English Literature CLEP Prep Practice Exam

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Prepare for the English Literature CLEP Exam with our comprehensive quiz! Engage with a variety of questions designed to boost your knowledge and confidence. Master literary terms, historical periods, and key texts to excel on test day.

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What form did Chaucer's Canterbury Tales take?

Epic
Chronicle
Play
Frame Story

The correct answer is: Frame Story

Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales was written as a frame story, a literary device where a main story serves as a container for other stories. This structure allowed Chaucer to present a diverse range of characters and tales, making the work more entertaining and relatable for his audience. The other options, epic, chronicle, and play, do not accurately describe the structure of Canterbury Tales. A chronicle is a factual record or historical account, while an epic is a long narrative poem that typically celebrates the deeds of a hero. A play is a form of literature intended to be performed, and while Canterbury Tales has been adapted for the stage, it was not originally written in this format. Thus, the correct answer is D, frame story.