Major English Writers 1

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Exam 2 Essay Questions

Due Date

Friday, November 6 (1:00 p.m.)

The essays are due at the beginning of the class period in which the in-class portion of the exam is given, on Friday, November 6. If you submit a draft of an essay response no later than one week before the due date, no later than Friday, October 30, I will give you some written feedback on your draft.

The Essay Questions

For the essay portion of Exam 2, you need to write essay responses to two of the questions below. The questions you address in your essays are up to you.

How might Book 1 of Spenser’s The Faerie Queene be read as any individual’s spiritual (specifically Christian) journey? You do not need to explain the spiritual journey in its entirety, but try to go into depth explaining the most important stages of the journey and how these stages are presented allegorically in the poem.
Choose one passage of at least two stanzas from Book 1 of Spenser’s The Faerie Queene and (1) explain the context of the passage and summarize what is literally happening and (2) explain how the passage can be interpreted on two of the three allegorical levels discussed in class (the moral allegory, the historical allegory, and the biblical allegory).
Marlowe’s The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus can be read as a conflict between God and Satan, with Doctor Faustus being the locus of this conflict. How is this conflict manifested in the play? In other words, how do the forces of good and evil conflict with one another and attempt to influence Faustus? If the play is a conflict between God and Satan, what, ultimately, are we supposed to learn from this play?
Marlowe’s The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus ends with a warning from the Chorus that Faustus' experience should "exhort the wise / Only to wonder at lawful things" (Epilogue 5-6) and not to "practice more than heavenly power permits" (Epilogue 8). This is one "lesson" from the play, but there are others. Identify and explain two or three important ideas developed in the play that you think suggest "lessons" the audience is supposed to learn from it. One of these can be the idea identified by the Chorus at the end of the play.
Choose any one of the assigned Shakespeare sonnets and write an analysis and interpretation of that sonnet. Identify a main theme of the sonnet and some of the “poetic elements” in the sonnet, such as images, metaphors, similes, symbols, and personification, explaining how these elements and other details of the sonnet help develop the main theme.
Analyze and explain one of the following issues in Shakespeare’s Hamlet: (1) Deception / Appearance and Reality, (2) Passion and Reason, and (3) Decay and Corruption. With specific examples from the play, explain how the issue is presented, and explain how it is developed thematically. When examining the issue thematically, you should explain the comment about it that Shakespeare seems to make in the play.
Choose one of Hamlet’s soliloquies in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, identify the context of the passage, and explicate the soliloquy, explaining how the details of the passage contribute to its meaning and how the ideas in the passage are relevant to the major themes or issues presented in the play. Choose one of the following soliloquies: (1) Act 1, Scene 2, Lines 129-159; (2) Act 2, Scene 3, Lines 505-562; (3) Act 3, Scene 1, Lines 56-88; (4) Act 4, Scene 4, Lines 32-66.
Interpretations of the character Hamlet vary. Some critics argue that Hamlet is emotionally immature and naive, ill-equipped to face the realities of life, while others argue that Hamlet is an idealist who wants to see the good in people but is frequently disappointed by the reality. Some critics believe that Hamlet is one of the most intelligent characters in all of literature, perhaps even too intelligent to be able to function effectively, while others argue that Hamlet's most striking characteristic is his extreme melancholy (or depression), which causes him to focus too much on the negative. And some critics argue that Hamlet is just as duplicitous as some of the most deceptive characters in the play and that Hamlet is directly responsible for the deaths of many characters. Any of these interpretations, a combination of them, or even other interpretations could work well. In an essay, explain and develop your interpretation of the character Hamlet. Try to focus on no more than a few aspects of Hamlet's character that you think are the most important and prominent, and support your interpretation with plenty of specifics from the play. You might also consider if there is any change to Hamlet's character in the play.

Guidelines and Requirements for Essay Responses

Each response should be in the form of an essay of at least 800 words, with an introduction, a conclusion, and at least three body paragraphs. Note that 700 words is the minimum required length for each essay. The grades will be significantly lowered for essays under the required minimum length.

Essay responses should be word-processed, double spaced, and in 12-point Times New Roman fonts.

course outline

Each body paragraph should focus on only one main idea, and the main idea should be expressed clearly in the first sentence of the paragraph, with the rest of the paragraph used to support and develop that idea. In general, a body paragraph should be at least half of a page long (double spaced).

Use specific evidence from the texts to support all aspects of your interpretation, including plenty of quotations and paraphrases, but do not lose your own “voice” by bringing in too many quotations. Avoid long quotations. Present enough evidence to prove that your interpretation is well supported by the text(s), and make sure to explain how the evidence you present logically supports your interpretation. Explain the meaning, significance, and relevance of every quotation that you use in your essay.

For quotations from Spenser's The Faerie Queene, put the book, canto, and line number(s) in parentheses, like this (1.2.34-35). For quotations from Marlowe's Doctor Faustus, put the scene and line number(s) in parentheses, like this (3.34-35). For quotations from Shakespeare's Hamlet, put the act, scene, and line number(s) in parentheses, like this (3.3.34-35). For quotations from Shakespeare's sonnets, put the line number(s) in parentheses, like this (23-24).

To support and develop your ideas, logically and grammatically integrate short quotations into your own sentences: no quotation should be standing alone in an essay.
Grades for the essay responses will be based on the thesis, organization, support and development of ideas, insight into the subject, clarity, style, and “mechanics” (punctuation, grammar, spelling, etc.). The essay responses satisfy the formal writing requirement for the course, so responses need to be written as formal essays that are free or almost free from errors. Proofread carefully.

Please ask if you have any questions about your essay responses, and realize that you can receive additional help with your essays from me and from the staff of the college’s Writing Center. See the Writing Center's Home Page for more information.

Grading Criteria

A—Well-developed and insightful responses with ample support, including both ideas and support discussed in class and original ideas and support. Ideas are well explained and well stated, with no misreadings or unsupported interpretations of the texts. Responses do not contain unnecessary summary. The essay is free or almost free from errors and stylistic weaknesses.

B—Developed and insightful responses with ample support, including both ideas and support discussed in class and original ideas and support. Responses are not as well supported or developed as in an “A” response. Ideas are clearly explained, with no misreadings or unsupported interpretations of the texts. Responses do not contain unnecessary summary. The essay is free or almost free from errors and stylistic weaknesses.

C—Responses developed with some original support, but largely with material discussed in class. Ideas are adequately and clearly explained, with no or almost no misreadings or unsupported interpretations of the text, though support may be lacking for some ideas. Responses may contain some unnecessary summary. The essay is free or almost free from errors and stylistic weaknesses.

F—Responses are brief, with little, if any, support and development. Responses may reveal misreadings of the texts or a misunderstanding of material discussed in class. Responses may include serious lapses in clarity and organization and unnecessary summary. The essay may include excessive errors and stylistic weaknesses. A response that does not address one of the essay questions will receive an “F.”

Of course, ask questions about this assignment if you have any!