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Philip Larkin was the assistant librarian at Leicester University.

Genre - Modern Literature

Modern literature explores contemporary lives, identities, and conflicts. This quiz helps you think about how recent writers experiment with narrative, voice, and structure to reflect today’s world.

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Fascinating Fact:

Characters in modern texts are often morally ambiguous, with mixed motives and conflicting desires, which encourages critical discussion rather than simple judgement.

In Specialist Books quizzes on modern literature, you explore how recent novels, plays, and short stories use structure, language, and voice to present complex characters and shifting views of society.

Key Terms

Modern literature: Writing from the late nineteenth century onwards that often experiments with style, structure, and viewpoint to reflect changing cultures and ideas.
Stream of consciousness: A narrative technique that presents a character’s thoughts and feelings in a flowing, sometimes fragmented sequence.
Unreliable narrator: A storyteller whose account may be biased, limited, or misleading, so readers must question and interpret events carefully.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What counts as modern literature in quizzes?

Modern literature usually refers to texts from the late nineteenth century to the present day, including novels, plays, and poetry that respond to contemporary social, political, and personal issues.

How is modern literature different from classic literature?

Modern literature often uses experimental structures, shifting viewpoints, and everyday language, while classic literature tends to follow more traditional forms and reflects concerns of earlier historical periods.

Why is modern literature useful for English study?

Modern literature is useful because it links closely to current themes, encourages debate about identity and society, and provides rich examples of narrative technique and characterisation for analysis.

Try These Related Quizzes

1 .

Which Scottish author wrote the 1990s novels Quite Ugly One Morning and Country of the Blind?

Christopher Brookmyre

Iain Banks

Ian Rankin

Irvine Welsh

Quite Ugly One Morning was Brookmyre's first novel and it won the inaugural First Blood Award for the best first crime novel of the year

2 .

What is the title of Monica Ali's 2003 novel about London's Bangladeshi community?

Brick Lane

Rock Lane

Stone Lane

Wood Lane

The book tells the story of Nazneen, a Bangladeshi woman of 18 who comes to London to marry an older man

3 .

Who wrote the novels Bridget Jones' Diary and its sequels Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason and Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy?

Harriet Fielding

Hazel Fielding

Helen Fielding

Hilary Fielding

As well as the Bridget Jones series, Helen Fielding has also written Cause Celeb, a satire on celebrities and Olivia Joules and The Overactive Imagination, a comedy spy story

4 .

For which novel did Salman Rushdie win the 1981 Booker Prize?

East, West

Midnight's Children

The Moor's Last Sigh

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5 .

In the Horrid Henry books by Francesca Simon, what is the name of Henry's well-behaved younger brother?

Patient Peter

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Pleasant Peter

Polite Peter

Other characters include Lazy Linda and Rude Ralph

6 .

Which crime writer created the character Detective Inspector Jack Frost?

RD Wakefield

RD Waterfield

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RD Woodfield

The character's real name is William, but only his wife calls him that

7 .

In 1955 the poet Philip Larkin became the librarian at which university?

Cambridge

Hull

Leicester

Oxford

He had previously been assistant librarian at Leicester

8 .

In which Harold Pinter play do the two sinister visitors Goldberg and McCann appear?

The Birthday Party

The Caretaker

The Dumb Waiter

The Room

The Birthday Party was not well received when it was first performed and nearly ended Pinter's career. It has since however, gone on to be considered a classic

9 .

Which football club features prominently in Nick Hornby's best-selling book Fever Pitch?

Arsenal

Chelsea

Tottenham Hotspur

West Ham United

Fever Pitch was an autobiographical essay by Hornby with the subtitle A Fan's Life

10 .

In Sue Townsend's 1999 novel Adrian Mole: The Cappuccino Years, Pandora, the love of Adrian's life, is standing as Labour MP for where?

Ashby de la Zouch

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Melton Mowbray

There are 8 books in the series - The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾, The Growing Pains of Adrian Mole, The True Confessions of Adrian Albert Mole, Adrian Mole: The Wilderness Years, Adrian Mole: The Cappuccino Years, Adrian Mole and the Weapons of Mass Destruction, The Lost Diaries of Adrian Mole and Adrian Mole: The Prostrate Years

Author: Tony Rennick (Art and Literature Critic)