Two of the following four topics will appear on the in-class
assessment on Wednesday. You will then choose one topic to write on. You will
be allowed to use your book during the assessment with post-it tabs (1” by 3”).
Larger post-it notes or additional pages of notes are not allowed.
A.
Many plays and novels use
contrasting places (for example, two countries, two cities or towns, two
houses, or the land and the sea) to represent opposed forces or ideas that are
central to the meaning of the work. Choose a novel or play that contrasts two
such places. Write an essay explaining how the places differ, what each place
represents, and how their contrast contributes to the meaning of the work.
B.
Choose a complex and
important character in a novel or a play of recognized literary merit who might
on the basis of the character’s actions alone be considered evil or immoral. In
a well-organized essay, explain both how and why the full presentation of the
character in the work makes us react more sympathetically than we otherwise
might. Make sure to connect your analysis of this character to the meaning of
the work as a whole.
C.
In literary works, cruelty
often functions as a crucial motivation or a major social or political factor.
Select a novel, play, or epic poem in which acts of cruelty are important to
the theme. Then write a well-developed essay analyzing how cruelty functions in
the work as a whole and what the cruelty reveals about the perpetrator and/or
victim.
D.
“And, after all, our surroundings
influence our lives and characters as much as fate, destiny or any supernatural
agency.”
--Pauline Hopkins, Contending Forces
Choose
a novel or play in which cultural, physical, or geographical surroundings shape
psychological or moral traits in a character. Then write a well-organized essay
in which you analyze how surroundings affect this character and illuminate the
meaning of the work as a whole.
