Objective

The final exam will assess your ability to utilize the conventions and methods of literary analysis in order to articulate, organize, and support an argument about two literary works.

Format

• You will be asked to write a short essay (3-4 paragraphs, not including the introduction) that analyzes two poems and proves a claim/thesis that directly responds to the essay prompt.
• This short essay will be evaluated according to the quality of its central claim (25 points); the quality of its explanation and interpretation of evidence (50 points); its organization (15 points); and its clarity (10 points).

Misc.

• You can (and are encouraged to) brainstorm your essay in advance.
• You will not be allowed to use your books or notes during the exam.
• You do not need to quote from the poems, but you still need to be specific in talking about what the poems do with form, content, and/or language.
• Please bring your own paper to the exam.
• We will talk about strategies for taking essay exams like this one during the last week of class.

NOTE:

Only 1 of the poems can be one you’ve written about for paper 1 or 2.

Exam Prompt:

The Power of Poetry in the World

In this class, we’ve discussed how poetry doesn’t exist in a vacuum: it responds to social/political issues. Sometimes a poem endorses the status quo, and other times, it explicitly tries to get people to change their minds or their actions or to praise something that other people condemn: these are all examples of poems that are engaged in the world.

Choose TWO poems that are engaged in the world in SIMILAR WAYS and write a paper with a thesis that explains HOW and WHY they are engaged in the world.

Possible ways poems can be engaged in the world:

• Objecting to racism/sexism/classism/homophobia/violence
• Responding to specific political symbols/policies/administrations
• Actively praising queerness/women/people of color
• Breaking forms/challenging how poetry appears on a page for social/political purposes