ENG 221 Final, Fall 1997

English 221 Final Examination Falt Semester, 1997-98 February 3, 1998 INSTRUCTIONS: Read over the entire examination before you begin to write. Choose two topics from the lists below (one from Part A and one from Part B) as subjects for two brief, well-planned, well-organized, and well-written essays. Be sure to avoid overlapping and repetition; i.e., do not write too often about the same work, unless the subject matter and approach are radically different. Remember to make frequent specific reference to the texts under discussion. TIMING: The examination has been designed for two hours: sixty minutes per essay. Nevertheless, you may have an extra half hour for planning and proofreading if you wish. Plan your time wisely and well. All booklets will be collected PROMPTLY at 10:30 A.M. FORMAT: Please write on every other line and observe conventional margins. Be sure you number your topics. TOPICS: Choose two (2), one from Part A and one from Part B. PART A 1. Although all the novels we have studied this semester were published at least one hundred years ago, many of the themes developed have relevance to the twentieth century; i.e., the problems seem modern, they touch particularly on our own fives and concerns, and, as Lionel Trilling said, these novels involve "the reader himself in the moral life.". Write an essay in which you show how Conrad, Hardy, and at least two other authors of the nineteenth century involve us in timeless problems of human existence. . 2. Marlow said, "The most you can hope from [life] is some knowledge of yourself.” The quest for self-knowledge appears significantly in several of the works you have read this semester. Discuss the role of self-knowledge and the authors’ ways of presenting that role in Heart of Darkness, North and South, and at least two other works you have read this semester. PART B 1. Coincidence is a major element in plot development in both Jude the Obscure and Silas Marner. Compare and contrast the ways in which the authors of these two novels, and of at least one other novel you have studied this semester, employ coincidence in putting forward their major themes. 2. Novelists, like poets, make frequent use of symbolism in their writings. With specific reference to Heart of Darkness , Jude the Obscure, and at least one other novel you have studied this semester, write an essay in which you point out how each novelist uses symbolism in his/her work. (NB: Do not simply list symbols. Indicate what the authors are using them for.) 3. Setting is of major importance in the development of the themes of the novel. Discuss the significance of setting in Heart of Darkness, Jude the Obscure, and a least two other novels you have read this semester. Compare and contrast the way the authors use setting in the development of their themes. HINTS: 1. Keep the topic in the forefront at all times. Reread the topic several times as you write. 2. Avoid plot summary. (I've read the books!) 3. Avoid too many broad generalities. Be specific. 4. Leave time for proofreading. GOOD LUCK!