Create a custom practice set
Pick category, difficulty, number of questions, and time limit. Start instantly with your own quiz.
Generate QuizMCQ – GK Questions
Free practice for SSC, UPSC, Banking & Railway exams. No login required.
Amitav Ghosh's novel 'The Shadow Lines' primarily connects the histories and memories of which two cities?
- Delhi and Lahore
- Calcutta and Dhaka/London
- Bombay and Karachi
- Madras and Colombo
Answer: Calcutta and Dhaka/London
'The Shadow Lines' (1988) explores the arbitrary nature of borders, moving between Calcutta, Dhaka, and London against the backdrop of communal riots.
Nayantara Sahgal's novel 'Rich Like Us', which critiques the Emergency in India, won which prestigious literary award in 1986?
- Booker Prize
- Sahitya Akademi Award
- Jnanpith Award
- Crossword Book Award
Answer: Sahitya Akademi Award
Nayantara Sahgal won the Sahitya Akademi Award for 'Rich Like Us', which intertwines the lives of women across different social classes during the 1975 Emergency.
Which philosophical novel by Raja Rao explores the search for truth through the protagonist Rama's experiences in Europe and India?
- Kanthapura
- The Serpent and the Rope
- The Chessmaster and His Moves
- The Cat and Shakespeare
Answer: The Serpent and the Rope
Raja Rao published 'The Serpent and the Rope' in 1960. It won the Sahitya Akademi Award and is considered a masterpiece of Indian philosophical fiction.
Khushwant Singh's historical work 'A History of the Sikhs' is widely considered a definitive text on the subject. Which of his novels deals with the Partition of India through the lens of a border village?
- The Mark of Vishnu
- Train to Pakistan
- The Portrait of a Lady
- Delhi: A Novel
Answer: Train to Pakistan
Khushwant Singh wrote 'Train to Pakistan' in 1956. It is a poignant narrative about the Partition's impact on the fictional village of Mano Majra.
Rohinton Mistry's 'A Fine Balance' features four main characters from diverse backgrounds who end up living together in which city?
- Delhi
- Calcutta
- Bombay
- Madras
Answer: Bombay
The novel is set in an unnamed city that is clearly Bombay (Mumbai) during the Emergency of 1975-77.
In 2016, the Nobel Prize in Literature was controversially awarded to Bob Dylan for:
- His memoir 'Chronicles'
- Creating new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition
- His screenplay for 'Masked and Anonymous'
- His novel 'Tarantula'
Answer: Creating new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition
The Swedish Academy recognized Dylan's songwriting as a form of poetry, sparking debate about the boundaries of literature.
William Faulkner's 'The Sound and the Fury' is narrated by four different characters, including one who is:
- A ghost
- A cognitively disabled man
- A dog
- An unreliable historian
Answer: A cognitively disabled man
The first section is narrated by Benjy Compson, a 33-year-old man with severe cognitive disabilities, using a stream-of-consciousness style.
In John Steinbeck's 'Of Mice and Men', the two main characters, George and Lennie, are:
- Bank robbers
- Migrant ranch workers
- Soldiers
- Fishermen
Answer: Migrant ranch workers
The novella depicts the tragic friendship between the clever George and the mentally disabled but physically strong Lennie during the Great Depression.
Kalhana's 'Rajatarangini' is written in which language?
- Prakrit
- Pali
- Sanskrit
- Kashmiri
Answer: Sanskrit
Though it is a history of Kashmir, Kalhana composed the 'Rajatarangini' in Sanskrit verse.
Saadat Hasan Manto's short story 'Khol Do' highlights the brutality of Partition through the character of:
- Toba Tek Singh
- Sakina
- Bishan Singh
- Ismat
Answer: Sakina
The story ends with Sakina's traumatized reaction to the command 'Khol do' (Open it), exposing the sexual violence of Partition.
Kiran Desai's 'The Inheritance of Loss' is set in the Himalayas and which major global city?
- London
- New York
- Toronto
- Sydney
Answer: New York
The novel alternates between Kalimpong in India and the struggles of an undocumented immigrant in New York City.
Harper Lee won the 1961 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for which classic novel?
- To Kill a Mockingbird
- Go Set a Watchman
- The Color Purple
- Beloved
Answer: To Kill a Mockingbird
'To Kill a Mockingbird' addresses racial injustice in the Deep South through the eyes of Scout Finch.
Walt Whitman's groundbreaking poetry collection 'Leaves of Grass' includes which famous elegy for Abraham Lincoln?
- O Captain! My Captain!
- When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd
- Song of Myself
- Crossing Brooklyn Ferry
Answer: O Captain! My Captain!
While 'When Lilacs Last...' is also an elegy for Lincoln, 'O Captain! My Captain!' is the most famous and widely taught.
Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter' is set in which historical context?
- The American Civil War
- 17th-century Puritan Massachusetts
- The Salem Witch Trials of 1692
- The California Gold Rush
Answer: 17th-century Puritan Massachusetts
Published in 1850, it explores sin, legalism, and guilt in a strict Puritan society.
The Sanskrit play 'Svapnavasavadattam' (The Dream of Vasavadatta) is attributed to:
- Bhasa
- Kalidasa
- Harsha
- Shudraka
Answer: Bhasa
Bhasa is an ancient playwright whose works were rediscovered in the early 20th century. 'Svapnavasavadattam' is one of his masterpieces.
Mir Taqi Mir is often referred to as the ________ of Urdu poetry.
- Shakespeare
- Khuda-e-Sukhan (God of Poetry)
- Bulbul-e-Hind
- Sultan-ul-Shoara
Answer: Khuda-e-Sukhan (God of Poetry)
Mir Taqi Mir, an 18th-century poet, is highly revered and often called the 'God of Poetry' in the Urdu tradition.
Amitav Ghosh's 'The Glass Palace' primarily revolves around the fall of which monarchy?
- The Mughal Empire
- The Burmese Konbaung Dynasty
- The Kingdom of Nepal
- The Vijayanagara Empire
Answer: The Burmese Konbaung Dynasty
The novel traces the history of Burma, India, and Malaya, starting with the exile of King Thebaw of Burma.
Who was the first Kannada writer to win the Jnanpith Award?
- U.R. Ananthamurthy
- Kuvempu
- Shivaram Karanth
- Masti Venkatesha Iyengar
Answer: Kuvempu
Kuvempu (K.V. Puttappa) won the Jnanpith Award in 1967 for his epic 'Sri Ramayana Darshanam'.
Mark Twain's 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer' is set in the fictional town of:
- Maycomb
- St. Petersburg
- Yoknapatawpha
- Malgudi
Answer: St. Petersburg
St. Petersburg is based on Hannibal, Missouri, where Twain grew up.
In Charlotte Brontë's 'Jane Eyre', who is the master of Thornfield Hall?
- Mr. Darcy
- Edward Rochester
- Heathcliff
- Mr. Bingley
Answer: Edward Rochester
Edward Rochester hires Jane as a governess and becomes her complex and brooding love interest.