• Identify key ideas, representative authors and works, significant historical or cultural events, and characteristic perspectives or attitudes expressed in the literature of different periods or regions (SLO 1)
• Analyze literary works as expressions of individual or communal values within the social, political, cultural, or religious contexts of different literary periods (SLO 2)
• Demonstrate knowledge of the development of characteristic forms or styles of expression during different historical periods or in different regions (SLO 3)
• Articulate the aesthetic principles that guide the scope and variety of works in the arts and humanities (SLO 4)
• Write research-based critical papers about the assigned readings in clear and grammatically correct prose, using various critical approaches to literature (SLO 5)

Please read the following instructions carefully.

This exam offers ten short essay questions and one BONUS question. Choose only five to complete. Each question will be worth thirty points. Choose the five you are able to answer thoroughly with examples from the literature as support. Whether or not you complete the bonus question is up to you, but the bonus question CANNOT take the place of one of other five questions. It is the last question of the exam and is marked BONUS.

Please note, DO NOT ATTEMPT TO ANSWER ALL TEN. Answering all ten questions will not benefit you; I will simply grade the first five, not the five you answer to the best of your ability.

To ensure you are responding thoroughly to each question, develop a topic sentence, a body paragraph or two, and a concluding sentence for each question. You should be using the literature to support your assertions, and you should use in-text citations appropriately if you quote directly or indirectly from the literature.

This exam is open book and open notes.

You must complete this exam in one sitting, so once you start it, you cannot stop and start again. You have a three hour time limit.

This exam is worth 150 points. Thanks and good luck!

Question 115 pts

In Henry James’ Daisy Miller: A Study, Daisy, her brother Randolph, and even Winterbourne can all be considered representative of opposing views of America. Using evidence from the text as support, match each character with his or her representative view of America and discuss the implications of this classification.

Question 215 pts

In Sarah Orne Jewett’s “A White Heron,” color symbolism is important to the reader’s overall understanding of the story. The rare heron is white, for instance, suggesting its purity and the purity of nature. Why is grey frequently associated with the protagonist, Sylvia? What does the color grey mean in this story? Use evidence from the text to support your assertions.

Question 315 pts

Consider Kate Chopin’s heroines – Calixta, Desiree, and Louise. Which is the strongest of the three? Compare their lives and circumstances to develop your argument. Offer a character analysis of the Swede from Stephen Crane’s “The Blue Hotel.” Why does he appear to change so abruptly? What motivates him in his decision making? Consider character vocabulary (sympathetic, round/flat, dynamic/static) in your response. Use examples from the text as support.

What role does the dog play in Jack London’s “To Build a Fire”? With evidence from the text as support, argue that the dog is much more than simply a companion. Consider, too, the purpose of London reflecting from the dog’s perspective.

Question 415 pts

Offer a character analysis of the Swede from Stephen Crane’s “The Blue Hotel.” Why does he appear to change so abruptly? What motivates him in his decision making? Consider character vocabulary (sympathetic, round/flat, dynamic/static) in your response.

Question 515 pts

What role does the dog play in Jack London’s “To Build a Fire”? With evidence from the text as support, argue that the dog is much more than simply a companion. Consider, too, the purpose of London reflecting from the dog’s perspective.

Question 6 15 pts

Choose one of the following characteristics of Modernism—

• A sense of fragmentation with the move toward reconnecting, reassembling that which is broke; OR
• isolation and alienation or the idea that characters (and authors) are alone in their quest to understand their existence.

—and prove its existence in either Sherwood Anderson's "Hands” or T. S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock."

Question 715 pts

Discuss the symbolism of the American North versus the American South that is present in William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily." Use examples from the text as support.

Question 815 pts

Explain Ernest Hemingway’s iceberg theory or the theory of omission. Use either “Hills Like White Elephants," “The Snows of Kilimanjaro,” or “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place” to prove your assertions.

Question 915 pts

Consider the emotions at the heart of Langston Hughes’ “Harlem." Consider whether the poem offers pain and frustration, hope and anticipation, happiness and joy, or another pair of emotions. Explore the two dominating emotions, using textual references to support your findings.

Question 1015 pts

Sammy of John Updike’s “A & P” has been considered an unreliable narrator in the beginning of the story. Does Sammy mature, at least in part, by the end of the story? Argue your opinion with evidence from the text as support.