
Mrs. Rupa Mehra is determined to arrange her daughter's marriage in what nearly-1500-page Vikram Seth novel set in a newly independent India? Answer: A Suitable Boy
Featuring Bette Midler’s Grammy-winning rendition of "Wind Beneath My Wings," the 1988 tear-jerking film "Beaches" is based on what author’s namesake novel released in 1985? Answer: Iris Rainer Dart

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SAT Critical Reading : Understanding the Content of Literary Fiction Passages

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for sat critical reading, all sat critical reading resources, example questions, example question #1 : analyzing main idea, theme, and purpose in literary fiction passages.

Adapted from “The Rise of Pancho Villa” in Insurgent Mexico by John Reed (1913)

The roar began at the back of the crowd and swept like fire in heavy growing crescendo until it seemed to toss thousands of hats above their heads. The band in the courtyard struck up the Mexican national air, and Villa came walking down the street.

He was dressed in an old plain khaki uniform, with several buttons lacking. He hadn't recently shaved, wore no hat, and his hair had not been brushed. He walked a little pigeon-toed, humped over, with his hands in his trousers pockets. As he entered the aisle between the rigid lines of soldiers he seemed slightly embarrassed, and grinned and nodded to a friend here and there in the ranks. At the foot of the grand staircase, Governor Chao and Secretary of State Terrazzas joined him in full-dress uniform. The band threw off all restraint, and, as Villa entered the audience chamber, at a signal from someone in the balcony of the palace, the great throng in the Plaza de Armas uncovered, and all the brilliant crowd of officers in the room saluted stiffly. It was Napoleonic!

Villa hesitated for a minute, pulling his mustache and looking very uncomfortable, finally gravitated toward the throne, which he tested by shaking the arms, and then sat down, with the Governor on his right and the Secretary of State on his left.

Señor Bauche Alcalde stepped forward and pronounced a short discourse, indicting Villa for personal bravery on the field on six counts, which he mentioned in florid detail. He was followed by the Chief of Artillery, who said: "The army adores you. We will follow you wherever you lead. You can be what you desire in Mexico." Then three other officers spoke in the high-flung, extravagant periods necessary to Mexican oratory. They called him "The Friend of the Poor," "The Invincible General," "The Inspirer of Courage and Patriotism," "The Hope of the Indian Republic." And through it all Villa slouched on the throne, his mouth hanging open, his little shrewd eyes playing around the room. Once or twice he yawned, but for the most part he seemed to be speculating, with some intense interior amusement, like a small boy in church, what it was all about. He knew, of course, that it was the proper thing, and perhaps felt a slight vanity that all this conventional ceremonial was addressed to him. But it bored him just the same.

Finally, with an impressive gesture, Colonel Servin stepped forward with the small pasteboard box which held the medal. General Chao nudged Villa, who stood up. The officers applauded violently; the crowd outside cheered; the band in the court burst into a triumphant march.

Villa put out both hands eagerly, like a child for a new toy. He could hardly wait to open the box and see what was inside. An expectant hush fell upon everyone, even the crowd in the square. Villa looked at the medal, scratching his head, and, in a reverent silence, said clearly: "This is a hell of a little thing to give a man for all that heroism you are talking about!" And the bubble of Empire was pricked then and there with a great shout of laughter.

The passage as a whole suggests that Pancho Vila was __________ by the Mexican people.

embarrassed

The passage as a whole emphasizes how much the Mexican people loved Pancho Villa. Everyone who speaks in the passage refers to Villa in beloved or respectful language, as an example, the general says that “The army adores you. We will follow you wherever you lead. You can be what you desire in Mexico." You might have thought that embarrassed was the correct answer because the author references on a couple of occasions that Villa is embarrassed by the occasion. But, it is important to understand that Pancho Villa feels embarrassment at the formality of the ceremony not about the Mexican people themselves. There is no implicit or explicit reference to suggest that Villa was disgusted, intrigued or impressed by the Mexican people.

Example Question #2 : Analyzing Main Idea, Theme, And Purpose In Literary Fiction Passages

The following excerpt is from Act 2 of a play titled The Importance of being Earnest by Oscar Wilde.

[Enter Gwendolen.] CECILY: Pray let me introduce myself to you. My name is Cecily Cardew. GWENDOLEN. Cecily Cardew? [Moving to her and shaking hands.] What a very sweet name! Something tells me that we are going to be great friends. I like you already more than I can say. CECILY. How nice of you to like me so much after we have known each other such a comparatively short time. GWENDOLEN. You are here on a short visit, I suppose. CECILY. Oh no! I live here. GWENDOLEN. Really? Your mother, no doubt, or some female relative of advanced years, resides here also? CECILY. Oh no! I have no mother, nor, in fact, any relations. GWENDOLEN. Indeed? CECILY. My dear guardian has the arduous task of looking after me. GWENDOLEN. Your guardian? CECILY. Yes, I am Mr. Worthing's ward. GWENDOLEN. Oh! It is strange he never mentioned to me that he had a ward. I am not sure, however, that the news inspires me with feelings of unmixed delight. I am very fond of you, Cecily; I have liked you ever since I met you! But I am bound to state that now that I know that you are Mr. Worthing's ward, I cannot help expressing a wish you were--well, just a little older than you seem to be--and not quite so very alluring in appearance. In fact, if I may speak candidly, I wish that you were fully forty-two, and more than usually plain for your age. Ernest has a strong upright nature. He is the very soul of truth and honour. Disloyalty would be as impossible to him as deception. But even men of the noblest possible moral character are extremely susceptible to the influence of the physical charms of others. CECILY. I beg your pardon, Gwendolen, did you say Ernest?

Gwendolen. Yes. CECILY. Oh, but it is not Mr. Ernest Worthing who is my guardian. It is his brother--his elder brother. GWENDOLEN. Ernest never mentioned to me that he had a brother. Cecily, you have lifted a load from my mind. I was growing almost anxious. It would have been terrible if any cloud had come across a friendship like ours, would it not? Of course you are quite, quite sure that it is not Mr. Ernest Worthing who is your guardian? CECILY. Quite sure. [A pause.] In fact, I am going to be his. Dearest Gwendolen, there is no reason why I should make a secret of it to you. Our little county newspaper is sure to chronicle the fact next week. Mr. Ernest Worthing and I are engaged to be married. GWENDOLEN. [Quite politely, rising.] My darling Cecily, I think there must be some slight error. Mr. Ernest Worthing is engaged to me. The announcement will appear in the Morning Post on Saturday at the latest. CECILY. [Very politely, rising.] I am afraid you must be under some misconception. Ernest proposed to me exactly ten minutes ago. GWENDOLEN. It is certainly very curious, for he asked me to be his wife yesterday afternoon at 5.30. I am so sorry, dear Cecily, if it is any disappointment to you, but I am afraid I have the prior claim. CECILY. It would distress me more than I can tell you, dear Gwendolen, if it caused you any mental or physical anguish, but I feel bound to point out that since Ernest proposed to you he clearly has changed his mind.

What is the main conflict that arises in this scene?

Gwendolen and Cecily believe they are both engaged to be married to the same man.

Cecily has no mother.

Cecily is not as old as Gwendolen had expected.

Gwendolen and Cecily have never met before.

Gwendolen is late to meet her sister.

In the final few lines of the excerpt, Cecily reveals to Gwendolen that "Mr. Ernest Worthing and I are engaged to be married." Gwendolen responds that "there must be some slight error. Mr. Ernest Worthing is engaged to me." The two then argue over who is actually engaged to Ernest Worthing.

Although Gwendolen and Cecily have never met, and Cecily does not have a mother, these two points do not cause conflict in this scene.

Example Question #1151 : Sat Critical Reading

The following passage is adapted from The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie, first published in 1920.

I had been invalided home from the Front; and, after spending some months in a rather depressing Convalescent Home, was given a month's sick leave. Having no near relations or friends, I was trying to make up my mind what to do, when I ran across John Cavendish. I had seen very little of him for some years. Indeed, I had never known him particularly well. He was a good fifteen years my senior, for one thing, though he hardly looked his forty-five years. As a boy, though, I had often stayed at Styles, his mother's place in Essex.

We had a good yarn about old times, and it ended in his inviting me down to Styles to spend my leave there.

"The mater will be delighted to see you again—after all those years," he added.

"Your mother keeps well?" I asked.

"Oh, yes. I suppose you know that she has married again?"

I am afraid I showed my surprise rather plainly. Mrs. Cavendish, who had married John's father when he was a widower with two sons, had been a handsome woman of middle-age as I remembered her. She certainly could not be a day less than seventy now. I recalled her as an energetic, autocratic personality, somewhat inclined to charitable and social notoriety, with a fondness for opening bazaars and playing the Lady Bountiful. She was a most generous woman, and possessed a considerable fortune of her own.

Their country-place, Styles Court, had been purchased by Mr. Cavendish early in their married life. He had been completely under his wife's ascendancy, so much so that, on dying, he left the place to her for her lifetime, as well as the larger part of his income; an arrangement that was distinctly unfair to his two sons. Their step-mother, however, had always been most generous to them; indeed, they were so young at the time of their father's remarriage that they always thought of her as their own mother.

Lawrence, the younger, had been a delicate youth. He had qualified as a doctor but early relinquished the profession of medicine, and lived at home while pursuing literary ambitions; though his verses never had any marked success.

John practiced for some time as a barrister, but had finally settled down to the more congenial life of a country squire. He had married two years ago, and had taken his wife to live at Styles, though I entertained a shrewd suspicion that he would have preferred his mother to increase his allowance, which would have enabled him to have a home of his own. Mrs. Cavendish, however, was a lady who liked to make her own plans, and expected other people to fall in with them, and in this case she certainly had the whip hand, namely: the purse strings.

John noticed my surprise at the news of his mother's remarriage and smiled rather ruefully.

"Rotten little bounder too!" he said savagely. "I can tell you, Hastings, it's making life jolly difficult for us."

What is the main reason the Cavendish sons are upset about their stepmother’s remarriage?

The new husband likes to control and manipulate people.

Styles Court was already crowded, and now there is an extra person.

They no longer are able to spend as much time with their stepmother.

They are worried they will not receive their father’s inheritance.

The new husband is miserable and unpleasant.

The only answers that could be supported by the information in the text are “They are worried they will not receive their father's inheritance" and "The new husband is miserable and unpleasant." However, since the narrator spends almost four paragraphs describing the financial situation of the family, the emphasis is on the inheritence rather than the new husband's personality.

Example Question #1 : Understanding The Content Of Literary Fiction Passages

Adapted from a book by Sui Sin Far (Edith Maude Eaton) (1909)

In this excerpt from an autobiographical essay, the author describes her experiences as growing up in Victorian England.

When I look back over the years I see myself, a little child of scarcely four years of age, walking in front of my nurse, in a green English lane, and listening to her tell another of her kind that my mother is Chinese. “Oh Lord!” exclaims the informed. She turns around and scans me curiously from head to foot. Then the two women whisper together. Though the word “Chinese” conveys very little meaning to my mind, I feel that they are talking about my father and mother and my heart swells with indignation. When we reach home I rush to my mother and try to tell her what I have heard. I am a young child. I fail to make myself intelligible. My mother does not understand, and when the nurse declares to her, “Little Miss Sui is a story-teller,” my mother slaps me.

Many a long year has passed over my head since that day—the day on which I first learned I was something different and apart from other children, but though my mother has forgotten it, I have not. I see myself again, a few years older. I am playing with another child in a garden. A girl passes by outside the gate. “Mamie,” she cries to my companion. “I wouldn’t speak to Sui if I were you. Her mamma is Chinese.”

“I don’t care,” answers the little one beside me. And then to me, “Even if your mamma is Chinese, I like you better than I like Annie.”

“But I don’t like you,” I answer, turning my back on her. It is my first conscious lie.

I am at a children’s party, given by the wife of an Indian officer whose children were schoolfellows of mine. I am only six years of age, but have attended a private school for over a year, and have already learned that China is a heathen country, being civilized by England. However, for the time being, I am a merry romping child. There are quite a number of grown people present. One, a white-haired old man, has his attention called to me by the hostess. He adjusts his eyeglasses and surveys me critically. “Ah, indeed!” he exclaims. “Who would have thought it at first glance? Yet now I see the difference between her and other children. What a peculiar coloring! Her mother’s eyes and hair and her father’s features, I presume. Very interesting little creature!”

I had been called from play for the purpose of inspection. I do not return to it. For the rest of the evening I hide myself behind a hall door and refuse to show myself until it is time to go home.

The main purpose of this passage is to illustrate __________ .

multiethnic tensions in the British Empire

the tactlessness of children

the development of cultural awareness

the growth of a writer

the emotional effects of prejudice

The passage only briefly touches upon the British Empire, it does not discuss Sui's later career as a writer, and adults are just as tactless towards Sui as children. The passage does show the development of Sui's awareness; however, by the end of the passage, she still doesn't appear to have a strong understanding of English or of Chinese culture. She does gain an awareness that because she is of mixed ethnicity, she is "different and apart from other children," and she is clearly made unhappy by the way others treat her.

Example Question #1 : Content Of Literary Fiction Passages

The old man's scrutiny of Sui may best be described as __________ .

"Dilatory," which means sluggish , makes no sense in this context. Since it's clear he regards Sui more as an object of curiosity than as a person, even refering to her as a "creature," he is certainly not being benevolent, and he is being demeaning. Since his comments show prejudice, he is not "impartial," and since he doesn't attempt to evaluate her worth, he is not "appraising."

Passage 1: Questions 1-7 refer to the following passage, which is adapted from Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog) , 1889, by Jerome K. Jerome.

There were four of us—George, and William Samuel Harris, and myself, and Montmorency. We were sitting in my room, smoking, and talking about how bad we were—bad from a medical point of view I mean, of course.

We were all feeling seedy, and we were getting quite nervous about it. Harris said he felt such extraordinary fits of giddiness come over him at times, that he hardly knew what he was doing; and then George said that he had fits of giddiness too, and hardly knew what he was doing. With me, it was my liver that was out of order. I knew it was my liver that was out of order, because I had just been reading a patent liver-pill circular, in which were detailed the various symptoms by which a man could tell when his liver was out of order. I had them all.

It is a most extraordinary thing, but I never read a patent medicine advertisement without being impelled to the conclusion that I am suffering from the particular disease therein dealt with in its most virulent form. The diagnosis seems in every case to correspond exactly with all the sensations that I have ever felt.

I remember going to the British Museum one day to read up the treatment for some slight ailment of which I had a touch—hay fever, I fancy it was. I got down the book, and read all I came to read; and then, in an unthinking moment, I idly turned the leaves, and began to indolently study diseases, generally. I forget which was the first distemper I plunged into—some fearful, devastating scourge, I know—and, before I had glanced half down the list of “premonitory symptoms,” it was borne in upon me that I had fairly got it.

I sat for awhile, frozen with horror; and then, in the listlessness of despair, I again turned over the pages. I came to typhoid fever—read the symptoms—discovered that I had typhoid fever, must have had it for months without knowing it—wondered what else I had got; turned up St. Vitus’s Dance—found, as I expected, that I had that too,—began to get interested in my case, and determined to sift it to the bottom, and so started alphabetically—read up ague, and learnt that I was sickening for it, and that the acute stage would commence in about another fortnight. Bright’s disease, I was relieved to find, I had only in a modified form, and, so far as that was concerned, I might live for years. Cholera I had, with severe complications; and diphtheria I seemed to have been born with. I plodded conscientiously through the twenty-six letters, and the only malady I could conclude I had not got was housemaid’s knee.

I felt rather hurt about this at first; it seemed somehow to be a sort of slight. Why hadn’t I got housemaid’s knee? Why this invidious reservation? After a while, however, less grasping feelings prevailed. I reflected that I had every other known malady in the pharmacology, and I grew less selfish, and determined to do without housemaid’s knee. Gout, in its most malignant stage, it would appear, had seized me without my being aware of it; and zymosis I had evidently been suffering with from boyhood. There were no more diseases after zymosis, so I concluded there was nothing else the matter with me.

The passage primarily describes how the narrator __________ .

is a medical oddity, simultaneously having every known disease

often feels nervous and giddy

bonds with his friends by complaining about things

imagines he has almost every disease whose description of symptoms he reads

The narrator does not actually have every disease he describes. The paragraph 3 line “seems in every case” and words like “evidently” tip the reader off. While he does mention feeling nervous and giddy, and complains about his liver with his friends, these details are not the primary focus of the passage.

Example Question #1102 : Passage Based Questions

The questions for this problem set are all based off the following passage, excerpted from Great Expectations , by Charles Dickens:

Miss Havisham beckoned her to come close, and took up a jewel from the table, and tried its effect upon her fair young bosom and against her pretty brown hair. "Your own, one day, my dear, and you will use it well. Let me see you play cards with this boy."

"With this boy? Why, he is a common laboring boy!"

I thought I overheard Miss Havisham answer—only it seemed so unlikely—"Well? You can break his heart."

"What do you play, boy?" asked Estella of myself, with the greatest disdain.

"Nothing but beggar my neighbor, miss."

"Beggar him," said Miss Havisham to Estella. So we sat down to cards.

It was then I began to understand that everything in the room had stopped, like the watch and the clock, a long time ago. I noticed that Miss Havisham put down the jewel exactly on the spot from which she had taken it up. As Estella dealt the cards, I glanced at the dressing-table again, and saw that the shoe upon it, once white, now yellow, had never been worn. I glanced down at the foot from which the shoe was absent, and saw that the silk stocking on it, once white, now yellow, had been trodden ragged. Without this arrest of everything, this standing still of all the pale decayed objects, not even the withered bridal dress on the collapsed form could have looked so like grave-clothes, or the long veil so like a shroud.

So she sat, corpse-like, as we played at cards; the frillings and trimmings on her bridal dress, looking like earthy paper. I knew nothing then of the discoveries that are occasionally made of bodies buried in ancient times, which fall to powder in the moment of being distinctly seen; but, I have often thought since, that she must have looked as if the admission of the natural light of day would have struck her to dust.

"He calls the knaves Jacks, this boy!" said Estella with disdain, before our first game was out. "And what coarse hands he has! And what thick boots!"

I had never thought of being ashamed of my hands before; but I began to consider them a very indifferent pair. Her contempt for me was so strong, that it became infectious, and I caught it.

She won the game, and I dealt. I misdealt, as was only natural, when I knew she was lying in wait for me to do wrong; and she denounced me for a stupid, clumsy laboring-boy.

"You say nothing of her," remarked Miss Havisham to me, as she looked on. "She says many hard things of you, but you say nothing of her. What do you think of her?"

"I don't like to say," I stammered.

"Tell me in my ear," said Miss Havisham, bending down.

"I think she is very proud," I replied, in a whisper.

"Anything else?"

"I think she is very pretty."

"I think she is very insulting." (She was looking at me then with a look of supreme aversion.)

"I think I should like to go home."

"And never see her again, though she is so pretty?"

"I am not sure that I shouldn't like to see her again, but I should like to go home now."

"You shall go soon," said Miss Havisham, aloud. "Play the game out."

Saving for the one weird smile at first, I should have felt almost sure that Miss Havisham's face could not smile. It had dropped into a watchful and brooding expression—most likely when all the things about her had become transfixed—and it looked as if nothing could ever lift it up again. Her chest had dropped, so that she stooped; and her voice had dropped, so that she spoke low, and with a dead lull upon her; altogether, she had the appearance of having dropped body and soul, within and without, under the weight of a crushing blow.

I played the game to an end with Estella, and she beggared me. She threw the cards down on the table when she had won them all, as if she despised them for having been won of me.

"When shall I have you here again?" said Miss Havisham. "Let me think."

I was beginning to remind her that to-day was Wednesday, when she checked me with her former impatient movement of the fingers of her right hand.

"There, there! I know nothing of days of the week; I know nothing of weeks of the year. Come again after six days. You hear?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Estella, take him down. Let him have something to eat, and let him roam and look about him while he eats. Go, Pip."

I followed the candle down, as I had followed the candle up, and she stood it in the place where we had found it. Until she opened the side entrance, I had fancied, without thinking about it, that it must necessarily be night-time. The rush of the daylight quite confounded me, and made me feel as if I had been in the candlelight of the strange room many hours.

"You are to wait here, you boy," said Estella; and disappeared and closed the door.

I took the opportunity of being alone in the courtyard to look at my coarse hands and my common boots. My opinion of those accessories was not favorable. They had never troubled me before, but they troubled me now, as vulgar appendages. I determined to ask Joe why he had ever taught me to call those picture-cards Jacks, which ought to be called knaves. I wished Joe had been rather more genteelly brought up, and then I should have been so too.

What is the author's purpose in describing his boots and knowledge of playing cards?

The author had a very strong interest in shoes and playing cards

To show that they were low-class

To illustrate what kind of work he did

To provide examples of things which he had been unaware of before but was embarassed of after the day's events

To provide reasons for why he had lost the game with Estella

It introduces those things that had never troubled the narrator before his encounter with Estella, but began to afterwards.

Example Question #1161 : Sat Critical Reading

Adapted from "The Sisters" in Dubliners by James Joyce (1914)

There was no hope for him this time: it was the third stroke. Night after night I had passed the house (it was vacation time) and studied the lighted square of window, and night after night I had found it lighted in the same way, faintly and evenly. If he was dead, I thought, I would see the reflection of candles on the darkened blind, for I knew that two candles must be set at the head of a corpse. He had often said to me, "I am not long for this world," and I had thought his words idle. Now I knew they were true. Every night as I gazed up at the window I said softly to myself the word “paralysis.” It had always sounded strangely in my ears, like the word “gnomon” in the Euclid and the word “simony” in the Catechism. But now it sounded to me like the name of some maleficent and sinful being. It filled me with fear, and yet I longed to be nearer to it and to look upon its deadly work.

Old Cotter was sitting at the fire, smoking, when I came downstairs to supper. While my aunt was ladling out my stirabout he said, as if returning to some former remark of his:

"No, I wouldn't say he was exactly . . . but there was something queer . . . there was something uncanny about him. I'll tell you my opinion . . ."

He began to puff at his pipe, no doubt arranging his opinion in his mind. Tiresome old fool! When we knew him first he used to be rather interesting, talking of faints and worms, but I soon grew tired of him and his endless stories about the distillery.

"I have my own theory about it," he said. "I think it was one of those . . . peculiar cases . . . But it's hard to say . . ."

He began to puff again at his pipe without giving us his theory. My uncle saw me staring and said to me:

"Well, so your old friend is gone, you'll be sorry to hear."

"Who?" said I.

"Father Flynn."

"Is he dead?"

"Mr. Cotter here has just told us. He was passing by the house."

I knew that I was under observation, so I continued eating as if the news had not interested me. My uncle explained to old Cotter.

"The youngster and he were great friends. The old chap taught him a great deal, mind you; and they say he had a great wish for him."

"God have mercy on his soul," said my aunt piously.

Old Cotter looked at me for a while. I felt that his little beady black eyes were examining me, but I would not satisfy him by looking up from my plate. He returned to his pipe and finally spat rudely into the grate.

How does the narrator react to the news of Father Flynn’s death?

He is both afraid and intrigued.

He fears for his own life.

He weeps openly.

He is openly shocked.

The narrator hides his emotions about the death of Father Flynn.

When the narrator is first told of Father Flynn's death, he withholds his reaction: "I knew that I was under observation, so I continued eating as if the news had not interested me," he says in paragraph twelve. In the passage's last paragraph, he writes, "Old Cotter looked at me for a while. I felt that his little beady black eyes were examining me, but I would not satisfy him by looking up from my plate." Based on these quotations, we can tell that the narrator hides his emotions about the death of Father Flynn. None of the other answer choices are supported by the passage; "He is both afraid and intrigued" could describe the narrator's reaction to the dying man's paralysis, but not his reaction to hearing the news of Father Flynn's death.

Adapted from "The Sisters" in Dubliners by James Joyce (1914)

The relationship between Old Cotter and the narrator can best be described as __________ .

competitive

one of mutual admiration

openly caustic

cordial and playful

polite but strained

What does the passage tell us about how the narrator interacts with Old Cotter? We know that the narrator gets frustrated with Old Cotter when he doesn't finish his sentences in paragraphs two through five: "Tiresome old fool! When we knew him first he used to be rather interesting, talking of faints and worms, but I soon grew tired of him and his endless stories about the distillery." We also know that the narrator purposely doesn't react to the news of Father Flynn's death, which Old Cotter has brought, as in paragraph twelve, he says, "I knew that I was under observation, so I continued eating as if the news had not interested me." We see how Old Cotter reacts to the narrator's lack of reaction in the passage's last paragraph: "Old Cotter looked at me for a while. I felt that his little beady black eyes were examining me, but I would not satisfy him by looking up from my plate. He returned to his pipe and finally spat rudely into the grate."

Old Cotter and the narrator are clearly not friendly towards each other, so we can eliminate the answer choices "one of mutual admiration" and "cordial and playful." This leaves us with three potential answer choices: "competitive," "openly caustic," and "polite but strained." Nothing in the passage suggests that the two characters are competitive, so we can eliminate that answer. As for choosing between "openly caustic" and "polite but strained," the narrator never verbally insults Old Cotter—he reports to readers that Old Cotter is a "tiresome old fool," but he doesn't say anything while Old Cotter is speaking. Similarly, Old Cotter's most antagonistic action is "[spitting] rudely into the grate"; he never openly antagonizes the narrator. The tension between these two characters is present beneath the surface of the scene's actions, so the best answer choice is "polite but strained."

What effect has the third stroke had on the dying man described in the first paragraph?

It has made him deaf.

It has given him amnesia.

It has made him unable to keep food down without being sick.

It has blinded him.

It has resulted in him being partially or completely unable to move.

We can infer that the dying man is paralyzed because of the narrator's discussion of paralysis at the end of the first paragraph. Since paralysis is defined as the condition in which one is partially or completely unable to move , "It has resulted in him being partially or completely unable to move" is the correct answer. None of the other answer choices are mentioned in the passage.

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15 of the Best Questions for Teaching Literary Analysis

Teaching Literary Analysis: 15 Questions to Ask Your Students

Teaching literary analysis in the secondary English classroom is an essential cornerstone of high school English and middle school English curriculum. When students learn the process of literary analysis, they will embrace the new challenge each literary text brings. How do you teach literary analysis essay?

When I first teach literature to my students, I use direct instruction strategies. I provide my students with literary analysis terms and examples. Then we begin short stories and excerpts together. Usually, we will analyze a couple of short stories together as a class before moving on to more substantial pieces, like novels. One blog post that might be helpful is this one about how to write a literary analysis response .

When I’m teaching a piece of fiction, I like to have set questions I can use throughout the year to ask my students. As students answer the same question about various texts throughout the year, they improve their analytical skills and begin to form a better understanding of how literature analysis works.

If you are teaching response to analysis and literary analysis, here are ten questions you should ask your students about the piece they are reading. These questions are some of the questions included in my Response to Literature Task Cards that work with any piece of fiction. Here are several questions to guide your students as they analyze literature.

Here are 15 questions you can use when teaching literary analysis to your students.

Literary analysis questions about theme.

How do the characters in the story develop or enhance the theme?
How does the conflict of the story develop or enhance the theme?
How do the symbols within the story develop or enhance the theme?
How does the author’s tone of the story develop or enhance the theme?
How is the story’s theme reflect the context in which it was written?

Literary Analysis Questions About Setting

How does the setting affect the plot?
How does the setting affect the conflict?
How does the setting affect the tone of the story?

Literary Analysis Questions About Characters

What is one of the protagonist’s flaws or weaknesses?
What is one of the antagonist’s flaws or weaknesses?
What motivates the protagonist to act?
What motivates the antagonist to act?
What character is most believable and why?

Literary Analysis Questions About Conflict

How does the conflict reflect the context of the time in which the story was written?
How does the author create a believable conflict?

Here are some literary analysis teaching resources you may like:

Literary analysis with sticky notes.

Teaching literary analysis can be fun, engaging, and accessible for all students! Increase student engagement and understanding in your next literary analysis unit (whether it be short stories or novels) with interactive and hands-on close reading organizers and scaffolded writing responses. Students will enjoy using sticky notes in class as they analyze the author’s use of various literary devices in complex short stories and novels.

What fellow teachers say about this resource:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Extremely satisfied

“ My students found this very helpful to organize their writing and the movement involved with using sticky notes was a hit. The kids loved getting to use sticky notes and to flip them up and down. It made the planning for their writing so much faster. Would highly recommend for all students but especially for any kids who have a hard time focusing.”

“ This is a great way to have kids write literary analysis in a different way instead of just asking for essays. It’s like a little trick to get them to do academic work while thinking they are just doodling on sticky notes. I even use this with AP Lit and just modify my expectations somewhat. I appreciate all the different handouts/options.”

More resources:

My Literary Analysis Mini Flip Book combines the fun and excitement of sticky notes with the format of a mini flipbook. It is the perfect culminating activity for students to analyze a final short story in your short story teaching unit.

These Response to Literature Task Cards are an ideal way to get students talking about complex literary themes and ideas within any piece of fiction. There are two sets of tasks cards in this set, and you can use them again and again with any short story or novel.

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4.11: Rhetorical and Literary Devices

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Heather Ringo & Athena Kashyap
City College of San Francisco via ASCCC Open Educational Resources Initiative

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Image from Pixabay

Rhetorical Devices

Now you know how to search for connotation and denotation in a text, but how do you tell which words you should examine closely? If you were to spend time doing a close reading of every word in a story, you would never finish. Thus, you want to look for rhetorical devices when you read. Rhetorical devices are words that serve a special function in the text. Authors include them in order to convey a meaning to the reader. Listed below are some of the most common rhetorical devices.

Metaphors and Similes

Two of the most common rhetorical devices are metaphors and similes. These are both means of comparison. A metaphor compares two things by saying they are the same, while a simile uses the words “like” or “as.”

In the first example, we know that the Great Dane isn't really a vacuum. Both the metaphor and simile, however, imply that the dog consumes a large amount. The main difference is that the metaphor creates a stronger comparison. However, in the last example, only the context will tell you that the metaphor is not talking about a real cheetah. If we were talking about a runner, saying “she is a cheetah” would carry the denotations of speed, grace, agility, litheness, et cetera. But if we are looking at the simile, we only see that the runner is fast.

Repetition is another powerful rhetorical device. When you read, you should always keep your eyes open for repeated words and phrases. This can be tricky, as sometimes the repeated words appear close together and other times they are spread out in a text as a motif. For instance, in F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby , a green light is mentioned repeatedly; however, these references are spread throughout the text, never appearing more than once or twice per chapter. Therefore, you will need to keep your eyes open for repetition while reading a story. If you see a word or phrase appear more than once, make a note of it – it is likely that the author included the repetition intentionally.

Literary Devices

Imagery is language that makes an appeal to the senses. It can apply to any of the five senses or a combination of multiple senses. Although imagery often comes in phrases or complete sentences, a word can evoke the senses.

Here are some examples.

Every time you find imagery in a text, it brings up a set of connotations. For instance, the scent of freshly-baked cookies might bring up connotations of childhood, comfort, or home. When you see a particularly striking image in a text, think of what it denotes to you. Ask yourself, “Why describe this thing in detail instead of describing something else?” An author often uses imagery to call attention to a particular idea, character, setting, or plot point. Imagery can also be used to create the mood of a text. For instance, a story that includes a great deal of rain imagery might have a very dark, dreary mood.

Image from Flickr user nelesch14 (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Symbolism is a practice of using symbols, or anything that represents something larger than itself. Common examples of symbols are a country's flag and a heart symbol, which represent the country and love. Each has suggestive meanings – the flag brings up thoughts of patriotism and a unified country while a heart symbol indicates care and affection.

What is the value of using symbols in a literary text? Symbols in literature allow a writer to express a lot in a condensed manner. The meaning of a symbol is connotative or suggestive rather than definitive which allows for multiple interpretations.

An allegory, on the other hand, has a fixed meaning. According to Dictionary.com, an allegory is "a representation of an abstract or spiritual meaning through concrete or material forms; figurative treatment of one subject under the guise of another."

Exercise 4.11.1

Ralph Waldo Ellison was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Ellison’s father, Lewis, a manual laborer who delivered ice and coal, was an avid reader who named his son after Ralph Waldo Emerson and who hoped that his son would grow up to be a poet. Unfortunately he died of a work-related accident when Ellison was three, which left the two brothers, Robert and Herbert, to be raised by their single mother, Ida. The absence of his father would remain a recurring theme in Ellison's work.

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Read the first chapter of Invisible Man , "Battle Royale," by Ralph Ellison.

1.What is the significance of the protagonist’s dream? What does his grandfather’s appearance symbolize?

2. Why do you think the protagonist still gives his speech even after he’s been humiliated?

Video 4.11.1 : Symbols in Literature

Contributors and Attributions

Adapted from Writing About Literature: The Basics by CK-12, license CC-BY-NC
Adapted from Ralph Ellison , authored by Berke, Bleil, & Cofer, originally sourced from the University of North Georgia Press .

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Enter Ghost: The revolutionary power of theatre

The novel by british-palestinian writer isabella hammad has made it to the women’s prize 2024 shortlist. we speak to critic jonathan gil harris on its themes of art as a means of resistance.

‘Our play needed the protests, but the protests did not need our play’. This line flits through Sonia’s head as she rides away from a demonstration against Israeli soldiers in Jerusalem. Born in London to a Palestinian father, she’s an actor and the protagonist of Isabella Hammad’s 2023 novel Enter Ghost , returning to the Israeli city of Haifa to visit her sister. But she gets roped into a production of Hamlet and finds herself plunged into political tensions she escaped as a child, realising that guilt about doing art while bombs and insurgencies ravage lives isn’t new — it’s what her director and acting troupe have lived with for years in this part of the world, trying to convince themselves that art, even at a time like this, a place like this, matters.

Hammad’s novel made it to the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2024 shortlist as Gaza suffered relentless Israeli bombing. To explore fiction’s role in humanising a distant horror, we spoke to critic Jonathan Gil Harris about how Hamlet evokes the history of the Palestinian liberation movement, why Shakespeare is endlessly adaptable and the possibility of revolution in the practice of art.

The most famous line of the play, ‘To be or not to be’, uttered by a suicidal Hamlet investigating if his uncle murdered his father, is central to the novel’s exploration of Palestine as a land in limbo, embattled in conflicting definitions and borders. “Sonia wasn’t born in Haifa, a city traditionally Palestinian but now Israeli. Her sister lives and teaches there. Palestine itself is and isn’t a country. It’s not been officially recognised by the United Nations. It is occupied by Israel and is subject to Israeli law, some specially made by Israel for the Palestinians,” says Harris.

On the bidding of his father’s ghost, Hamlet stages a play about a king murdered by his brother and seats his uncle, Claudius, in the audience to confirm his suspicions. This echoes one of Enter Ghost ’s most powerful scenes, when Israeli soldiers storm the troupe’s stage but, inexplicably, don’t stop the performance. “Hamlet is exhorting his audience to justice of a kind, just as his father’s ghost exhorted him. Do the Israeli soldiers recognise themselves in this production as the oppressive Claudius figure, the murderer?” says Harris.

A 17th century British play resonates in the modern-day Middle East partly because, according to Harris, Shakespeare became a global icon after the British Empire used him to culturally influence their territories. Also, the playwright’s audience comprised many classes, religions, genders and migrants, forcing him to “speak in many voices”, making him popular. Just like Hammad uses Hamlet to explore colonialism in a land ripped by British bureaucracy in the early 20th century, director Vishal Bhardwaj used it to explore Kashmir’s relationship with India in Haider (2014), with Shahid Kapoor essaying the line ‘ Hum hain ki hum nahi ?’.

Shakespeare also found a fan in 20th century playwright Bertolt Brecht, whose alienation effect — a theory that the audience must be repeatedly reminded of the fictiveness of a play so as to not forget its political subtext — is referred to by Sonia’s director while debating the point of art with such bleakness in the world. On a recent visit to Haifa, Harris was touched by a sign of solidarity that cut across identity politics: a married couple, a Palestinian poet and Romanian Jew, living in the same house. He says, “There has to be conversation, but also (a recognition that the current conversation) is not between equals. There are massive power asymmetries that affect the extent to which people have access to a microphone.”

Harris considers ‘Our play needed the protests, but the protests did not need our play’ to be one of the most profound lines in the novel, adding, “It would be easy to conclude from it that art is simply parasitic on lived experience, adds nothing of value… To be a playgoer means to have access to literacy and wealth. It seems like an elite pleasure that allows one to masquerade as a revolutionary while the real world is happening elsewhere.”

But that conclusion would ignore Hamlet’s belief in art holding up a mirror to nature and Hammad’s argument that artistry is an inevitably guilt-ridden enterprise in a violent world . Harris says, “There are moments of urgency, but we also need moments of slowness to pause and reflect. Art can give us a space in which to do that… If theatre interrupts what we assume about the world, then, as the saying goes, the flapping of a butterfly’s wing somewhere can produce a hurricane in another part of the world.”

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