QUESTION BANK

II B.A - Semester III

COMMUNICATIVE ENGLISH
Creative Writing in English

Unit I – Art and Craft of Writing

I. A. Answer the following in one word/phrase /sentence

(1X5=5)

1. Figures of speech based on word buildings are chiasmus, acronymand

palindrome.
2. When a pidgin begins to acquire native speakers, Creole language is
created.
3. A politician’s speech is an example of Definitive Function. True or False
4. A fresh frozen Pizza is an example of oxymoron.
5. Simile and metaphor are figures of speech based on similarity.
6. Latin meaning of allusion is ‘to lightly touch upon’ or ‘to play with.’
7. Exaggerations to express the truth is hyperbole.(figure of speech)
8. Return of the Native and Malgudi Daysare examples of ____________
9. ____________ is an example of impressionistic novel.
10.Realistic fiction attempts to picture _________ of the society.

I. B. Identify the figure of speech in the following lines.

(1X5=5)

a) “In the world’s broad field of battle”

b) “We ran as if to meet the moon.”
c) “And hymns in the cosy parlour, the tinkling piano our guide”
d) “He lifted his head from his drinking as cattle do”
e) “Old age and youth alike mistaught, misfed”
f) “Yet Brutus says he was ambitious, And Brutus is an honourable
man!”(Verbal Irony)
g) “A plastic glass”(oxymoron)
h) “The child is the father of the man”(Paradox)
i) “of all the felt I ever felt, I never felt a piece of felt”(Homonym)
j) “Does it dry up Like a raisin in the sun?(simile)

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 Unit II - Poetry

II. A. Fill in the blanks with the appropriate words.

(1X3=3)

1. The Anapest includes feet made up of two unstressed syllables followed by

a stressed one.
2. A unit in poetry made up of two lines that usually rhyme is a couplet.
3. The Sonnet is a poem of fourteen lines that expresses a single idea.
4. The metrical form which has a feet made up of two unstressed syllables
followed by a stressed syllable is called the Anapest.
5. The main difference between verse and prose is rhythm.
6. The Japanese form of poetry which is self-contained in three lines is called
Haiku.
7. Paradise Lost and The Golden Gate are examples of epics like Iliad and
Odyssey.

II. B. Identify the metrical feet in the following lines.

(1X2=2)

i. “To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells”

ii. The dust of snow, From a hemlock tree(Iambic)
iii. Earth, receive an honoured guest; William Yeats is laid to rest:” (Trochee)
iv. "Tyger, Tyger, burning bright,"
v. "How, how how? Chopped logic! What is this?
vi. "Cannon to the right of them, Cannon to the left of them"(Dactyl)
vii. Piping down the valleys wild(Trochee)
viii. And the sound of a voice is still(Anapest)

II. C. Write short notes on any ONE of the following in about

100 words.
(1X5=5)
1. Odes
2. Sonnets
3. Ghazals
4. Ballads
5. Epics
6. Villanelle
7. Clerihew and Limerick
8. Voices in the poem

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 II. D. Answer any ONE of the following with suitable examples
in about 100 words.
(1X5=5)
1. What are the most common forms of poetry based on the number
of lines in a stanza? Elucidate with example.
2. What are the three lighthearted forms of poetry with humour as a
vital ingredient?
3. The image in poetry describes something in terms of concrete detail
to form a picture. Elucidate with reference to Chinua Achebe’s
“Refugee Mother and Child.”
4. What are the four functions of language? Give examples for each of
them.
5. What are the two basic types of narrative poetry? Discuss with
examples.
6. Define Creativity? How can creativity be measured by Guilford's
Model. Explain with suitable example.
7. "Creative expression has the potential to challenge the status quo
and bring about a change in the society"- Comment with respect to
creativity and power.
8. Explain the role of 'inspiration and agency' in the creative process.

II. E. Analyse any ONE of the poem with respect to form,

technique and imagery. (1X5=5)
i) Refugee Mother and Child - Chinua Achebe

mothers there had long ceased

to care but not this one; she held
a ghost smile between her teeth
and in her eyes the ghost of a mother's
pride as she combed the rust-coloured
hair left on his skull and then -

singing in her eyes - began carefully

to part it… In another life this
would have been a little daily
act of no consequence before his
breakfast and school; now she

did it like putting flowers

on a tiny grave.
OR
ii) Sonnet No. 130- William Shakespeare

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;

Coral is far more red than her lips' red;

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 If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;
If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.
I have seen roses damasked, red and white,
But no such roses see I in her cheeks;
And in some perfumes is there more delight
Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.
I love to hear her speak, yet well I know
That music hath a far more pleasing sound;
I grant I never saw a goddess go;
My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground.
And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare
As any she belied with false compare.
OR
iii) Do not Go Gentle into that Good Night - Dylan Thomas

Do not go gentle into that good night,

Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,

Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

And you, my father, there on that sad height,

Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
OR
iv) Postcard from Kashmir - Agha Shahid Ali

Kashmir shrinks into my mailbox,

My home; a neat four by six inches.

I always loved neatness. Now I hold

the half-inch Himalayas in my hand.

This is home. And this is the closest

I’ll ever be to home. When I return,

the colours won’t be so brilliant,

so ultramarine. My love

so overexposed.

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And my memory will be a little

Out of focus, in it

A giant negative, black

And white, still undeveloped

Unit III - Fiction

II. A. Answer any TWO of the following with suitable

examples in about 100 words.
(2X5=10)
1. Define creative non-fiction. Explain with an example that
describes the criteria to distinguish it from fiction.
2. Distinguish between a short story and a novella with a suitable
example.
3. Write a short note on the role of a narrator in a short
story/novel with suitable example.
4. Define creative non-fiction. Explain with an example that
describes the criteria to distinguish it from fiction.
5. The difference between short story and novels is not only about
number of words. Discuss with elaborate examples.
6. Discus what constitutes a popular fiction? Name a few popular
literature genres that have a vibrant market.
7. Differentiate between writing for children and adults with
suitable examples for each.
8. What role does ‘setting’ play in a short story?

III. B. Answer the following with suitable examples in about 100

words.
(2X5=10)

1. Define the term ‘Character’? What characteristics of Shireen in

the story ‘Sweet Rice’ make her life-like?
2. The Sword of DaraShukoh,is one of the most popular child
fiction. Enumerate the reasons for its success with apt
references to the text.
3. Describe the various elements of a plot with reference to the
short story Sweet Rice.
4. How does Amir Hussein exploit the stereotype of exotic Pakistani
women and food in the story Sweet Rice.
5. Discuss Jamil’s male centered point of view.

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 Unit IV - Drama

III. A. Write short notes on any TWO of the following in about

100 words.
(2X5=10)
1. Musical Play
2. Lighting and Sound
3. Thrust Stage
4. Costume
5. Soliloquy in drama
6. Stereotypical characters
7. Theatre of the Absurd
8. Prototypical characters
9. Costumes in drama
10.Comedy

IV. B. Answer any TWO the following with suitable examples in

about 100 words.
(2X5=10)

1. There are different plot forms used by dramatists and one of them is
tragedy. Discuss with examples.
2. What are the special attributes in Drama that set it apart from all other
forms of art? Discuss.
3. What are the features that have to be kept in mind while writing a
dialogue?
4. Lunch time at St Aloysius College: Using at least 10 exchanges between
two friends, describe a typical day at college capturing the spirit of the
place as well as the people.
5. Name the different kinds of stage space that a dramatist can use.
6. How can you differentiate between prototypical and stereotypical
characters?
7. How can you classify non-tragic serious plays?
8. Describe the two dramatic devices used in conjunction with the episodic
and climatic plot forms.
9. What do you understand by Protagonist, Antagonist and climax in a play?
10.Describe the chief attributes of extraordinary characters in traditional and
modern theatres.
11.Describe the stage space and the sets used in Mahesh Dattani’s Dance
Like a Man

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12.Illustrate the difference between climatic and episodic forms of plot.
13.Briefly describe the various kinds of comedy with an example.
14.Describe stereotypical characters with reference to Mahesh Dattani’s
Dance like a Man.
15.Sophocles uses irony in the following lines from the Greek Drama
Oedipus Rex. What is the irony in this line?
“Upon the murderer I invoke this curse – whether he is one man and all
unknown,
Or one of many – may he wear out his life in misery to miserable doom!”

Unit V– Book Review, Travelogue and Writing for Radio

V. A. Answer any FOUR of the following with suitable examples

in about 100 words.
(4X5=20)

1. A book review is a critical evaluation of the text. Discuss.

2. The most important element of a review is that it is a
commentary, and not merely a summary. Elucidate
3. Travel writing involves a multidimensional role of being a
narrator, observer and reporter. Discuss the characteristics
of a good travel writer.
4. What are the different kinds of travel writing based on the
kind of readers?
5. Write a paragraph about any one particular tourist
attraction.(Hint: Use both factual and impressionistic details)
6. Differentiate between radio discussion and radio drama.
7. Discuss in detail the factors to be taken account before
making a radio programme.
8. Explain with example the different formats of radio
programmes.

V. B. (i) Write a Phone-in conversation with a listener on the

topic of road safety in Mangalore.
(1X5=5)
OR
(ii) Write a Radio announcement advertising a new release
along with an interview with the cast of the movie.

V. C. Which one of the following reviews is better? Give reasons

to substantiate your answer.(Any ONE; A or B)
(1X5=5)

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 A

i. Judith Bennett’s Ale, Beer, and Brewsters in England: Women’s Work

in a Changing World, 1300-1600, investigates how women used to
brew and sell the majority of ale drunk in England. Historically, ale
and beer (not milk, wine, or water) were important elements of the
English diet. Ale brewing was low-skill and low status labor that was
complimentary to women’s domestic responsibilities. In the early
fifteenth century, brewers began to make ale with hops, and they
called this new drink “beer.” This technique allowed brewers to
produce their beverages at a lower cost and to sell it more easily,
although women generally stopped brewing once the business
became more profitable.

ii. Judith Bennett’s Ale, Beer, and Brewsters in England: Women’s Work
in a Changing World, 1300-1600 was a colossal disappointment. I
wanted to know about the rituals surrounding drinking in medieval
England: the songs, the games, the parties. Bennett provided none
of that information. I liked how the book showed ale and beer
brewing as an economic activity, but the reader gets lost in the
details of prices and wages. I was more interested in the private lives
of the women brewsters. The book was divided into eight long
chapters, and I can’t imagine why anyone would ever want to read it.

iii. One of feminism’s paradoxes—one that challenges many of its

optimistic histories—is how patriarchy remains persistent over time.
While Judith Bennett’s Ale, Beer, and Brewsters in England: Women’s
Work in a Changing World, 1300-1600 recognizes medieval women
as historical actors through their ale brewing, it also shows that
female agency had its limits with the advent of beer. I had assumed
that those limits were religious and political, but Bennett shows how
a “patriarchal equilibrium” shut women out of economic life as well.
Her analysis of women’s wages in ale and beer production proves
that a change in women’s work does not equate to a change in
working women’s status. Contemporary feminists and historians alike
should read Bennett’s book and think twice when they crack open
their next brewsky.

OR

B
i. Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn is a great American novel.
ii. In Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain develops a contrast between life on
the river and life on the shore.
iii. Through its contrasting river and shore scenes, Twain’s Huckleberry
Finn suggests that to find the true expression of American
democratic ideals, one must leave “civilized” society and go back to
nature.