Literary Genres Quiz

1. What is the difference between fiction and non-fiction?

1. Fiction is for adults; non-fiction is for children
2. Fiction is invented; non-fiction is factual
3. Fiction is longer; non-fiction is shorter
4. Fiction is prose; non-fiction is poetry

2. What is a 'sonnet'?

1. A 14-line poem with a specific rhyme scheme
2. A short story
3. A song with a repeated chorus
4. A type of epic poem

3. What is a 'dystopia' in fiction?

1. A fantasy world with magic
2. A story set in the past
3. A utopian world where everything is perfect
4. An imaginary society that is deeply unpleasant or oppressive

4. What is an 'autobiography'?

1. A biography written by someone else
2. A fictional life story
3. A history of a family
4. An account of a person's life written by that person

5. What is 'magical realism' as a literary genre?

1. A genre only found in Latin American literature
2. A genre where magical elements are presented as normal within a realistic setting
3. Pure fantasy with no real-world elements
4. Science fiction set in the present

6. What is a 'haiku'?

1. A 14-line Japanese poem
2. A Japanese poem with 5-7-5 syllables across three lines
3. A Korean short story form
4. A type of limerick

7. What is 'dramatic monologue' as a poetic form?

1. A poem in which a character speaks directly to a silent listener
2. A poem without rhyme
3. A speech in a play
4. A very long speech by one person

8. What genre combines elements of romance and adventure, often set in a historical period?

1. Epistolary fiction
2. Gothic fiction
3. Historical romance
4. Literary realism

9. What is 'gothic fiction' characterised by?

1. Dark atmospheres, horror, the supernatural, and psychological terror
2. Detailed descriptions of landscapes
3. Happy endings and light themes
4. Stories only set in the past

10. What is an 'epistolary novel'?

1. A novel about ancient Rome
2. A novel about letters and their history
3. A novel told through letters, diary entries, or documents
4. A very short novel

11. What is a 'limerick'?

1. A 14-line Irish poem
2. A five-line humorous poem with AABBA rhyme scheme
3. A poem with no rhyme scheme
4. A song from Limerick, Ireland

12. What is 'stream of consciousness' most associated with?

1. Crime fiction
2. Epic poetry
3. Modernist literary fiction
4. Science fiction

13. What is 'speculative fiction'?

1. Academic fiction writing
2. Fiction based on real events
3. Fiction that speculates about possible futures, alternate histories, or fantastical worlds
4. Fiction written as a hypothesis

14. What is a 'bildungsroman'?

1. A coming-of-age story following a character's growth to adulthood
2. A German thriller
3. A story set in a school
4. A type of epic poem

15. What distinguishes poetry from prose?

1. Poetry is always rhymed; prose never rhymes
2. Poetry is shorter than prose
3. Poetry uses line breaks and often heightened language; prose uses regular sentences and paragraphs
4. Prose is fiction; poetry is non-fiction

16. What is 'satire' as a literary genre?

1. A type of tragedy
2. Romantic comedy writing
3. Very dark horror fiction
4. Writing that uses humour and irony to criticise people or society

17. What is 'free verse' poetry?

1. Poetry available for free online
2. Poetry that doesn't follow a fixed rhyme scheme or metre
3. Poetry without any emotion
4. Poetry written in French

18. What is a 'novella'?

1. A news article written as fiction
2. A type of opera
3. A very short poem
4. A work of fiction longer than a short story but shorter than a novel

19. What is 'noir' as a genre?

1. Black-and-white photography
2. Crime fiction with a dark, cynical tone often set in urban environments
3. Dark fantasy set in space
4. Horror set underground

20. What is an 'ode' in poetry?

1. A lyric poem of praise or tribute
2. A poem with exactly 10 lines
3. A rhyming couplet
4. A short humorous poem