CLEP Humanities : Analyzing the Content of Twentieth-Century Fiction

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for CLEP Humanities

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Example Questions

Example Question #11 : Clep: Humanities

Which fantasy author created the realm known as "Middle Earth"?

Possible Answers:

W. H. Auden

H. P. Lovecraft

C. S. Lewis

Sinclair Lewis

J. R. R. Tolkien

Correct answer:

J. R. R. Tolkien

Explanation:

J.R.R. Tolkien was an Oxford University professor who began telling his children stories about a fictional time and place as bedtime stories. Eventually, Tolkien molded and reshaped these stories into the novels The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion. Tolkien's books became classics of the fantasy genre, and have been turned into successful film franchises.

Example Question #12 : Clep: Humanities

What is the mid-twentieth-century American novel about a young man wandering around New York City on a break from his school?

Possible Answers:

Rabbit, Run

The Catcher in the Rye

The Naked and the Dead

The Fixer

Portnoy's Complaint

Correct answer:

The Catcher in the Rye

Explanation:

J.D. Salinger's 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye is the story of the teenager Holden Caulfield, who feels disillusioned with his life at a boarding school and leaves for a break to go back to his native New York City. The book is told from Holden's point of view and presents an early version of teenage angst as it details Holden's wanderings. The book is a popular book still, and often appears on "Best Books" lists.

Example Question #13 : Clep: Humanities

May Welland, Newland Archer, and Ellen Olenska, are all characters in which novel?

Possible Answers:

East of Eden

For Whom the Bell Tolls

Middlemarch

The Age of Innocence

Gone with the Wind

Correct answer:

The Age of Innocence

Explanation:

Ellen Olenska, Newland Archer, and May Welland are main characters in Edith Wharton's novel Age of Innocence. The novel was awarded the 1921 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

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