English Exam

The Tudors

Which Dynasty of British monarchs oversaw the Renaissance and Reformation Era?

defeating Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field

This dynasty began with Henry VII doing what?

Humanism

What Renaissance movement focused on man and his environment, both social and natural, and believed that people have great worth and potential as individuals

Martin Luther

Which German scholar and Theologian is considered the Father of the Reformation?

John Wycliffe

Which English theologian is considered the “Morning Star of the Reformation”?

The printing press and higher literacy rates

What two factors contributed most to the growth of literature during the time of the Renaissance and Reformation?

the Reformation and Rising Nationalism

What two factors contributed most to England’s changing identity during this era?

Erasmus

In 1516 this Dutch theologian translated the New Testament into Greek, giving future translators a scholarly standard from which to work

Petrarch

Who was the italian poet that introduced the sonnet form of poetry?

Sir Thomas Wyatt

Which Englishman adopted the sonnet form and introduced it to English Literature?

Mary I

A devout Catholic who sought to undo the Reformation by prosecuting Protestants. Died after ruling for five years

Henry VIII

Started the Church of England and married six different women; brought more power to the monarchy than any previous monarch

Elizabeth I

A protestant who saw England grow more as a nation than ever before. Expanded the nation’s influence abroad, united the nation, and enjoyed a cultural golden age

Henry VII

Began the Tudor dynasty by defeating Richard III and cemented his claim to the throne with marriage to Elizabeth of York

Edward VI

Took the throne as a minor and steered the nation toward Reformation. Died at the age of 15

Lyric Poetry

Brief, personal, and emotional poems that present a speaker’s thoughts and feelings from his own perspective

Social Satire

Using irony to critique a society

Tone

An author’s attitude toward his text, revealed through his word choices

Meter

The regular pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry

Utopia

A genre of fictional writing about idealized societies

Iambic Pentameter

A metric line often used in poetry that contains five poetic feet, each with an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable

Pastoral

A poem that takes as its basic material shepherds and shepherdesses engaged in leisurely activities

Blank Verse

Unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter

rhyme scheme

The pattern of rhyming sounds that appear at the ends of lines of poetry

Historical Narrative

No place

In Greek, the word utopia literally means

The Book of Common Prayer

What is the name of the first English liturgy developed specifically for the Church of England

Foxe’s Book of Martyrs

What book recorded the persecution of Protestants by Mary I and was highly influential in churches for years to come

His hand, because it symbolized his previous recantations

What part of his body did Thomas Cranmer first thrust into the fire? Why?

John Wycliffe

The first to complete the English Bible arrived in 1382, courtesy of what theologian?

Authorized Version, King James Version

In 1611, what translation of the Bible that is widely considered an English masterpiece was published

a fourteen-line poem that utilizes iambic pentameter

What is a sonnet

little song

The name sonnet comes from the Italian word sonnetto, which means what?

False

(T/F) Due to the rapid expansion of European trade and power, this time period was known as the Age of Enlightenment

True

(T/F) The political and social context of the Renaissance helped prepare the way for some of the most brilliant achievements of English Literature

True

(T/F) By the end of the Renaissance and Reformation, England’s identity had shifted to become distinctly Protestant, more urbanized and sophisticated, and independent of its Continental counterparts

False

(T/F) Renaissance humanists totally abandoned Christian thoughts and beliefs

False

(T/F) “Bloody” Mary was able to effectively halt the growth of Protestantism in England because of her pro-Catholic leanings and persecution of Protestants

False

(T/F) The greatest changes to English national identity came under the rule of Edward VI

True

(T/F) Poetry is the most technically complex literature genre

False

(T/F) Renaissance poets did not innovate many new forms of poetry

True

(T/F) the sonnet was the most famous form of Renaissance poetry

Wyrd

The Anglo-Saxon term for fate is

Oral Epic

What genre is Beowulf

Tearing off his arm

Beowulf mortally wounds Grendel by

King Arthur

Which character represents England’s greatest legend

Faithfulness

What does the pentangle on Sir Gawain’s shield represent about him

They represent the five aspects of Gawain’s virtue

In Sir Gawain, what is the significance of the five points on the pentangle

Gawain’s use of the girdle violates his vow but provides an opportunity for true confession

In Sir Gawain, what is the significance of the green girdle as it relates to Gawain’s character development

King Bertilak

In Sir Gawain, why did the queen tempt Gawain

Humility

In Sir Gawain, by continuing to wear a green sash, what virtue does every Round Table knight commemorate

His death

In Le Morte d’Arthur, what event most clearly establishes King Arthur as a Christ figure

Excalibur

In Le Morte d’Arthur, what is the name of King Arthur’s sword

True

(T/F) The Roman invasion of Britain in AD 43 helped establish the first centralized government on the island

False

(T/F) In AD 449, the Kent-Northumbrian tribes immigrated to Britain and profoundly shaped the culture of the island

False

(T/F) The primary focus of a traditional medieval romance is love between a man and a woman

True

(T/F) The chivalric code demands both bravery in battle and moral character

False

(T/F) Gawain is proven a chivalric hero because of his one defining quality: his total honesty

Epic

A long, stylized narrative poem celebrating the deeds of a national hero or legend

Kenning

A poetic device that communicates a metaphor by a compound expression, such as whale-road for ocean

Didactic

Much early British literature was not only written for entertainment, but able to instruct, meaning it was

Alliterative verse

Both Beowulf and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight are written in this poetic form

Medieval romance

A poetic narrative that focused on courtly life and the knightly code of chivalry. Usually this involved some sort of knightly quest and incorporated fantastical elements of magic

Symbol

Something in a story that carries meaning or significance in addition to itself

Legend

Because they developed from an oral tradition but lacked factual evidence, the Arthurian tales are classified as this kind of literature

Christ figure

In Le Morte d’Arthur, the character of Arthur is comparable to a real person in his characterization and narrative function; the similarity is particularly obvious regarding Arthur’s death. What is the term for this literary concept

The Norman Invasion 1066 AD

What historical event marks the end of the Anglo-Saxon rule of England and a major shift in English culture? In what year did this begin

Fortitude, Prudence, Loyalty, and Generosity

Beowulf illustrates what four traditional anglo-saxon heroic virtues

Broad setting, larger than life hero, the supernatural, a neccassary journey or battle

What are the four conventions of a traditional epic

Bear

The name Beowulf can roughly be translated into Bee-Hunter, which can further be translated to what word

Cain

According to the beginning of Beowulf, Grendel is an offspring of

The third swing damages Gawain because he failed to be honest with King Bertilak’s third challenge about the green girdle

Explain why the Green Knight’s final axe swing cuts Gawain whereas the previous two did not

Arthur has gone to France to pursue Launcelot, who had pursued a relationship with Queen Guinevere

At the beginning of Le Morte d’Arthur, what problem distracts Arthur’s attention and allows Modred to usurp the throne

Sir Gawain’s prophecy and the Lady of the Lake taking Arthur’s sword

What is one example of a supernatural element in the excerpt from Le Morte d’Arthur

Macbeth

Thane of Glamis, becomes Thane of Cawdor, Kills King Duncan, became King of Scotland, killed by Macduff

Lady Macbeth

Macbeth’s wife, feels guilt about the murders she commited and drives herself to insanity, and commits suicide

Banquo

Macbeth’s best friend, murdered by Macbeth’s hired murderers, and father of Fleance

Fleance

Son of Banquo, escapes from being murdered but his father is killed

King Duncan

King of Scotland before he was murdered, father of Malcolm and Donalbain

Macduff

Murders Macbeth, his whole family is murdered, wasn’t born from a woman

Malcolm

Son of Duncan who becomes King after the death of Macbeth, Son of Duncan who fled to England

Donalbain

The younger son of King Duncan, flees to Ireland after the death of his father