CSET English Subtest 1 Practice
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CSET English subtest 1 practice test
- 1.
- A.
The need to retain regional cultural and language differences in the face of African unification
- B.
The importance of spiritual leadership and political solidarity in opposition to tyrannical dictators
- C.
The matriarchal role of women in nurturing and healing future generations of Africans
- D.
The spiritual and emotional bankruptcy arising from the loss of traditional values and aspirations of wealth
- 2.Literary works by postmodern Britishwriters such as Angela Carter, SalmanRushdie, and Jeanette Wintersongenerally tend to share which of thefollowing characteristics?
- A.
The use of fragmented narrative structures with multiple shifts in consciousness, chronology, and location
- B.
An emphasis on the rich universality of life in cultures and countries all over the world
- C.
A sense of sentimental nostalgia for nineteenth- and early-twentiethcentury life, typically expressed in rueful, melancholic tones
- D.
The use of brief, economic literary forms and a spare, astringent literary style
- 3.Read the passage below from Troilus and Cressida, a play by William Shakespeare; then answer the two questions that follow.In the following passage, the speaker is Ulysses, one of the Greek commanders in the war against the Trojans.When that the general is not like the hiveTo whom the foragers1 shall all repair,What honey is expected? . . .The heavens themselves, the planets, and this centre2Observe degree, priority, and place, . . .And therefore is the glorious planet Sol3In noble eminence enthron'd and spher'dAmidst the other; whose med'cinable4 eyeCorrects the [ill aspects] of [planets evil],And posts5 like the commandment of a king,Sans6 check, to good and bad. But when the planetsIn evil mixture to disorder wander,What plagues and what portents, what mutiny!1foragers: workers (drones)2this centre: the earth3Sol: the sun (king of planets)4med'cinable: healing, restorative5posts: speeds6sans: without3. This passage most clearly reflects theElizabethan world view in its assertionthat:
- A.
Reason is the source of all true wisdom and is godlike in its power to lead and inspire.
- B.
The world's civilizations are an insignificant presence in a cosmos ruled by forces beyond human control.
- C.
Mankind is fundamentally evil and civilization can be maintained only by force.
- D.
Human society is part of a cosmic hierarchy in which every element has its proper role.
- 4.
- A.
Portraying a world that has been torn apart by warring factions that struggle to gain control.
- B.
Showing how real power depends on the loyalty, sacrifice, and dedication of the common man.
- C.
Demonstrating how laws of supply and demand regulate the nature and structure of power.
- D.
Affirming the power of central authority as a unifying force to prevent political fragmentation.
- 5.
- A.
Use of metaphor to stress the similarities between human experience and the life of animals
- B.
Use of personification to critique humanity's disconnection from the natural world
- C.
Use of conventions associated with the genre of the animal fable to satirize the comic foibles of human beings
- D.
Use of irony to highlight the thoughtless brutality of human beings toward animals
- 6.
- A.
A method for solving the problems of the characters through divine intervention.
- B.
An efficient technique for transporting and assembling stage scenery.
- C.
A means to introduce new characters into the plot of a play without interrupting the action.
- D.
A way to effect the spiritual transformation of a character in a play.
- 7.
- A.
Figurative language helps convey the subtle levels of emotional interaction between the circus performers and the audience.
- B.
Descriptive details emphasize the cynical apathy of the circus performers and their indifference to the audience.
- C.
Use of the first-person point of view stresses the urban observer's sense of detachment from the circus performers and rural audience.
- D.
Comic irony highlights the delight the narrator and her companion take in observing the circus performers and audience.
- 8.
- A.
The speaker's vehement rejection of urban life leaves him living a life of rural deprivation.
- B.
The speaker's bitter anger persists despite the temporary distractions of seasonal change.
- C.
The speaker's initial loneliness and sorrow are healed through an ecstatic vision of cosmic unity.
- D.
The speaker's enhanced awareness of nature's beauty eases his anger and disappointment.
- 9.
- A.
To investigate questions relating to the cultural differences among texts
- B.
To analyze ways in which themes of non-Western texts parallel themes in the Western literary tradition
- C.
To consider how various texts address universal aspects of human experience
- D.
To examine factors relating to the social and political background of the authors of various texts
- 10.A critic analyzing a text from a formalistperspective is likely to be concernedprimarily with the ways in which:
- A.
The text's individual literary elements contribute to a coherent whole.
- B.
The language of the text reflects the cultural values of the society in which the text originates.
- C.
The text subverts modernist conceptions of history, reality, and truth.
- D.
The language of the text is composed of arbitrary signs and symbols.
- 11.
- A.
The text has an extensive annotated bibliography.
- B.
The researcher wants to locate specific words or phrases in the text
- C.
The text contains unfamiliar technical jargon.
- D.
The researcher wants to focus on the text's main ideas.
- 12.
- A.
Traitors are undermining the colonists' cause.
- B.
The conduct of the British reflects their hostile intent
- C.
Memory is short and has a tendency to deceive.
- D.
The British military is overwhelming in its strength.
- 13.In this passage Patrick Henry developsthe question-and-answer organizationof the speech by using rhetoricalquestions to:
- A.
Highlight the discrepancy between the conciliatory manner of the British and their warlike actions.
- B.
Compare and contrast the past actions of the British with their current policies.
- C.
Explore a variety of possible interpretations of the current actions of the British government.
- D.
Emphasize the power of American colonists to triumph in an armed conflict with the British.
- 14.
- A.
Revision is a discrete phase of the writing process that should occur after the initial drafting phase.
- B.
Substantive revisions should be finalized during the second-draft phase of the writing process.
- C.
Revision is a recursive activity that may occur at any phase of the writing process.
- D.
Substantive revision should occur primarily during the editing phase of the writing process.
- 15.A draft research paper includes a passagethat is a direct quotation from a primarysource. When reviewing the draft, theresearcher decides to interject a phrase inthe quoted material to explain a term thatmay not be familiar to modern readers.Which of the following proceduresshould the researcher use to differentiatethe inserted phrase from the quotedmaterial?
- A.
Identify the inserted phrase in the footnote for the quoted material.
- B.
Use ellipses to set off the inserted phrase from the quoted material.
- C.
Add a footnote immediately after the inserted phrase.
- D.
Enclose the inserted phrase in brackets.
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