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For Students Preparing for UGC NET Folk Literature. Jan 3, 2026 | Code 71
Syllabus of UGC NET Folk Literature (Paper 2)
Unit-wise MCQs
UNIT 2: HISTORIOGRAPHY OF FOLKLORISTICS
Q1. Early folklore studies often described the folk as
(A) Imagined communities
(B) Cultural performers
(C) Savages
(D) Social groups
Correct Answer: (C)
Q2. The shift from viewing folk as “savages” to “imagined groups” reflects
(A) Romantic nationalism
(B) Modern folkloristics
(C) Diffusionism
(D) Evolutionism
Correct Answer: (B)
Q3. The concept of “imagined group” challenges the idea that folk are
(A) Literate
(B) Static
(C) Homogeneous
(D) Historically conscious
Correct Answer: (B)
Q4. In early anthropology, folklore was treated mainly as
(A) Art
(B) Literature
(C) Cultural survival
(D) Performance
Correct Answer: (C)
Q5. The term “folklore as data” implies folklore is viewed as
(A) Artistic creation
(B) Raw cultural material
(C) Performance event
(D) Literary text
Correct Answer: (B)
Q6. “Folklore as study” refers to
(A) Collection of texts
(B) Archival storage
(C) Analytical discipline
(D) Cultural nationalism
Correct Answer: (C)
Q7. The distinction between folklore as data and folklore as study highlights
(A) Methodological difference
(B) Linguistic hierarchy
(C) Literary value
(D) Political ideology
Correct Answer: (A)
Q8. The Oracy vs Literacy debate primarily concerns
(A) Language purity
(B) Medium of transmission
(C) Authorship
(D) Genre classification
Correct Answer: (B)
Q9. Oracy emphasizes
(A) Written communication
(B) Print culture
(C) Spoken word
(D) Visual symbolism
Correct Answer: (C)
Q10. Literacy in folklore studies is associated with
(A) Oral memory
(B) Performance
(C) Written transmission
(D) Gesture
Correct Answer: (C)
Q11. Early folklorists often privileged
(A) Folk traditions
(B) Classical literature
(C) Oral performance
(D) Popular culture
Correct Answer: (B)
Q12. The Classical vs Folk debate reflects a hierarchy between
(A) Oral and written
(B) Rural and urban
(C) Old and new
(D) Sacred and secular
Correct Answer: (A)
Q13. Classical literature is generally characterized by
(A) Communal authorship
(B) Fixed texts
(C) Performance variation
(D) Anonymity
Correct Answer: (B)
Q14. Folk literature differs from classical literature because it is
(A) Written
(B) Canonical
(C) Performance-based
(D) Author-centered
Correct Answer: (C)
Q15. The emergence of folklore as an academic discipline occurred mainly in
(A) Medieval period
(B) 17th century
(C) 19th century
(D) 21st century
Correct Answer: (C)
Q16. The rise of folklore studies in Europe was closely linked with
(A) Industrial capitalism
(B) Romantic nationalism
(C) Postmodernism
(D) Globalization
Correct Answer: (B)
Q17. Romantic nationalism viewed folklore as
(A) Primitive residue
(B) Cultural heritage of the nation
(C) Superstition
(D) Colonial data
Correct Answer: (B)
Q18. The Brothers Grimm collected folktales to
(A) Entertain children
(B) Promote German national identity
(C) Study psychology
(D) Support colonialism
Correct Answer: (B)
Q19. Early folklore collections were motivated by
(A) Performance studies
(B) Structuralism
(C) Nation-building
(D) Digital preservation
Correct Answer: (C)
Q20. Folklore studies abroad initially developed within
(A) Sociology
(B) Anthropology and philology
(C) Media studies
(D) Linguistics alone
Correct Answer: (B)
Q21. Franz Boas contributed to folklore studies by emphasizing
(A) Evolutionism
(B) Cultural relativism
(C) Diffusionism
(D) Myth-ritual theory
Correct Answer: (B)
Q22. Boas opposed the idea that folklore evolves
(A) Culturally
(B) Uniformly across societies
(C) Through performance
(D) Through symbolism
Correct Answer: (B)
Q23. Folklore studies in India initially developed under
(A) Postcolonial theory
(B) Colonial ethnography
(C) Structuralism
(D) Feminism
Correct Answer: (B)
Q24. Early Indian folklore collections were largely undertaken by
(A) Village elders
(B) Colonial administrators and missionaries
(C) Performance artists
(D) Local communities
Correct Answer: (B)
Q25. Colonial folkloristics in India often treated folklore as
(A) Living tradition
(B) Cultural survival
(C) Dynamic process
(D) Performance
Correct Answer: (B)
Q26. Postcolonial folklore studies in India emphasize
(A) Canon formation
(B) Indigenous perspectives
(C) Textual purity
(D) Colonial authority
Correct Answer: (B)
Q27. Subaltern Studies contributed to folklore by focusing on
(A) Elite narratives
(B) Marginalized voices
(C) Classical texts
(D) National canons
Correct Answer: (B)
Q28. Subaltern Studies challenged historiography by
(A) Rejecting history
(B) Centering elite voices
(C) Questioning dominant narratives
(D) Promoting folklore tourism
Correct Answer: (C)
Q29. Tribal Studies intersect with folklore studies because they emphasize
(A) Written culture
(B) Indigenous knowledge systems
(C) Court literature
(D) Urban folklore
Correct Answer: (B)
Q30. Tribal folklore is best understood as
(A) Primitive belief
(B) Cultural knowledge system
(C) Superstition
(D) Literary imitation
Correct Answer: (B)
Q31. Diaspora studies examine folklore in relation to
(A) Migration and displacement
(B) Ritual purity
(C) Classical canon
(D) Oral formula
Correct Answer: (A)
Q32. Diasporic folklore often reflects
(A) Cultural loss only
(B) Cultural negotiation and memory
(C) Fixed tradition
(D) Assimilation only
Correct Answer: (B)
Q33. Green Studies connect folklore with
(A) Mythology
(B) Ecology and environment
(C) Politics
(D) Media
Correct Answer: (B)
Q34. Folk narratives about land, forest, and animals are studied under
(A) Structuralism
(B) Green Studies
(C) Psychoanalysis
(D) Diffusionism
Correct Answer: (B)
Q35. Green Studies challenge folklore research to consider
(A) Textual beauty
(B) Environmental ethics
(C) Historical dates
(D) Linguistic purity
Correct Answer: (B)
Q36. The historiography of folkloristics examines
(A) Folk texts only
(B) History of folklore scholarship
(C) Myth origins
(D) Ritual practices
Correct Answer: (B)
Q37. Early evolutionary folklorists believed folklore represented
(A) Cultural innovation
(B) Survivals of earlier stages
(C) Artistic genius
(D) Performance excellence
Correct Answer: (B)
Q38. Evolutionary thinking in folklore was influenced by
(A) Darwinism
(B) Postmodernism
(C) Feminism
(D) Structuralism
Correct Answer: (A)
Q39. Later folkloristics rejected unilinear evolution because it was
(A) Too textual
(B) Ethnocentric
(C) Performance-based
(D) Empirical
Correct Answer: (B)
Q40. Modern folkloristics emphasizes
(A) Hierarchy of cultures
(B) Cultural relativism
(C) Literary canon
(D) Evolutionary ranking
Correct Answer: (B)
Q41. Folklore studies shifted from collection to interpretation due to
(A) Structuralism and performance theory
(B) Colonial expansion
(C) Missionary activity
(D) Print capitalism
Correct Answer: (A)
Q42. The move from text-centered to context-centered study marks
(A) Classical folkloristics
(B) Modern folkloristics
(C) Evolutionary phase
(D) Diffusionist phase
Correct Answer: (B)
Q43. Contextual study of folklore emphasizes
(A) Written versions
(B) Social setting
(C) Authorship
(D) Canonization
Correct Answer: (B)
Q44. Performance-centered approaches emerged strongly in
(A) 18th century
(B) 19th century
(C) Mid-20th century
(D) 21st century
Correct Answer: (C)
Q45. Richard Bauman’s work belongs to
(A) Evolutionary folklore
(B) Performance-centered folkloristics
(C) Diffusionism
(D) Myth-ritual theory
Correct Answer: (B)
Q46. The historiography of folkloristics shows a shift from
(A) Practice to theory
(B) Theory to practice
(C) Collection to interpretation
(D) Performance to text
Correct Answer: (C)
Q47. Early folklore studies often ignored
(A) Text
(B) Context
(C) Genre
(D) Classification
Correct Answer: (B)
Q48. Modern folklore studies critique earlier approaches for being
(A) Too performative
(B) Too Eurocentric
(C) Too interdisciplinary
(D) Too ethical
Correct Answer: (B)
Q49. Folklore studies today reject the idea of folklore as
(A) Cultural process
(B) Living tradition
(C) Fossilized survival
(D) Social behavior
Correct Answer: (C)
Q50. The historiography of folklore highlights changing ideas about
(A) Myth only
(B) Folk and tradition
(C) Literature alone
(D) Ritual purity
Correct Answer: (B)
Q51. Early folklorists often equated folk culture with
(A) Modernity
(B) Backwardness
(C) Innovation
(D) Performance
Correct Answer: (B)
Q52. The concept of “folk” today includes
(A) Only rural communities
(B) Only tribal societies
(C) Any tradition-sharing group
(D) Pre-literate societies only
Correct Answer: (C)
Q53. Folklore studies abroad influenced Indian folklore studies mainly through
(A) Performance theory
(B) Colonial knowledge systems
(C) Feminism
(D) Media studies
Correct Answer: (B)
Q54. The postcolonial turn in folkloristics aims to
(A) Reinforce colonial categories
(B) Deconstruct colonial assumptions
(C) Abandon folklore
(D) Promote nationalism
Correct Answer: (B)
Q55. Indigenous knowledge systems gained importance in folklore studies due to
(A) Structuralism
(B) Subaltern and tribal studies
(C) Diffusionism
(D) Evolutionism
Correct Answer: (B)
Q56. Folklore historiography treats folklore studies as
(A) Neutral science
(B) Historically situated discipline
(C) Pure literature
(D) Fixed methodology
Correct Answer: (B)
Q57. Diaspora folklore challenges the idea that folklore is
(A) Oral
(B) Performative
(C) Place-bound
(D) Communal
Correct Answer: (C)
Q58. Diasporic traditions often adapt folklore to
(A) Host cultures
(B) Written forms
(C) Canonical texts
(D) Archives
Correct Answer: (A)
Q59. Green Studies emphasize folklore as
(A) Ecological knowledge
(B) Mythic illusion
(C) Literary metaphor
(D) Historical residue
Correct Answer: (A)
Q60. Environmental folklore often encodes
(A) Political ideology
(B) Ecological ethics
(C) Religious doctrine
(D) Scientific law
Correct Answer: (B)
Q61. The historiography of folkloristics reveals shifts in
(A) Genre only
(B) Methods and theories
(C) Performance styles
(D) Oral formulas
Correct Answer: (B)
Q62. Early folklore studies focused primarily on
(A) Performance
(B) Collection and classification
(C) Contextual analysis
(D) Reflexivity
Correct Answer: (B)
Q63. Reflexivity in modern folklore studies means
(A) Self-awareness of researcher
(B) Repetition of texts
(C) Literary reflection
(D) Performance critique
Correct Answer: (A)
Q64. Modern folkloristics treats folklore as
(A) Artifact
(B) Process
(C) Survival
(D) Error
Correct Answer: (B)
Q65. Historiography helps scholars to understand
(A) Folklore texts
(B) Evolution of scholarly perspectives
(C) Performance skills
(D) Genre purity
Correct Answer: (B)
Q66. Folklore studies intersect with history because folklore
(A) Records exact dates
(B) Reflects lived experience
(C) Replaces archives
(D) Is always factual
Correct Answer: (B)
Q67. The study of folklore in India after independence emphasized
(A) Colonial categories
(B) National and regional cultures
(C) Classical canon
(D) European theory only
Correct Answer: (B)
Q68. Folklore historiography critiques the idea of
(A) Tradition
(B) Cultural hierarchy
(C) Social meaning
(D) Performance
Correct Answer: (B)
Q69. The concept of folklore as “dynamic” emerged as a reaction against
(A) Performance theory
(B) Evolutionary models
(C) Contextual analysis
(D) Structuralism
Correct Answer: (B)
Q70. The historiography of folkloristics underscores folklore as
(A) Timeless artifact
(B) Historically changing concept
(C) Fixed genre
(D) Written literature
Correct Answer: (B)
Q71. Folklore studies today emphasize
(A) Textual fixity
(B) Cultural diversity
(C) Hierarchy of traditions
(D) Canon formation
Correct Answer: (B)
Q72. The shift from colonial to postcolonial folklore studies involved
(A) Abandoning folklore
(B) Reinterpreting folk traditions
(C) Eliminating theory
(D) Rejecting fieldwork
Correct Answer: (B)
Q73. Folklore historiography helps in identifying
(A) Best folklore
(B) Scholarly biases
(C) Correct myths
(D) Authentic versions
Correct Answer: (B)
Q74. Early folkloristics often ignored power relations because it focused on
(A) Performance
(B) Collection
(C) Social context
(D) Reflexivity
Correct Answer: (B)
Q75. Modern folklore studies address power through
(A) Evolutionism
(B) Subaltern and gender perspectives
(C) Diffusionism
(D) Philology
Correct Answer: (B)
Q76. Gender perspectives entered folklore studies as part of
(A) Classical folkloristics
(B) Post-structural approaches
(C) Evolutionary theory
(D) Myth-ritual theory
Correct Answer: (B)
Q77. Folklore historiography shows increasing concern with
(A) Objectivity alone
(B) Ethics and representation
(C) Textual purity
(D) Nationalism only
Correct Answer: (B)
Q78. Early folklore collections often detached folklore from
(A) Text
(B) Context
(C) Genre
(D) Language
Correct Answer: (B)
Q79. The recognition of folklore as “performance” corrected earlier
(A) Structuralist bias
(B) Text-only approaches
(C) Feminist critique
(D) Postmodern theory
Correct Answer: (B)
Q80. Folklore studies now reject the notion that folklore is
(A) Dynamic
(B) Meaningful
(C) Inferior to classical literature
(D) Cultural
Correct Answer: (C)
Q81. The historiography of folkloristics is essential because it
(A) Preserves folklore
(B) Explains how folklore is studied
(C) Collects narratives
(D) Records rituals
Correct Answer: (B)
Q82. Folklore studies abroad influenced India mainly during
(A) Post-independence era
(B) Colonial period
(C) Medieval period
(D) Digital age
Correct Answer: (B)
Q83. Modern Indian folkloristics seeks to
(A) Imitate Western models
(B) Adapt theory to local contexts
(C) Reject theory
(D) Focus only on texts
Correct Answer: (B)
Q84. Diaspora studies show that folklore
(A) Disappears outside homeland
(B) Becomes fixed
(C) Travels and transforms
(D) Loses meaning
Correct Answer: (C)
Q85. Green Studies emphasize folklore’s role in
(A) Political protest
(B) Environmental awareness
(C) Literary canon
(D) Religious doctrine
Correct Answer: (B)
Q86. The historiography of folkloristics reflects broader changes in
(A) Language
(B) Humanities and social sciences
(C) Technology only
(D) Performance skills
Correct Answer: (B)
Q87. Early folklore scholars often assumed folklore would
(A) Flourish forever
(B) Disappear with modernity
(C) Become written literature
(D) Gain canonical status
Correct Answer: (B)
Q88. Modern folkloristics rejects the “vanishing folklore” assumption because folklore
(A) Is archived
(B) Adapts to change
(C) Is written
(D) Is institutionalized
Correct Answer: (B)
Q89. Historiography helps distinguish between
(A) Good and bad folklore
(B) Old and new theories
(C) Authentic and fake
(D) Sacred and secular
Correct Answer: (B)
Q90. Folklore studies today emphasize
(A) Preservation without practice
(B) Living traditions
(C) Textual purity
(D) Canonical authority
Correct Answer: (B)
Q91. The idea of folklore as “process” emerged due to
(A) Evolutionary theory
(B) Performance and contextual studies
(C) Diffusionism
(D) Philology
Correct Answer: (B)
Q92. The historiography of folkloristics underscores the importance of
(A) Collection alone
(B) Interpretation
(C) Classification only
(D) Translation
Correct Answer: (B)
Q93. Folklore studies moved away from ranking cultures because ranking was
(A) Inefficient
(B) Ethnocentric
(C) Unscientific only
(D) Textual
Correct Answer: (B)
Q94. Folklore historiography reveals that folklore studies are
(A) Static
(B) Theory-driven
(C) Historically evolving
(D) Text-centered
Correct Answer: (C)
Q95. The modern view of folklore rejects the idea of folklore as
(A) Creative
(B) Communal
(C) Backward
(D) Meaningful
Correct Answer: (C)
Correct Answer: (B)
Q97. The relationship between folklore and history is best seen as
(A) Identical
(B) Oppositional
(C) Complementary
(D) Irrelevant
Correct Answer: (C)
Q98. Folklore studies today recognize folklore as
(A) Static artifact
(B) Cultural process
(C) Primitive belief
(D) Literary residue
Correct Answer: (B)
Q99. The historiography of folkloristics helps in critically examining
(A) Folk performers
(B) Scholarly assumptions
(C) Oral formulas
(D) Ritual symbols
Correct Answer: (B)
Q100. Unit 2 of the syllabus primarily focuses on
(A) Folk genres
(B) History of folklore theories and approaches
(C) Indian folk performances
(D) Fieldwork techniques Correct Answer: (B)