Judith Wright – “At Cooloolah” – Exam Based MCQs
1. “At Cooloolah” is a poem written by: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020; PGTRB 2021)
A) Judith Wright
B) Sylvia Plath
C) Adrienne Rich
D) Emily Dickinson
Ans: A) Judith Wright
2. Judith Wright is mainly associated with: (SET 2019; PGTRB 2020)
A) Australian literature
B) American Transcendentalism
C) Irish Revival
D) Victorian England
Ans: A) Australian literature
3. “At Cooloolah” reflects strongly on: (UGC NET 2019; SET 2021; PGTRB 2022)
A) Industrial progress
B) Colonial guilt, Aboriginal presence, and identity
C) Romantic love
D) Medieval chivalry
Ans: B) Colonial guilt, Aboriginal presence, and identity
4. “Cooloolah” refers to: (UGC NET 2017; SET 2019; PGTRB 2020)
A) A mountain in New Zealand
B) A place in Australia (Queensland coastal region)
C) A river in Canada
D) A city in England
Ans: B) A place in Australia (Queensland coastal region)
5. The poem mixes nature imagery with: (SET 2020; PGTRB 2022)
A) Pure humour
B) Historical and political awareness
C) Courtly romance
D) Mythic heroism
Ans: B) Historical and political awareness
6. A major concern of “At Cooloolah” is: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020)
A) Celebration of empire
B) Displacement of Indigenous people
C) Romantic idealism
D) Scientific progress
Ans: B) Displacement of Indigenous people
7. The speaker in the poem experiences a sense of: (SET 2019; PGTRB 2021)
A) Pride in conquest
B) Alienation and guilt as a settler
C) Romantic fulfilment
D) Comic happiness
Ans: B) Alienation and guilt as a settler
8. The poem is often read as an example of: (UGC NET 2019; SET 2021; PGTRB 2022)
A) Postcolonial awareness in Australian poetry
B) Renaissance sonnet tradition
C) Metaphysical conceit
D) Romantic ode
Ans: A) Postcolonial awareness in Australian poetry
9. “At Cooloolah” strongly suggests the land is: (UGC NET 2017; SET 2019; PGTRB 2020)
A) Empty and ownerless
B) Marked by Aboriginal history and presence
C) Only a tourist spot
D) Purely mythical
Ans: B) Marked by Aboriginal history and presence
10. The tone of the poem is best described as: (SET 2020; PGTRB 2022)
A) Triumphant and celebratory
B) Reflective, uneasy, and critical
C) Purely romantic
D) Comic and light
Ans: B) Reflective, uneasy, and critical
11. Judith Wright is also known for writing about: (UGC NET 2016; SET 2018; PGTRB 2019)
A) Environment and land
B) Medieval knights
C) Victorian love stories
D) Greek epics
Ans: A) Environment and land
12. The poem’s “we are the conquerors” idea is presented with: (SET 2017; PGTRB 2020)
A) Pride
B) Irony and discomfort
C) Celebration
D) Humour
Ans: B) Irony and discomfort
13. “At Cooloolah” can be linked to which broader issue? (UGC NET 2019; SET 2021; PGTRB 2022)
A) Colonialism and its consequences
B) Medieval theology
C) Industrial revolution only
D) Romantic escapism
Ans: A) Colonialism and its consequences
14. The poem highlights conflict between: (SET 2019; PGTRB 2021)
A) Nature and industry only
B) Settler identity and Indigenous history
C) Love and marriage
D) Myth and science
Ans: B) Settler identity and Indigenous history
15. The poem’s landscape functions as: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020)
A) Mere decoration
B) A living reminder of history and belonging
C) A comic stage
D) A fantasy world
Ans: B) A living reminder of history and belonging
16. The poem’s viewpoint is primarily that of a: (UGC NET 2017; SET 2019; PGTRB 2020)
A) Aboriginal elder celebrating conquest
B) Settler/white Australian speaker reflecting critically
C) Medieval knight
D) Greek hero
Ans: B) Settler/white Australian speaker reflecting critically
17. “At Cooloolah” is significant for combining: (SET 2018; PGTRB 2020)
A) Nature writing and political conscience
B) Courtly romance and satire
C) Mythology and comedy
D) Devotion and prayer
Ans: A) Nature writing and political conscience
18. The poem suggests the settlers are: (UGC NET 2019; SET 2021)
A) Completely at home and innocent
B) “Strangers” on the land with uneasy belonging
C) Purely heroic
D) Unaffected by history
Ans: B) “Strangers” on the land with uneasy belonging
19. The poem’s mood is closest to: (SET 2019; PGTRB 2021)
A) Celebration
B) Regret and self-questioning
C) Comic joy
D) Romantic excitement
Ans: B) Regret and self-questioning
20. The poem can be best described as: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020; PGTRB 2021)
A) A reflective postcolonial lyric
B) A romantic sonnet
C) A comic ballad
D) A devotional hymn
Ans: A) A reflective postcolonial lyric
21. Judith Wright’s poetry is often linked with: (SET 2020; PGTRB 2022)
A) Environmental consciousness
B) Medieval theology
C) Restoration comedy
D) Metaphysical conceits only
Ans: A) Environmental consciousness
22. The poem foregrounds the idea of “belonging” as: (UGC NET 2019; SET 2021; PGTRB 2022)
A) Simple and assured
B) Complex and morally troubling
C) Completely irrelevant
D) Purely romantic
Ans: B) Complex and morally troubling
23. “At Cooloolah” is frequently discussed in relation to: (SET 2019; PGTRB 2021)
A) Aboriginal dispossession
B) Victorian romance
C) Greek mythology
D) Medieval drama
Ans: A) Aboriginal dispossession
24. The poem uses landscape to evoke: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020)
A) National pride only
B) Memory, history, and conscience
C) Comic scenes
D) Romantic fantasy
Ans: B) Memory, history, and conscience
25. The poem’s key concern is the relationship between: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020; PGTRB 2021)
A) Humans, land, and historical injustice
B) Lovers in a city
C) Knights and kings
D) Mythic gods
Ans: A) Humans, land, and historical injustice
26. The poem’s speaker most clearly shows: (SET 2020; PGTRB 2022)
A) Unquestioned pride
B) Self-awareness and moral unease
C) Pure humour
D) Total indifference
Ans: B) Self-awareness and moral unease
27. The poem’s politics are conveyed through: (UGC NET 2019; SET 2021)
A) Indirect reflection and imagery
B) A five-act plot
C) Pure comedy
D) Mythic battle scenes
Ans: A) Indirect reflection and imagery
28. “At Cooloolah” can be called a poem of: (SET 2019; PGTRB 2021)
A) Conscience
B) Courtly romance
C) Mythic heroism
D) Pure humour
Ans: A) Conscience
29. The poem critiques the idea of: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020)
A) “Empty land” (terra nullius)
B) Romantic love
C) Medieval chivalry
D) Scientific progress
Ans: A) “Empty land” (terra nullius)
30. The poem’s overall stance is: (SET 2019; PGTRB 2021)
A) Celebratory
B) Critical and reflective
C) Purely comic
D) Romantic
Ans: B) Critical and reflective
31. The poem suggests that the land “remembers”: (UGC NET 2019; SET 2021; PGTRB 2022)
A) Only tourist fun
B) Indigenous history and loss
C) Romantic lovers
D) Courtly kings
Ans: B) Indigenous history and loss
32. The poem’s style is best described as: (SET 2020; PGTRB 2022)
A) Lyrical, reflective, and politically aware
B) Comic farce
C) Scientific report
D) Epic narrative
Ans: A) Lyrical, reflective, and politically aware
33. “At Cooloolah” reflects a postcolonial concern with: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020; PGTRB 2021)
A) Identity and belonging
B) Courtly romance
C) Medieval theology
D) Metaphysical puzzles
Ans: A) Identity and belonging
34. The poem’s “we” refers mainly to: (SET 2019; PGTRB 2021)
A) Settler Australians
B) Greek heroes
C) Medieval knights
D) Mythic gods
Ans: A) Settler Australians
35. The poem is important in Australian literature because it: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020; PGTRB 2021)
A) Acknowledges colonial violence and Indigenous presence
B) Celebrates empire
C) Avoids history
D) Is only about romance
Ans: A) Acknowledges colonial violence and Indigenous presence
36. Judith Wright is often described as a poet of: (SET 2018; PGTRB 2020)
A) Land and conscience
B) Courtly romance
C) Pure comedy
D) Industrial praise
Ans: A) Land and conscience
37. The poem’s “haunted” feeling comes from: (UGC NET 2019; SET 2021; PGTRB 2022)
A) Ghost stories
B) Awareness of dispossession and history
C) Romantic jealousy
D) Mythic gods
Ans: B) Awareness of dispossession and history
38. The poem is often interpreted as a critique of: (SET 2020; PGTRB 2022)
A) Settler colonialism
B) Medieval politics
C) Romantic poetry
D) Restoration comedy
Ans: A) Settler colonialism
39. The poem’s method is to combine: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020)
A) Landscape imagery with moral reflection
B) Epic battle scenes
C) Romantic comedy
D) Mythic heroism
Ans: A) Landscape imagery with moral reflection
40. The poem’s dominant message is that belonging to the land is: (SET 2019; PGTRB 2021)
A) Easy and innocent
B) Ethically complex
C) Unimportant
D) Purely romantic
Ans: B) Ethically complex
41. The poem belongs to: (UGC NET 2019; SET 2021; PGTRB 2022)
A) Australian postcolonial poetry
B) Old English elegy
C) Renaissance drama
D) Romantic pastoral
Ans: A) Australian postcolonial poetry
42. “At Cooloolah” emphasizes that history is: (SET 2020; PGTRB 2022)
A) Forgotten
B) Present in the landscape
C) Irrelevant
D) Purely comic
Ans: B) Present in the landscape
43. The poem’s strongest effect is created through: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020; PGTRB 2021)
A) Contrast between beauty of nature and painful history
B) Romantic plot
C) Comic dialogue
D) Mythic battles
Ans: A) Contrast between beauty of nature and painful history
44. The poem’s political dimension mainly concerns: (SET 2019; PGTRB 2021)
A) Indigenous rights and justice
B) Medieval monarchy
C) Romantic jealousy
D) Scientific progress
Ans: A) Indigenous rights and justice
45. Judith Wright is admired for: (UGC NET 2019; SET 2021; PGTRB 2022)
A) Ethical engagement with land and history
B) Pure romantic fantasy
C) Comic theatre
D) Medieval epics
Ans: A) Ethical engagement with land and history
46. The poem’s overall form is: (SET 2020; PGTRB 2022)
A) Reflective lyric
B) Five-act drama
C) Mock-epic
D) Comic ballad
Ans: A) Reflective lyric
47. The poem’s speaker feels “strange” because: (UGC NET 2018; SET 2020; PGTRB 2021)
A) The land is empty
B) The land holds Indigenous presence and memory
C) It is a romantic picnic
D) It is a comic stage
Ans: B) The land holds Indigenous presence and memory
48. “At Cooloolah” is often taught as a poem of: (SET 2019; PGTRB 2021)
A) Historical conscience
B) Romantic fulfilment
C) Pure comedy
D) Mythic heroism
Ans: A) Historical conscience
49. The poem’s overall message is that settlers must: (UGC NET 2019; SET 2021; PGTRB 2022)
A) Forget the past
B) Acknowledge history and injustice
C) Celebrate conquest
D) Ignore the land
Ans: B) Acknowledge history and injustice
50. Overall, “At Cooloolah” can best be described as: (UGC NET 2020; SET 2021; PGTRB 2022)
A) A reflective postcolonial poem about land, history, and guilt
B) A romantic sonnet
C) A comic ballad
D) A devotional hymn
Ans: A) A reflective postcolonial poem about land, history, and guilt
Let me know your doubts