Dear Future Colleagues!

Becoming an English Lecturer through the PPSC (Punjab Public Service Commission) is an intellectual challenge. This pursuit demands not only a profound command of English literature and linguistics but also a grasp of general knowledge (basic math, current affairs, Islamic history, Urdu, and everyday science).

The experience of a successful candidate often begins with the same blend of ambition and apprehension that any aspirant feels today.

It is a path marked by long hours of study, the meticulous analysis of past papers, and the constant pursuit of a deeper understanding of the subject.

My objective is to transform apprehension into confidence and ambition into achievement, providing the clarity and direction needed not just to compete, but to excel.

 

PPSC English Lecturer Exam Guide

The PPSC (Punjab Public Service Commission) uses a two-stage selection process. This process rigorously evaluates candidates across two metrics.

1- Written examination

The first stage is a written examination. This exam functions as a wide-net screening tool. It tests the breadth of a candidate’s knowledge across the prescribed domains. This test is typically composed of Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs).

2- Panel interview

Candidates who achieve the qualifying threshold in this written test are then shortlisted. They are called for the second stage. This stage is a panel interview.

The interview is a more focused assessment. It is designed to probe the depth of a candidate’s subject matter expertise. It also evaluates their personality. The interview gauges their suitability for the pedagogical demands of a lectureship.

 

A complete guide to the PPSC test.
The 100-mark MCQ paper includes Literature, Grammar, and General Knowledge.

 

Marking

The PPSC written test is not just a test of knowledge. It is also a test of strategic decision-making. This is primarily because of negative marking.

The standard practice for the PPSC in Pakistan is to deduct 0.25 marks for each incorrect answer.

This policy fundamentally changes the nature of the exam. It penalizes random guessing. It rewards candidates who possess knowledge. It also rewards candidates who understand the limits of their knowledge.

A successful strategy, therefore, involves risk management. Candidates should answer questions when they have a high degree of confidence.

They can make educated guesses if some options can be logically eliminated. They must also wisely leave questions unanswered when the probability of getting the answer wrong is high.

 

 

Detailed Syllabus Topics

1. History of English Literature

This section forms the foundation of the entire syllabus. Without understanding the historical context, it’s difficult to grasp the works and motivations of the writers.

You need to know the characteristics of each literary period, its famous authors, and the significant events that shaped it.

Anglo-Saxon & Middle English Period: Focus on Beowulf and, especially, Geoffrey Chaucer (known as the “Father of English Literature”) and his seminal work, The Canterbury Tales.

The Renaissance (14th-17th Century): This was the golden age of literature. Pay close attention to William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe (and the University Wits), Ben Jonson, and Edmund Spenser. Understand the concept of Humanism.

17th & 18th Century (Neoclassical Period): This period includes John Milton’s epic Paradise Lost, the Metaphysical Poets (especially John Donne), and the writers of the Age of Satire, such as Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift.

The Romantic Period (1798-1832): An era of emotion, nature, and imagination. The most important poets are William Wordsworth, S.T. Coleridge, John Keats, P.B. Shelley, and Lord Byron.

The Victorian Period (1832-1901): An age of industrial revolution and social change. In poetry, focus on Alfred Tennyson and Robert Browning. In the novel, focus on the works of Charles Dickens, George Eliot, and the Brontë sisters.

Modernism & Post-Modernism (20th Century): This period marked a break from traditional literature. Key figures include T.S. Eliot, W.B. Yeats, Virginia Woolf, and James Joyce.

 

2. Poetry

This is a significant component of the syllabus. Questions typically cover poets, their famous works, and poetic devices.

Key Poets: You must study all the major poets mentioned in the History section (from Chaucer to T.S. Eliot) and their most important poems. Review their biographies and literary contributions.

Forms and Genres

You must know the definitions and examples of the following: Sonnet (Shakespearean & Petrarchan)

Ode (e.g., Keats’ Odes)
Epic (e.g., Paradise Lost, Hyperion)
Ballad
Elegy (e.g., Shelley’s Adonais)
Dramatic Monologue (e.g., Browning’s poems)

Literary Devices

Understand terms like Metaphor, Simile, Personification, Alliteration, Assonance, Irony, and Symbolism.

3. Drama

Questions in this section are generally based on Shakespeare, his contemporaries, and modern drama.

Elizabethan & Jacobean Drama: William Shakespeare is the most important figure. You must know the plots and characters of his major Tragedies (Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth) and Comedies (A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Tempest).

Also, study Christopher Marlowe (Dr. Faustus) and Ben Jonson.

Greek Tragedy: Understand Sophocles and key concepts like the Chorus, Hamartia (tragic flaw), and Catharsis.

Modern Drama: Focus on the works of Ibsen (Problem Plays), G.B. Shaw (Plays of Ideas), Samuel Beckett (Theatre of the Absurd), and Arthur Miller.

4. Novel

This section covers important novelists from the rise of the novel to the 20th century.

The Rise of the Novel (18th Century): Review the works of Jonathan Swift (Gulliver’s Travels) and Samuel Richardson.

The 19th Century (Golden Age of the Novel): This is the most critical part. Focus on Jane Austen (social commentary), Charles Dickens (social criticism), Emily & Charlotte Brontë (gothic romance), and George Eliot (psychological realism).

The Modern Novel: This era introduced techniques like “Stream of Consciousness,” pioneered by Virginia Woolf and James Joyce. Other important figures are Joseph Conrad and D.H. Lawrence.

5. Grammar & Composition

This section tests your general command of the English language.

Vocabulary: Focus on Synonyms, Antonyms, Analogies, and Idioms. Sentence Structure: You must know the rules for Subject-Verb Agreement, correct use of Tenses, Prepositions, Conjunctions, and Punctuation.

Questions are often in the format of “Sentence Correction” or “Fill in the blanks.”

6. Literary Criticism & Theory

This section deals with the principles used to analyze and evaluate literature. Questions are based on major critics and their theories.

Classical Criticism: Aristotle’s Poetics and his concepts of Mimesis, Hamartia, and Catharsis are essential.

Romantic Criticism: Wordsworth’s “Preface to Lyrical Ballads” and Coleridge’s concept of “Fancy and Imagination” are very important.

Modern Criticism: Focus on T.S. Eliot’s theories, such as “Tradition and the Individual Talent” and “Objective Correlative.” Also, review the basic principles of New Criticism.

Literary Terms: A general understanding of terms like Allegory, Irony, Symbolism, Paradox, Pun, and Elegy is necessary.

7. Linguistics

This is the scientific study of language. Questions come from its primary branches.

Core Areas

Phonetics & Phonology: The study of speech sounds.

Morphology: The study of word formation (e.g., Morphemes).

Syntax: The study of sentence structure.

Semantics: The study of meaning.

Key Figures: The two most important names in this field are Ferdinand de Saussure (Structuralism, Langue vs. Parole) and Noam Chomsky (Generative Grammar). Understand their basic theories.

 

Insights from PPSC English Lecturer Past Papers

Key Periods: Norman Conquest, Medieval Period, Renaissance (Humanism), 17th Century, Victorian Era (Oxford Movement), Reformation.

Key Events: Rise of the Novel, English Civil War, Invention of the Printing Press.

Key Poets: Chaucer, Spenser, John Donne, Milton, Alexander Pope, William Blake, Wordsworth, S.T. Coleridge, Shelley, Keats, Byron, Tennyson, Robert Browning, Robert Frost, W.B. Yeats, T.S. Eliot, Sylvia Plath, Emily Dickinson.

Key Works: Lyrical Ballads, The Canterbury Tales, Paradise Lost, Adonis, The Winding Stair, Holy Sonnets, Beowulf, Keats (Odes), The Waste Land, Ulysses (Tennyson).

Key Movements: Metaphysical Poetry, Romanticism, Auden Group, Transcendentalism.

Key Dramatists: Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, Ben Jonson, Sophocles, Ibsen, G.B. Shaw, Oscar Wilde, Samuel Beckett, Harold Pinter, Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams.

Key Concepts: University Wits, Restoration Plays, Chorus in Tragedy, Classical Unities, Shakespearean Tragedy (hamartia, soliloquy), Theatre of the Absurd.

Key Plays: King Lear, The Tempest, Dr. Faustus, Waiting for Godot, A Doll’s House, The Glass Menagerie, Hamlet, Othello, Death of a Salesman.

Key Novelists: Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Emily Brontë, George Eliot, Thomas Hardy, Joseph Conrad, Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, D.H. Lawrence, George Orwell, H.G. Wells, Jonathan Swift, R.K. Narayan, Hemingway.

Key Concepts: Picaresque Novel, Stream of Consciousness, Characterization, Realism.

Key Works: Pride and Prejudice, Wuthering Heights, Great Expectations, Heart of Darkness, Gulliver’s Travels, The Rape of the Lock, Jude the Obscure.

Vocabulary:

Synonyms, Antonyms, Idiomatic Expressions.

Sentence Structure: Sentence Completion, Sentence Correction, Prepositions, Phrasal Verbs, and Modal Verbs.

Parts of Speech: Reflexive Pronouns, etc.

Sentence Types: Passive Voice, Compound Sentences.

Key Theorists: Aristotle, Wordsworth, T.S. Eliot, Dr. Samuel Johnson, J.S. Mill, Matthew Arnold, Plato, Sir Philip Sidney.

Key Concepts: Negative Capability (Keats), Mimesis, Hamartia, Postcolonial Theory, Classical Theory, Formalism, New Criticism.

Key Literary Terms: Genre, Pun, Allegory, Assonance, Hyperbole, Elegy, Hamartia, Heroic Couplet, Aside, Epigraph, Conceit, Tragicomedy.

Epic poetry conventions, Alliterative verse, Estates satire, Metaphysical Conceit, Epic Poetry, Satire, Nature, Imagination, Subjectivity.

The Sublime, Poetic Diction, Industrial Revolution’s social impact, The “Woman Question”, Fragmentation, Mythical Method, Modern American Poetry, American Drama.

Key Works: Poetics, Preface to Lyrical Ballads, The Metaphysical Poets.

Core Branches: Phonetics (Plosives, Fricatives), Phonology, Morphology (Morphemes), Syntax, Semantics.

Key Figures: Saussure, Chomsky, Skinner.

Key Concepts: Langue vs. Parole, Synchronic Linguistics, Behaviourism, Communicative Competence, Pidgin, Creole, Isogloss, Coinage, Phonetics vs. Phonology, Morpheme types, Syntax vs. Semantics, Synchronic vs. Diachronic analysis, Universal Grammar.

Language Study: Language Acquisition, Sociolinguistics, Etymology, History of English.