Literary theory in English literature
1. Who introduced the concept of “mimicry” in postcolonial discourse?
a) Gayatri Spivak
b) Homi Bhabha
c) Chinua Achebe
d) Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o
Ans- Homi Bhabha
2. What is the primary concern of postcolonial literature?
a) Celebrating colonial rule
b) Examining and resisting colonial and imperial legacies
c) Promoting globalization
d) Discussing technological advancements
Ans- Examining and resisting colonial and imperial legacies
3. Which novel by Chinua Achebe critiques European colonialism in Africa?
a) Things Fall Apart
b) Heart of Darkness
c) Wide Sargasso Sea
d) The Empire Writes Back
Ans- Things Fall Apart
4. Gayatri Spivak’s famous essay is titled:
a) Can the Subaltern Speak?
b) The Colonial Gaze
c) Writing Back
d) The Black Atlantic
Ans- Can the Subaltern Speak?
5. Who is considered one of the founding theorists of postcolonialism?
a) Karl Marx
b) Edward Said
c) Michel Foucault
d) Sigmund Freud
Ans- Edward Said
6. What is the central theme of Edward Said’s Orientalism (1978)?
a) Economic structures of colonies
b) Western representations of the East
c) The role of language in imperialism
d) The decline of colonial empires
Ans- Western representations of the East
7. Which book by Frantz Fanon critiques colonial psychology?
a) The Wretched of the Earth
b) The Postcolonial Condition
c) Discourse on Colonialism
d) Imagined Communities
Ans- The Wretched of the Earth
8. What does the term “subaltern” refer to in postcolonial studies?
a) The ruling elite of a colony
b) A person in a marginalized or oppressed position
c) A colonial administrator
d) A settler in a colonized land
Ans- A person in a marginalized or oppressed position
9. What is “hybridity” in postcolonial theory? a) The complete rejection of colonial influence b) The fusion of colonizer and colonized cultures
c) The economic dependence of former colonies
d) A political movement against imperialism
Ans- The fusion of colonizer and colonized cultures
10. Which European colonial practice involved drawing arbitrary borders in Africa?
a) The Berlin Conference
b) The Marshall Plan
c) The Treaty of Versailles
d) The Monroe Doctrine
Ans-The Berlin Conference
11. Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o advocates for:
a) Writing in indigenous languages
b) Promoting English as a global language
c) Supporting colonial education systems
d) Avoiding political themes in literature
Ans- Writing in indigenous languages
12. Which Caribbean writer examined postcolonial identity in The Black Atlantic?
a) Paul Gilroy
b) Derek Walcott
c) V.S. Naipaul
d) Aimé Césaire
Ans- Paul Gilroy
13. What does “neocolonialism” refer to?
a) Direct political control over a country
b) Economic and cultural domination of former colonies by imperial powers
c) The rejection of all colonial influences
d) The return of European settlers to former colonies
Ans- Economic and cultural domination of former colonies by imperial powers
14. Who wrote Discourse on Colonialism?
a) Frantz Fanon
b) Aimé Césaire
c) Albert Memmi
d) Stuart Hall
Ans- Aimé Césaire
15. The phrase The Empire Writes Back refers to:
a) A Star Wars reference
b) Postcolonial literature responding to colonial narratives
c) Colonialists defending imperialism
d) Western perspectives on former colonies
Ans- Postcolonial literature responding to colonial narratives
16. What is the significance of Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys?
a) It critiques Jane Eyre from a postcolonial perspective
b) It glorifies British colonial rule
c) It is an epic about Caribbean exploration
d) It is a historical account of African colonization
Ans- It critiques Jane Eyre from a postcolonial perspective
17. Postcolonial ecocriticism focuses on:
a) Industrial advancements in former colonies b) The environmental consequences of colonial exploitation
c) The technological development of postcolonial nations
d) The rejection of indigenous knowledge
Ans- The environmental consequences of colonial exploitation
18. “Othering” in postcolonial studies refers to: a) The creation of racial and cultural superiority by colonizers
b) The process of decolonization
c) The integration of indigenous people
d) The formation of political parties
Ans- The creation of racial and cultural superiority by colonizers
19. The term “Third World” in postcolonial discourse originally referred to:
a) Economically underdeveloped nations
b) Non-aligned nations during the Cold War
c) Newly industrialized countries
d) Former European colonies only
Ans- Economically underdeveloped nations
20. Which of the following is a key theme in postcolonial theory?
a) The superiority of Western civilization
b) The power dynamics between colonizers and the colonized
c) The benefits of globalization
Ans- The success of colonial education b) The power dynamics between colonizers and the coloniz
21. What is “double consciousness” as theorized by W.E.B. Du Bois?
a) The ability to see from multiple perspectives b) The rejection of European culture
c) The loss of cultural identity
d) The acceptance of colonial rule
Ans- The ability to see from multiple perspectives
22. What is the goal of decolonization?
a) To strengthen colonial influence
b) To achieve political, economic, and cultural independence
c) To maintain Western educational systems
d) To increase military alliances
Ans- To achieve political, economic, and cultural independence
23. Who wrote Midnight’s Children, a novel that explores postcolonial themes in India?
a) Salman Rushdie
b) Arundhati Roy
c) R.K. Narayan
d) Raja Rao
Ans- Salman Rushdie
24. The term “diaspora” in postcolonial studies refers to:
a) The forced migration and displacement of people
b) The economic rise of former colonies
c) The spread of European culture
Ans- The rejection of indigenous traditions a) The forced migration and displacement of people
25. What is the primary theme of Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad?
a) The brutality of European imperialism
b) The benefits of colonization
c) The superiority of European civilization
d) The technological progress of Africa
Ans- The brutality of European imperialism
26. Which movement aimed to revive indigenous traditions and reject colonial influences?
a) Negritude
b) Realism
c) Colonial Romanticism
d) Structuralism
Ans- Negritude
27. In postcolonial studies, “Eurocentrism” refers to:
a) The belief in European cultural superiority b) The political independence of European nations
c) The rejection of colonial ideas
d) The study of ancient European history
Ans- The belief in European cultural superiority
28. The term “decoloniality” refers to:
a) The process of undoing colonial legacies in thought and institutions
b) The legal end of colonial rule
c) The creation of new colonies
d) The expansion of Western education
Ans-The process of undoing colonial legacies in thought and institutions
29. Who argued that colonialism psychologically damages the colonized?
a) Frantz Fanon
b) Homi Bhabha
c) Chinua Achebe
d) Derek Walcott
Ans- Frantz Fanon
30. Why is language important in postcolonial studies?
a) It reinforces colonial control or resists it
b) It has no connection to colonialism
c) Only European languages are studied
d) It prevents cultural identity formation
Ans- It reinforces colonial control or resists it
