ENGL 330: Medieval Literature
Dr. Debora B. Schwartz
English Department, California Polytechnic State University

Information Sheet: Final Exam

The three-hour Final Exam will take place during Exam Week at the regularly scheduled time (listed on the class website and on the calendar of assignments).  You are strongly advised to use the full time allotted to you, particularly if you are trying for GWR certification on the exam.

The final exam will be worth 300 points: 150 pts. for the objective sections, 150 pts. for the essay. The format will resemble that of the midterm exam. The final exam will be semi-cumulative: all works read this quarter will be covered in some parts (see below), but particular emphasis will be on readings and material introduced since the midterm.  You are responsible for material covered in lectures, on study guides and online readings, and in assigned background pages.  You will be asked to demonstrate your understanding of significant issues in individual works and your ability to make meaningful connections among readings.  Your cumulative exam score, based on 500 total exam points for the midterm and final, will count for 50% of your final course grade (i.e. the midterm will be worth 20% of your final course grade, 10% each for the objective and essay sections; the final will be worth 30% of your final course grade, 15% each for the objective and essay sections).
 

  • Exam hint 1Reading quizzes are excellent study guides; use them as you prepare for the objective portion of exams.
  • Exam hint 2: For the essay section, be sure that you are thoroughly familiar with the paper guidelines , in particular the section on the INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH.  Please note:  you may NOT write your exam essay on the same work(s) or topic which you chose for your out-of-class paper.  AUTOMATIC 50% PENALTY for writing the same work(s)!

  • Objective portion of exam will cover:

    1) Chronology (dates from Norton, intros or study guides for works and/or authors; periods; significant historical events). Know dates for all works and authors read since the midterm exam (only); additionally, know dates of key historical events / periods from the whole quarter.  Aside from these historical milestone events, covers only works/authors read since the midterm.  You must answer ALL questions in this section.

    2) Item IDs.  Identifications of various elements -- characters, objects, themes, motifs, Latin phrases, and terms -- in or associated with works read since the midterm (only). You will receive ONE point for IDENTIFYING THE ITEM ITSELF (e.g. Chauntecleer = a rooster who is almost eaten by a fox and who functions as a stand-in for the Nun's Priest himself) AND AN ADDITIONAL POINT for identifying the WORK OR WORKS in which the item appears (e.g. Chauntecleer is a character in the NPT).  Latin phrases should be translated AND their relevance to / role in the reading should be explained.  For the purpose of this section, each specific reading from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales counts as a separate work (which you may indicate using abbreviations for characters, Prologue and Tale, e.g. GP, Parson's P, WBP, WBT, FT, MT, NPT, Pardoner's P, Pardoner's T). You will be expected to specify GP (not just "Prologue," to distinguish the GP from WBP or Pardoner's P) or to identify passage by pilgrim AND as prologue, epilogue or tale. Review names of main characters!  While you will not need to remember the specific titles for the lyric poems, you should know which are by unknown authors and which two have known authors (e.g. St. Godric and William Herebert). There will be choice in this section.

    3) Factual questions concerning genre, form, background information, or literary terms. While you ARE responsible for knowing authors, genres, languages and forms for ALL works read this quarter, MORE background questions will focus on material covered since midterm. You will be expected to answer ALL questions.

    4) Passages IDs: passages chosen only from works read since the midterm exam. For the purpose of this section, each specific reading from Chaucer (GP, Parson's P, WBP, WBT, FT, KT, MT, NPT, Pardoner's P, Pardoner's T) counts as a separate work (you will be expected to specify GP or pilgrim AND if passage is from prologue, epilogue or tale). As applicable, Chaucer passages will be taken from assigned Middle English lines in Norton (NOT from the modern translations!). You will not need to to identify lyric poems by title, but you should know which are by unknown authors and which are by known authors (St. Godric and William Herebert). Hint 1: quiz passages MAY reappear on the exam.  Hint 2:  review character names, or you will miss points unneccessarily!

    Format will be a combination of multiple choice, matching, True/False and/or providing short answers in space provided. You should know this material well (and do these sections quickly) so you have adequate time for interpretive sections of exam.

    To Prepare:

  • Review general and individual author/work introductions in The Norton Anthology as well as assigned introductions in other texts.  You are also responsible for material covered in study guides and online readings (including review of translatio and "Courtly Love") and LECTURES (review class notes!)  Complete/correct quizzes and use them as study aids.
  • Some hopefully obvious remarks: you should know (and be able to spell correctly) the titles and authors (if known), as well as the genres, languages and forms, for ALL works read this quarter; also, know DATES for works/authors since the midterm exam, as well as for significant historical events covering the whole course (e.g. Old English period; Anglo-Norman rule; Middle English period; Alliterative Revival; etc.). Know literary terms relevant to ALL genres and forms read this quarter and the differences between these genres (e.g. beast fable, Breton lay, didactic treatise, dream vision, epic, Estates satire, exemplum, fabliau, frame narrative, hagiography, historical chronicle, literary confession, letter of moral instruction, lyric poem, morality play, mystery play, romance, spiritual autobiography, etc.) and forms or techniques (e.g. alliterative verse, rhymed verse, prose, link-word, concatenation, wheel and bob, rhyme royal, allegory, personification, etc.).
  • Interpretive Portion of Exam: some combination of Passage Interpretation and Essay. There will be choice in this section or these sections. 1) Passage Interpretation: In short-answer form, discuss the SIGNIFICANCE of ONE of the listed passages in the work as a whole. Your discussion should be concise -- not more than one page in exam book -- but detailed: make SPECIFIC references to words / images / themes in the chosen passage, explaining its thematic relevance in the work as a whole. (In other words, why was the passage important enough to be chosen for inclusion on the exam?)

    2) Essay: questions will invite you to demonstrate your understanding of key issues in a work or works read this quarter and/or invite you to make meaningful connections between works.  Some prompts will focus on changes in a theme, genre or motif over time; others will ask you to discuss particular works in depth.  Be sure that your introduction fully articulates what you will argue in the essay, which should offer informed interpretation of the texts within their medieval context rather than a personal reaction to them or simply a description -- however accurate -- of their contents.  Be sure that your argument is presented in clearly organized paragraphs and that points are made in logical order (i.e. paragraph structure should correspond to logical steps in your argument).  Be sure that each paragraph contains allusions to specific textual evidence in support of your argument. NB: you may NOT write on same work or topic that you discussed in your out-of-class paper or your midterm exam essay; there will be a substantial penalty if you do!  (No penalty applies for writing on a work on which you posted a Personal Response to your Blackboard Discussion Board).

     
    To Prepare:
  • Review thematic questions on study guides for each reading and consider common threads between them.
  • Because I evaluate exam essays according to the same standards that I apply to out-of-class writing (except that there's no direct citation and thus no need for documentation on a closed-book exam), you should be THOROUGHLY FAMILIAR with the PAPER GUIDELINES and the CHECKLIST provided for your out-of-class writing and endeavor to follow them in your exam essay.
  • Pay particular attention to the instructions concerning the introductory paragraph and argumentation.  Unless I can tell from your opening paragraph which prompt you selected, what work(s) you are writing on, and precisely what you will argue about it/them, your exam essay will NOT earn GWR CERTIFICATION (and it is unlikely to earn more than a C, regardless of the quality of your observations).
  • DON'T FORGET TO BUY AN EXAM BOOK (LARGE FORMAT, PLEASE) AND BRING IT WITH YOU TO CLASS!!!

  • Final words of wisdom:

    --Don't forget to purchase an exam book (large format, please) and bring it with you to the exam.
    -- STUDY WITH A FRIEND!
    --Get some sleep the night before and DON'T skip breakfast!!
    --YOU'VE DONE GREAT JOBS SO FAR; PREPARE WELL AND GOOD LUCK!!!
    Contents of this and all linked pages Copyright Debora B. Schwartz, 1999-2010