GO TO  INSTITUTIONS ABBREVIATION & MEANING

GENERAL OBJECTIVES:

The aim of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) syllabus in Literature in English is to prepare the candidates for the Board’s examination. It is designed to test their achievement of the course objectives, which are to:

1. stimulate and sustain their interest in Literature in English;
2. create an awareness of the general principles of Literature and functions of language;
3. appreciate literary works of all genres and across all cultures;
4. apply the knowledge of Literature in English to the analysis of social, political and economic events in the society.

DETAILED SYLLABUS

1. DRAMA
TOPICS/CONTENTS/NOTES	OBJECTIVES, Candidates should be able to:
a. Types: i. Tragedy ii. Comedy iii. Tragicomedy iv. Melodrama v. Farce vi. Opera etc.	i. identify the various types of drama; ii. analyse the contents of the various types of drama; iii. compare and contrast the features of different dramatic types;
b. Dramatic Techniques i. Characterization ii. Dialogue iii. Flashback iv. Mime v. Costume vi. Music/Dance vii. Décor/scenery viii. Acts/Scenes ix. Soliloquy/aside x. Figures of Speech etc.	iv. demonstrate adequate knowledge of dramatic techniques used in each prescribed text;
c. Interpretation of the Prescribed Texts i. Theme ii. Plot iii. Socio-political context iv. Setting	v. differentiate between styles of selected playwrights; vi. determine the theme of any prescribed text; vii. identify the plot of the play; viii. apply the lessons of the play to everyday living; ix. identify the spatial and temporal setting of the play.
2. PROSE
TOPICS/CONTENTS/NOTES	OBJECTIVES, Candidates should be able to:
a. Types: i. Fiction • Novel • Novella/Novelette • Short story	i. differentiate between types of prose; ii. identify the category that each prescribed text belongs to; iii. analyse the components of each type of prose;
ii. Non-fiction • Biography • Autobiography • Memoir iii. Faction: combination of fact and fiction	iv. identify the narrative techniques used in each of the prescribed texts; v. determine an author’s narrative style; vi. distinguish between one type of character from another;
b. Narrative Techniques/Devices: i. Point of view • Omniscient/Third Person • First Person ii. Characterisation • Round, flat, foil, hero, antihero, etc. iii. Language c. Textual Analysis i. Theme ii. Plot iii. Setting (Temporal/Spatial) iv. Socio-political context	vii. determine the thematic preoccupation of the author of the prescribed text; viii. indicate the plot of the novel; identify the temporal and spatial setting of the novel; ix. identify the temporal and spatial setting of the novel; x. relate the prescribed text to real life situations.
3. POETRY
TOPICS/CONTENTS/NOTES	OBJECTIVES, Candidates should be able to:
a. Types: i. Sonnet ii. Ode iii. Lyrics iv. Elegy v. Ballad vi. Panegyric vii. Epic viii. Blank Verse, etc.	i. identify different types of poetry; ii. compare and contrast the features of different poetic types:
b. Poetic devices i. Structure ii. Imagery iii. Sound(Rhyme/Rhythm, repetition, pun, onomatopoeia, etc.) iv. Diction v. Persona	iii. determine the devices used by various poets; iv. show how poetic devices are used for aesthetic effect in each poem;
c. Appreciation i. Thematic preoccupation ii. Socio-political relevance iii. Style.	v. deduce the poet’s preoccupation from the poem; vi. appraise poetry as an art with moral values; vii. apply the lessons from the poem to real life situations.
4. GENERAL LITERARY PRINCIPLES
TOPICS/CONTENTS/NOTES	OBJECTIVES, Candidates should be able to:
a. Literary terms: foreshadowing, suspense, theatre, monologue, dialogue, soliloquy, symbolism, protagonist, antagonist, figures of speech, satire, stream of consciousness, etc., in addition to those listed above under the different genres. b. Literary principles i. Direct imitation in play; ii. Versification in drama and poetry; iii. Narration of people’s experiences iv. Achievement of aesthetic value, etc. c. Relationship between literary terms and principles.	i. identify literary terms in drama, prose and poetry; ii. identify the general principles of Literature; iii. differentiate between literary terms and principles; iv. use literary terms appropriately.
5. LITERARY APPRECIATION
TOPICS/CONTENTS/NOTES	OBJECTIVES, Candidates should be able to:
Unseen passages/extracts from Drama, Prose and Poetry.	i. determine literary devices used in a given passage/extract; ii. provide a meaningful interpretation of the given passage/extract; iii. relate the extract to true life experiences.

A LIST OF SELECTED AFRICAN AND NON-AFRICAN PLAYS, NOVELS AND POEMS

Drama:
African:
1. Frank Ogodo Ogbeche: Harvest of Corruption

Non African:
1. William Shakespeare: Othello

Prose:
African:
i. Amma Darko: Faceless
ii. Bayo Adebowale: Lonely Days

Non African:
i. Richard Wright: Native Son

Poetry:
African:
i. Gbemisola Adeoti; Ambush
ii. Birago Diop: Vanity
iii. Gabriel Okara: Piano and Drums
iv. Gbanabam Hallowell: The Dining Table
v. Lenrie Peters: The Panic of Growing Older
vi. Kofi Awoonor: The Anvil and the Hammer

Non African:
i. Alfred L. Tennyson: Crossing the Bar
ii. George Herbert: The Pulley
iii. William Blake: The School Boy
iv. Thomas Gray: The Bard

A. RECOMMENDED TEXTS

1. ANTHOLOGIES

Gbemisola, A. (2005) Naked Soles, Ibadan: Kraft

Hayward, J. (ed.) (1968) The Penguin Book of English Verse, London Penguin

Johnson, R. et al (eds.) (1996) New Poetry from Africa, Ibadan: UP Plc

Kermode, F. et al (1964) Oxford Anthology of English Literature, Vol. II, London: OUP

Nwoga D. (ed.) (1967) West African Verse, London: Longman

Parker, E.W. (ed.) (1980) A Pageant of Longer Poems London: Longman

Senanu, K. E. and Vincent, T. (eds.) (1993) A Selection of African Poetry, Lagos: Longman

Soyinka, W. (ed.) (1987) Poems of Black Africa, Ibadan: Heinemann


2. CRITICAL TEXTS

Abrams, M. H. (1981) A Glossary of Literary Terms, (4th Edition) New York, Holt Rinehalt and Winston

Emeaba, O. E. (1982) A Dictionary of Literature, Aba: Inteks Press

Murphy, M. J. (1972) Understanding Unseen, An Introduction to English Poetry and English Novel for Overseas Students, George Allen and Unwin Ltd.

Jerry A. (2018) Sorters and Sortees Ibadan, Kraftgriots.

Jerry A. (2018) Specks In Our Eyes Ibadan, Kraftgriots.