Tartous University Student’s name:

Faculty of Arts and Humanities Date: 12/9/2023

Third Year Language 5
Read the following text then answer the following questions (34 marks):
Christian monks and nuns were, in effect, the guardians of culture, as they were basically the only
people who could read and write before the fourteenth century. It is interesting therefore that most of the
native English culture that they preserved is not in Latin, the language of the church, but in Old English,
the language of the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes.
The world of Old English literature is a world of warriors and battles, a world where the individual, if not
under the protection of his local lord, is a solitary outsider in a harsh and difficult society. The best-
known long text in Old English is the epic poem Beowulf. Beowulf himself is a classic hero, who comes
from afar. He has defeated the mortal enemy of the area – the monster Grendel – and has thus made the
territory safe for its people. The people and the setting are both Germanic. The poem recalls a shared
heroic past, somewhere in the general consciousness of the audience who would hear it. The language of
Beowulf is extremely rich and inventive, full of imposing tones and rhythms: there are a great many
synonyms for ‘warrior’; many compound adjectives symbolizing hardness; many images of light, colour,
and blood; many superlatives and exaggerations to underline the heroic, legendary aspects of the tale.
1. Who were the preservers of English culture? How?
2. Why did they have many synonyms for the word “warrior”?
3. What are the main characteristics of the language of Beowulf?
Write the following information:
4. The opposite of “illuminate” and “preserved.”
5. Similar meanings to the words “guardians,” and “warriors.”
6. An example of famous epics in literature.

Choose the correct answer from the following sentences (30 marks):
1. The first fragment if literature is known…….. Caedmon’s Hymn. A-for. B-as. C-at.
2. Caedmon’s Hymn is therefore the first song of praise in English culture, and the first Christian religious poem
in English……..many Latin hymns were known at the time. A-therefore. B-although. C-through
3. Caedmon’s Hymn……..from the late seventeenth century. A-is date. B-dating. C-dates.
4. Diabetes…….. a blood sugar illness. . A-is. B-are. C-am.
5. Each girl and boy in the sixth-grade class……..to do a science project. A-has. B-have. C-
having.
6. Two-thirds of the money…… here. A-is. B-are. C-were.
7. Two-thirds of the boys…….here. A-is. B-are. C-am.
8. The French………proud people. A-is. B-are. C-does.
9. Before Jennifer defeated the lottery, she…..any kind of contest
A-hasn't entered. B-doesn't enter. C-hadn't entered..
10. ……all of this homework have to be finished by tomorrow. A-did. MB-does. C-do.
11. He has not yet succeeded…...the police of his innocence.
 A-with convincing. B-to convincing. C-in convincing.
12. During a fire drill, everyone is required……the building. A-to leave. B-leave. C-to
leaving.
13. She was watching a movie and……dinner at the same time A-had. B-having. C-have.
14. The earliest versions of the Bible and the Koran were all………… orally, and passed on from generation to
generation until they were set down in written form.
A-communicating. B-communication. C-communicated.
15. Half of the students in the class…….from foreign countries. A-is. B-are. C-am.

Name the figure of speech with a brief explanation (18 marks):

1. Rita heard the last piece of pizza calling her name.
2. Peter’s prancing pony performed perfectly.
3. I am so hungry that I could eat a horse.

Translate the following sentence from English to Arabic (18 marks).

1. In English, the first signs of oral literature tend to have three kinds of subject matter- religion,
war, and the trails of daily life.

2. His hymn is therefore the first song of praise in English culture, and the first Christian
religious poem in English.

3. Christian monks and nuns were the guardians of culture, as they were the only people who
could read and write before the 14th century.
Best wishes
Examiner: Ghonwa Hamoud