Final Exam Discussion and Practice Questions

Our final exam will take place in the classroom on Tuesday 10 July, starting at the normal time (6:10pm). I've posted some practice questions in the Assignments section on the right. These should give you an idea of what will be asked on the exam and what its format will be.

If you have any questions about the exam or the material, feel free to post them here as a comment to this post. While I'm happy to answer questions in person or via email, posting them here can benefit everyone.

Good luck!

Assignment 7: Beckett's Happy Days

What's your favorite (or least favorite) passage, and why?

Assignment 6: Brecht's Mother Courage and her Children

In Mother Courage and her Children, does Bertolt Brecht use theatrical elements (placards, costume changes, music, etc.) effectively? Why or why not? What line or passage demonstrates this?

Assignment 5: O'Neill's Long Day's Journey Into Night

Eugene O'Neill's Long Day's Journey Into Night has been called the great American play, meaning that it somehow captures the essence of America or being American. In light of our class conversation today, do you think this is true? Why or why not? Which passages in the play or in the supplementary material support your idea?

Assignment 4: The Role of Women in Susan Glaspell's The Verge

Due Thursday 6/21: In The Verge, how does Glaspell use elements of setting or action to emphasize the role of women and gender issues? What lines or passages seem important? Did Shoshana Felman's article or our class discussion change your initial understanding of the play?

Assignment 3: The House in The Ghost Sonata

August Strindberg's The Ghost Sonata is a surrealist play with many changing facets. It deals with sin and innocence, generational conflict, lies vs. truth, and false identities. Just about the only thing that remains stationary -- though not unchanging -- is the Colonel's house. What is the significance (or at least one significance) of the house in this play? Can you point to a particular passage where you see it?

Assignment 2: Marriage and Shaw's Candida

Marriage is one aspect of modernity that undergoes close scrutiny in the first two plays we've read. How does Shaw use dramatic (i.e. characterization, dialogue) and theatrical (i.e. setting and stage direction) elements to examine marriage in Candida? What does he seem to be saying about marriage, and which lines or passages seem important?