Author’s Technique
from The Great Gatsby
by F. Scott Fitzgerald
We shook hands.
"Oh, and do you remember."—she added—" a conversation we had once about driving a
car?"
"Why—not exactly."
"You said a bad driver was only safe until she met another bad driver? Well, I met another
bad driver, didn't I? I mean it was careless of me to make such a wrong guess. I thought you
were rather an honest, straightforward person. I thought it was your secret pride."
"I'm thirty," I said. "I'm five years too old to lie to myself and call it honor."
She didn't answer. Angry, and half in love with her, and tremendously sorry, I turned away.
1. The author uses dialogue
A. to foreshadow the outcome of events.
B. to define the symbols of driving and guessing.
C. to portray the personalities of the characters.
D. to help the characters hide their feelings.
2. The passage shows an exchange between Nick Carraway and Jordan Baker. Which technique does the
author use to reflect Jordan's feelings?
A. humor
B. symbolism
C. syntax
D. mood
The Lost Years of Shakespeare
Little is known about Shakespeare's life during the two spans of time that are commonly
referred to as the "lost years." The first period, 1578-82, covers the time between
Shakespeare's leaving grammar school and marrying Anne Hathaway. The second period,
1585-92, covers the years that Shakespeare is speculated to have spent working on his
dramatic skills and gathering sources for his plays.
Biographers have concocted many tales about Shakespeare's life in the "lost years." It has
been speculated that Shakespeare labored for hours at a time to accumulate plots for his plays.
Critics have often questioned how a person without a university-level education had the
knowledge that Shakespeare possessed. In addition, very little is known about how
Shakespeare first started his dramatic career. Even the works credited to Shakespeare were
published in editions of varying quality and accuracy.
Perhaps Shakespeare knew that his works would be immortalized, as he wrote in his sonnet:
"So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee."
Perhaps Shakespeare mocked his critics who fueled the heresies through the voice of
Macbeth:
"And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing."
What Shakespeare did in the "lost years" may never be known. However, his plays and
poetry will continue to inspire his critics and admirers for a long time.
3. What technique does the author use to present Shakespeare's point of view?
A. excerpts from his works
B. list of Shakespeare's works
C. questions and answers
D. research and interviews
4. The author uses the phrase "concocted many tales" to show that
A. most biographers invent stories to make a person sound more interesting.
B. most critics and biographers had access to historical facts about Shakespeare.
C. people used little imagination to create a historically accurate biography.
D. the stories about Shakespeare's life during the "lost years" are not reliable.
Indecision
by A. Gautam
They say it is time to decide:
If I want to drive or if I want a ride
Do I want to swerve or do I climb the steps
The world feels huge and busy
I am young but not yet adult
Old enough yet still unsure
Some feet are headed to the beach
Some hands are inky, drawing letters
My parents have expectant eyes
Their embrace reeks of dreams
The smiles are kind and waiting
I will walk first
and perhaps trace
the path
5. The author uses an unusual format to
A. define the symbols of family values.
B. show the narrator's indecisiveness.
C. create rhyme and rhythm in the poem.
D. portray the theme of tolerance.
6. The author describes the parents' embrace as reeking of dreams to
A. describe the narrator's problems with the sense of smell.
B. indicate that the narrator does not like his or her family.
C. show that narrator feels uncomfortable about their hopes.
D. reflect that the narrator and the parents are unhygienic.
7. Notice the shift of language in the poem from the beginning to the end. The complexity in the
vocabulary of the last half of the poem shows
A. the narrator's maturing thoughts.
B. the narrator is hiding a secret.
C. the narrator's mood gets jubilant.
D. the narrator is getting exhausted.
Fishing with my Father
My father always thought of fishing as a bonding ritual. His father had taught him fishing at a
young age of six. The two of them would go off to a serene lake on a Sunday afternoon and
return home empty-handed. They did not want to kill the fish as my father told me when I
reached the age of incessant questioning. "That was not the point of fishing," he had explained.
One morning, it was determined that I had taken enough swimming lessons to be able to
rescue both my father and myself in the case of an emergency, and I was allowed to go fishing
with my father. I wanted to pick out special clothes, but my father said I looked fine in my khakis
and polo shirt. He did give me a beige visor—a bit too big for my face—to guard against the
sun. That morning, he drove me in the sedan while my little brother and sister stayed home with
Mom.
Father spoke to me in his soothing baritone voice during the drive. "To think about nothing is
important once in a while," he said. "You will know when you grow up."
But I had thought fishing was my transition into adulthood. My hurried wish to grow up had
pushed me into optimism at the age of eleven. As if my father could read my thoughts he said,
"You are almost there, my boy."
We took the scenic route to the lake. We passed the woods, the rolling hills, and approached
the much talked about lake. There was sunlight—thrown in silver sprinkles on the water. I
helped my father unload the fishing rods and the cooler into the boat. We met the center of the
river in silence. I suspended my fishing rod in the air feeling overwhelmed and satisfied by the
beauty all around me. I had understood why my father did not bring the fish home.
8. Which of these statements best adds poetic language to the passage?
A. "They did not want to kill the fish as my father explained. . ."
B. ". . . and I was allowed to go fishing with my father. . ."
C. ". . .sunlight—thrown in silver sprinkles on the water. . ."
D. "Father spoke to me in his soothing baritone voice . . . "
Act I, Scene ii
HORATIO: My lord, I came to see your father’s funeral.
HAMLET: I prithee do no mock me, fellow student,
I think it was to see my mother’s wedding.
HORATIO: Indeed, my lord, it followed hard upon.
HAMLET: Thrift, thrift, Horatio! The funeral baked meats
Did coldly furnish forth the marriage tables.
Would I had met my dearest foe in heaven
Or ever I had seen that day, Horatio!
My father—methinks I see my father.
HORATIO: O, where, my lord?
HAMLET: In my mind’s eye, Horatio.
HORATIO: I saw him once. He was a goodly king.
HAMLET: He was a man, take him for all in all.
I shall not look upon his like again.
HORATIO: My lord, I think I saw him yesternight.
HAMLET: Saw? Who?
HORATIO: My lord, the King your father.
HAMLET: The King my father?
HORATIO: Season your admiration for a while
With an attent ear, till I may deliver,
Upon the witness of these gentlemen,
This marvel to you.
HAMLET: For God’s love let me hear!
from Hamlet by William Shakespeare
9. Which dialogue contributes to the mood of anxiety in this scene?
A. "Would I had met my dearest foe in heaven."
B. "For God's love let me hear!"
C. "I saw him once. He was a goodly king."
D. "I think it was to see my mother's wedding."
10. Which of the following best describes the style of Hamlet and Horatio's speech?
A. eloquent and positive
B. strict and formal
C. witty and amusing
D. relaxed and chatty
11. Shakespeare uses, "Season your admiration for a while" to mean that
A. Hamlet should jump to conclusions.
B. Hamlet should silently accept the facts.
C. Hamlet should try to wait patiently.
D. Hamlet should trust his natural instincts.