With his first published works in the 1950s, Amos Tutuola became the

With his first published works in the 1950s, Amos
Tutuola became the first Nigerian writer to receive
wide international recognition. Written in a mix of
standard English, idiomatic Nigerian English, and
(5) literal translation of his native language, Yoruba,
Tutuola’s works were quick to be praised by many
literary critics as fresh, inventive approaches to the
form of the novel. Others, however, dismissed his
works as simple retellings of local tales, full of
(10) unwelcome liberties taken with the details of the
well-known story lines. However, to estimate properly
Tutuola’s rightful position in world literature, it is
essential to be clear about the genre in which he
wrote; literary critics have assumed too facilely that
(15) he wrote novels.

No matter how flexible a definition of the novel
one uses, establishing a set of criteria that enable
Tutuola’s works to be described as such applies to his
works a body of assumptions the works are not
(20) designed to satisfy. Tutuola is not a novelist but a
teller of folktales. Many of his critics are right to
suggest that Tutuola’s subjects are not strikingly
original, but it is important to bear in mind that
whereas realism and originality are expected of the
(25) novel, the teller of folktales is expected to derive
subjects and frameworks from the corpus of
traditional lore. The most useful approach to
Tutuola’s works, then, is one that regards him as
working within the African oral tradition.

(30) Within this tradition, a folktale is common
property, an expression of a people’s culture and
social circumstances. The teller of folktales knows
that the basic story is already known to most listeners
and, equally, that the teller’s reputation depends on
(35) the inventiveness with which the tale is modified and
embellished, for what the audience anticipates is not
an accurate retelling of the story but effective
improvisation and delivery. Thus, within the
framework of the basic story, the teller is allowed
(40) considerable room to maneuver—in fact, the most
brilliant tellers of folktales transform them into
unique works.

Tutuola’s adherence to this tradition is clear:
specific episodes, for example, are often repeated for
(45) emphasis, and he embellishes familiar tales with
personal interpretations or by transferring them to
modern settings. The blend of English with local
idiom and Yoruba grammatical constructs, in which
adjectives and verbs are often interchangeable,
(50) re-creates the folktales in singular ways. And, perhaps
most revealingly, in the majority of Tutuola’s works,
the traditional accents and techniques of the teller of
folktales are clearly discernible, for example in the
adoption of an omniscient, summarizing voice at the
(55) end of his narratives, a device that is generally
recognized as being employed to conclude most
folktales.

1. Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main point of the passage?

(A) Amos Tutuola is an internationally acclaimed writer of folktales whose unique writing style blends together aspects of Yoruba, Nigerian English, and standard English.
(B) Amos Tutuola’s literary works should be evaluated not as novels but as unique and inventively crafted retellings of folktales.
(C) Amos Tutuola is an important author because he is able to incorporate the traditions of an oral art form into his novels.
(D) Critics are divided as to whether Amos Tutuola’s literary works should be regarded as novels or folktales.
(E) The folktale is a valuable African literary genre that finds singular expression in the works of Amos Tutuola.


2. Tutuola’s approach to writing folktales would be most clearly exemplified by a modern-day Irish author who

(A) applied conventions of the modern novel to the retelling of Irish folktales
(B) re-created important elements of the Irish literary style within a purely oral art form
(C) combined characters from English and Irish folktales to tell a story of modern life
(D) transplanted traditional Irish folktales from their original setting to contemporary Irish life
(E) utilized an omniscient narrator in telling original stories about contemporary Irish life


3. Which one of the following most accurately characterizes the author’s attitude toward Tutuola’s position in world literature?

(A) convinced that Tutuola’s works should be viewed within the context of the African oral tradition
(B) certain that Tutuola’s works will generate a renewed interest in the study of oral traditions
(C) pleased at the reception that Tutuola’s works have received from literary critics
(D) confident that the original integrity of Tutuola’s works will be preserved despite numerous translations
(E) optimistic that Tutuola’s works reflect what will become a growing new trend in literature


4 According to the passage, some critics have criticized Tutuola’s work on the ground that

(A) his literary works do not exhibit enough similarities to the African oral tradition from which they are drawn
(B) his mixture of languages is not entirely effective as a vehicle for either traditional folktales or contemporary novels
(C) his attempt to fuse elements of traditional storytelling style with the format of the novel is detrimental to his artistic purposes
(D) his writing borrows substantially from wellknown story lines and at the same time alters their details
(E) his unique works are not actually novels, even though he characterizes them as such


5. The author attributes each of the following to Tutuola EXCEPT:

(A) repetition of elements in his stories for emphasis
(B) relocation of traditional stories to modern settings
(C) attainment of international recognition
(D) use of an omniscient narrator in his works
(E) transformation of Yoruba folktales into modern novels


6. The author refers to the “corpus of traditional lore” (lines 26–27) as part of an attempt to

(A) distinguish expectations that apply to one literary genre from those that apply to another literary genre
(B) argue that two sharply differing literary genres are both equally valuable
(C) challenge critics who ascribe little merit to innovative ways of blending two distinct literary genres
(D) elucidate those characteristics of one literary genre that have direct counterparts in another, largely dissimilar genre
(E) argue for a new, more precise analysis of two literary genres whose distinguishing characteristics are poorly understood


7. The primary purpose of the passage is to

(A) illustrate the wide range of Tutuola’s body of work
(B) explain the significance of the literary genre of the folktale and to defend it as a valid art form
(C) provide an account of Tutuola’s body of work in order to help establish appropriate criteria for its evaluation
(D) distinguish accurately between the genre of the novel and that of the folktale
(E) summarize the disagreement among critics regarding Tutuola’s place in world literature