Home ยป Past Questions ยป Literature-in-english ยป Waec ยป 1998 ยป Page 4
64

Read the following poem carefully and answer the questions that follow:
O stealing time, the subject of delay,
Delay the rack of unrefrained desire,
What strange design has thou my hopes to stay?
My hopes which do but to mine own aspire?

Old age is wise, and full of constant truth,
Old age well stayed from ranging humours lives,
Old age hath known, whatever was in youth,
Old age overcome the greater honour gives.

The literary device used in line 1 is an example of

  • A. climax
  • B. apostrophe
  • C. metonymy
  • D. euphemism
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
65

Read the following poem carefully and answer the questions that follow:
O stealing time, the subject of delay,
Delay the rack of unrefrained desire,
What strange design has thou my hopes to stay?
My hopes which do but to mine own aspire?

Old age is wise, and full of constant truth,
Old age well stayed from ranging humours lives,
Old age hath known, whatever was in youth,
Old age overcome the greater honour gives.

The rhyme scheme of the above extract is

  • A. alternate
  • B. irregular
  • C. free verse
  • D. couplet
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
66

Read the following poem carefully and answer the questions that follow:
I love you, my gentle one;
My love is the fresh milk in the rubindi
Which you drank on the wedding day;
My love is the butter we were smeared with
To seal fidelity into our hearts
You are the cattle-bird’s egg.
For those who say you are wealthy;
You are the papyrus read of the lake;
Which they pull out with both hands.
And I sing for you with tears
Because you possess my heart.
I love you my gentle one.

The poem is a blank verse because

  • A. there is no rhyme
  • B. there is rhyme
  • C. the rhyme is alternate
  • D. it contains couplets
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
67

Read the following poem carefully and answer the questions that follow:
I love you, my gentle one;
My love is the fresh milk in the rubindi
Which you drank on the wedding day;
My love is the butter we were smeared with
To seal fidelity into our hearts
You are the cattle-bird’s egg.
For those who say you are wealthy;
You are the papyrus read of the lake;
Which they pull out with both hands.
And I sing for you with tears
Because you possess my heart.
I love you my gentle one.

The underlined expression contains a

  • A. simile
  • B. metaphor
  • C. personification
  • D. litotes
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
68

Read the following poem carefully and answer the questions that follow:
I love you, my gentle one;
My love is the fresh milk in the rubindi
Which you drank on the wedding day;
My love is the butter we were smeared with
To seal fidelity into our hearts
You are the cattle-bird’s egg.
For those who say you are wealthy;
You are the papyrus read of the lake;
Which they pull out with both hands.
And I sing for you with tears
Because you possess my heart.
I love you my gentle one.

The feeling of the poet is one of

  • A. anxiety
  • B. gaiety
  • C. sadness
  • D. frustration
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
69

Read the following poem carefully and answer the questions that follow:
I love you, my gentle one;
My love is the fresh milk in the rubindi
Which you drank on the wedding day;
My love is the butter we were smeared with
To seal fidelity into our hearts
You are the cattle-bird’s egg.
For those who say you are wealthy;
You are the papyrus read of the lake;
Which they pull out with both hands.
And I sing for you with tears
Because you possess my heart.
I love you my gentle one.

The predominant literary device used in the extract is

  • A. hyperbole
  • B. epigram
  • C. oxymoron
  • D. apostrophe
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
70

Read the following poem carefully and answer the questions that follow:
I love you, my gentle one;
My love is the fresh milk in the rubindi
Which you drank on the wedding day;
My love is the butter we were smeared with
To seal fidelity into our hearts
You are the cattle-bird’s egg.
For those who say you are wealthy;
You are the papyrus read of the lake;
Which they pull out with both hands.
And I sing for you with tears
Because you possess my heart.
I love you my gentle one.

The poem is an example of

  • A. a lyric
  • B. a dirge
  • C. an ode
  • D. an epic
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
71

Read the following poem carefully and answer the questions that follow:
I love you, my gentle one;
My love is the fresh milk in the rubindi
Which you drank on the wedding day;
My love is the butter we were smeared with
To seal fidelity into our hearts
You are the cattle-bird’s egg.
For those who say you are wealthy;
You are the papyrus read of the lake;
Which they pull out with both hands.
And I sing for you with tears
Because you possess my heart.
I love you my gentle one.

The poem is an example of

  • A. a lyric
  • B. a dirge
  • C. an ode
  • D. an epic
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
72

In England, her love for Henry blossomed like spring flowers after a hard winter. But she abhored the way he dressed in England. They fell in love when she was working in a little coffee shop across from the Crystal Palace. Tall and jovial, he fell romantically in love with her at first sight. After a brief and hilarious courtship, they got married in a small Presbyterian Chapel in North London. Her people came and her mother shed a tear when it was announced that the newly-wed couple would go to Africa. From that day,her world collapsed. He had never even hinted that he had joined the colonial service. Nor did she know that her honeymoon would be a hurried affair in Brighton.She wept most of the time on board the M.V Apapa that took them to Africa. Eight years and her temper grew worse. She got farther and farther away from her husband. They never had a child. A child would have made all the difference in the world.

From the last sentence, it is obvious that the couple

  • A. is happy
  • B. is lonely
  • C. is childless
  • D. has a child
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
73

In England, her love for Henry blossomed like spring flowers after a hard winter. But she abhored the way he dressed in England. They fell in love when she was working in a little coffee shop across from the Crystal Palace. Tall and jovial, he fell romantically in love with her at first sight. After a brief and hilarious courtship, they got married in a small Presbyterian Chapel in North London. Her people came and her mother shed a tear when it was announced that the newly-wed couple would go to Africa. From that day,her world collapsed. He had never even hinted that he had joined the colonial service. Nor did she know that her honeymoon would be a hurried affair in Brighton.She wept most of the time on board the M.V Apapa that took them to Africa. Eight years and her temper grew worse. She got farther and farther away from her husband. They never had a child. A child would have made all the difference in the world.

What made the woman’s world collapse is

  • A. falling in love with her husband in winter
  • B. cutting short their honeymoon
  • C. travelling aboard a ship
  • D. their movement to Africa
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
74

In England, her love for Henry blossomed like spring flowers after a hard winter. But she abhored the way he dressed in England. They fell in love when she was working in a little coffee shop across from the Crystal Palace. Tall and jovial, he fell romantically in love with her at first sight. After a brief and hilarious courtship, they got married in a small Presbyterian Chapel in North London. Her people came and her mother shed a tear when it was announced that the newly-wed couple would go to Africa. From that day,her world collapsed. He had never even hinted that he had joined the colonial service. Nor did she know that her honeymoon would be a hurried affair in Brighton.She wept most of the time on board the M.V Apapa that took them to Africa. Eight years and her temper grew worse. She got farther and farther away from her husband. They never had a child. A child would have made all the difference in the world.

‘From that day her world collapsed’ shows that the woman is

  • A. better off
  • B. wise
  • C. afraid
  • D. unhappy
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
75

In England, her love for Henry blossomed like spring flowers after a hard winter. But she abhored the way he dressed in England. They fell in love when she was working in a little coffee shop across from the Crystal Palace. Tall and jovial, he fell romantically in love with her at first sight. After a brief and hilarious courtship, they got married in a small Presbyterian Chapel in North London. Her people came and her mother shed a tear when it was announced that the newly-wed couple would go to Africa. From that day,her world collapsed. He had never even hinted that he had joined the colonial service. Nor did she know that her honeymoon would be a hurried affair in Brighton.She wept most of the time on board the M.V Apapa that took them to Africa. Eight years and her temper grew worse. She got farther and farther away from her husband. They never had a child. A child would have made all the difference in the world.

In England, she had loved her husband, in Africa, She

  • A. resented him
  • B. accepted him
  • C. enjoyed her honeymoon
  • D. encouraged him
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
76

In England, her love for Henry blossomed like spring flowers after a hard winter. But she abhored the way he dressed in England. They fell in love when she was working in a little coffee shop across from the Crystal Palace. Tall and jovial, he fell romantically in love with her at first sight. After a brief and hilarious courtship, they got married in a small Presbyterian Chapel in North London. Her people came and her mother shed a tear when it was announced that the newly-wed couple would go to Africa. From that day,her world collapsed. He had never even hinted that he had joined the colonial service. Nor did she know that her honeymoon would be a hurried affair in Brighton.She wept most of the time on board the M.V Apapa that took them to Africa. Eight years and her temper grew worse. She got farther and farther away from her husband. They never had a child. A child would have made all the difference in the world.

The figure of speech used in the first sentence is

  • A. personification
  • B. metaphor
  • C. simile
  • D. metonymy
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
77

UNSEEN PROSE AND POETRY

Joseph turned around, Be careful you don’t slip, he called. Her heel dug for a third step and then the moss stripped off a little. Her hands gripped the moss and tore it out. Joseph saw her head describe a little arc and strike the ground. As he ran toward her, she turned slowly on her side. Her whole body shuddered violently for a second and then relaxed. He stood over her for an instant before he ran to the spring and filled his hands with water. But when he came back to her, he let the water fall to the ground, for he saw the position of her neck, and the grey that was stealing into her cheeks. ‘It was too simple, to easy, too quick, he said.

The underlined expression is an example of

  • A. hyperbole
  • B. metaphor
  • C. simile
  • D. personification
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
78

UNSEEN PROSE AND POETRY

Joseph turned around, Be careful you don’t slip, he called. Her heel dug for a third step and then the moss stripped off a little. Her hands gripped the moss and tore it out. Joseph saw her head describe a little arc and strike the ground. As he ran toward her, she turned slowly on her side. Her whole body shuddered violently for a second and then relaxed. He stood over her for an instant before he ran to the spring and filled his hands with water. But when he came back to her, he let the water fall to the ground, for he saw the position of her neck, and the grey that was stealing into her cheeks. ‘It was too simple, to easy, too quick, he said.

The extract is an example of

  • A. narrative prose
  • B. descriptive prose
  • C. imaginative prose
  • D. expository prose
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
79

UNSEEN PROSE AND POETRY

Joseph turned around, Be careful you don’t slip, he called. Her heel dug for a third step and then the moss stripped off a little. Her hands gripped the moss and tore it out. Joseph saw her head describe a little arc and strike the ground. As he ran toward her, she turned slowly on her side. Her whole body shuddered violently for a second and then relaxed. He stood over her for an instant before he ran to the spring and filled his hands with water. But when he came back to her, he let the water fall to the ground, for he saw the position of her neck, and the grey that was stealing into her cheeks. ‘It was too simple, to easy, too quick, he said.

The narrator’s companion has just

  • A. died
  • B. arrived
  • C. relaxed
  • D. collapsed
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
80

UNSEEN PROSE AND POETRY

Joseph turned around, Be careful you don’t slip, he called. Her heel dug for a third step and then the moss stripped off a little. Her hands gripped the moss and tore it out. Joseph saw her head describe a little arc and strike the ground. As he ran toward her, she turned slowly on her side. Her whole body shuddered violently for a second and then relaxed. He stood over her for an instant before he ran to the spring and filled his hands with water. But when he came back to her, he let the water fall to the ground, for he saw the position of her neck, and the grey that was stealing into her cheeks. ‘It was too simple, to easy, too quick, he said.

The mood of the narrator is one of

  • A. shock
  • B. indifference
  • C. happiness
  • D. kindness
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
81

UNSEEN PROSE AND POETRY

Joseph turned around, Be careful you don’t slip, he called. Her heel dug for a third step and then the moss stripped off a little. Her hands gripped the moss and tore it out. Joseph saw her head describe a little arc and strike the ground. As he ran toward her, she turned slowly on her side. Her whole body shuddered violently for a second and then relaxed. He stood over her for an instant before he ran to the spring and filled his hands with water. But when he came back to her, he let the water fall to the ground, for he saw the position of her neck, and the grey that was stealing into her cheeks. ‘It was too simple, to easy, too quick, he said.

The setting of this extract is the

  • A. field
  • B. stream
  • C. farm
  • D. mountain
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
82

Pick the odd item from the list

  • A. sentence
  • B. paragraph
  • C. expression
  • D. fiction
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
83

The character that opposses the hero in a novel is called the

  • A. protagonist
  • B. antagonist
  • C. villan
  • D. clown
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998
84

The main female character in a play is called

  • A. hero
  • B. heroine
  • C. clown
  • D. antagonist
View Answer & Discuss WAEC 1998