Strong answers to Quiz 3 (Updated 3/15)

So, 70% of your midterm grade comes from IDs. The midterm is 15% of your final grade. Your final grade in this class is worth 4 credits. If I have the math right, this means 0.42 of one of your college credits is based entirely on how well you answer seven ID questions Thursday morning.

Here's how to rock that 0.42 of a credit -- specifically the thematic significance side of things:

1. Point to a specific word or phrase from the passage
2. Explain how that word or phrase reveals a recurring question posed by the text as a whole
3. Explain how that word or phrase connects to a specific answer to that recurring question

Want some examples? Here are some examples.

The last quiz passage was this:

Mr Bulstrode felt a shuddering nausea, and did not speak, but was considering diligently whether he should not leave Raffles to do as he would, and simply defy him as a slanderer. The man would soon show himself disreputable enough to make people disbelieve him. “But not when he tells any ugly-looking truth about you,” said discerning consciousness. And again: it seemed no wrong to keep Raffles at a distance, but Mr Bulstrode shrank from the direct falsehood of denying true statements. It was one thing to look back on forgiven sins, nay, to explain questionable conformity to lax customs, and another to enter deliberately on the necessity of falsehood.

Here are some strong answers to the thematic significance of that prompt.

From Nora (305). Look at how the first sentence points towards a thematic connection between two broad concepts -- gossip and the individual -- and how her third sentence reverses our usual way of talking about the power of gossip. The last sentence, though, is the real kicker.

This passage points to the pervasiveness of gossip in any individual’s life. Mr. Bulstrode feels a great deal of anxiety over a potentially soiled reputation. Reputation is so important that, Bulstrode notes, if the one who gossips suffers from a less than stellar reputation the gossip itself is discredited. Citizens of Middlemarch balance their reputations every day, taking careful note of fresh gossip that may damage someone’s, or even their own, fragile reputation. They understand that truth is subjective in Middlemarch society.

Here's one from Kristen (306). Notice how Kristen uses this paragraph to develop a specific, thorough treatment of what truth means:

This passage touches on the theme of secret-keeping in the novel. Many people are keeping secrets to protect themselves or others (Dorothea learned after the fact about the codicil in Casaubon’s will, multiple characters have debts to pay off that others don’t know about, etc.). This also looks at the idea of truth. Mr. Bulstrode fears the truth, referring to it as “ugly-looking.” The truth is powerful and has great effects on people, producing “shuddering nausea” in Bulstrode. Because the truth could be so damaging to him, Bulstrode must rely on the “necessity of falsehood” and the likelihood of people not seeing truth and validity in Raffles, the man who would reveal the truth to the world.

Although Ed (305) would be the first to admit that he should have brought up specific textual details earlier in his answer, it's clear from this argument that he sees how this passage fits into the larger problems of Middlemarch. Notice also that Ed isn't afraid to write conversationally:

The question Eliot is beginning to answer has to do with what role one’s past has in creating one’s present and future. Mr. Raffles is a blast from the past with info that could slander Bulstrode. This information gives Raffles the power to create Bulstrode’s present and future. Eliot shows that there must be a link, some evidence, of past action in order for it to in any way affect one’s present and future. She also points to credibility toward the like in “disbelieve, “ “discernible,” and multiple references to truth and falsehood.

Paul (305) offers this clear analysis of power and gossip:

It is a significant in that it shows a relationship between power and gossip, specifically it answers the question of how power is affected by gossip. Bulstrode is a powerful man, but he worries that R could spread certain stories about Bulstrode through the community. Bulstrode realizes that although Raffles is “disreputable,” he possesses the power to discredit Bulstrode with “any ugly-looking truth.” Bulstrode is forced to respect that gossip can undermine his power within the community

Alicia (306) offers another take on the gossip/power relationship:

This passage reflects Mr Bulstrode’s inner thoughts upon the intrusion of an old, unwanted aquaintance Raffles into his life in Middlemarch. Eliot uses Bulstrode’s angst to answer the overlying question about the power of gossip to ruin societal reputation. “The ugly-looking truth about you” seems to concern Bulstrode not on a personally moral scale, but on the perceptions society would form of him. This distinction is evident in the final sentence, where Bulstrode pits his “questionable conformity” against the outcome of entering into direct falsehood, that he deems “necessary.” In this way, Eliot proposes that gossip contradicts personal ethos, taking on an often times society scale that therefore binds the individual to the truth in convention.

Silqet (305) here offers not only an excellent thematic discussion of the divide between gossip and truth, but also a great sense of humor and style:

Mr Bulstrode is considering what type of approach to take and let things like gossip take their own natural course or whether to speak and deal with the consequences of that. There is this recurring – dare I say theme – of how personal choice – going along with societal norms affects a person and their future. Should Mr B just let things go as they may and let Raffles alone then in time he will lead to his own downfall as he is more and more digging his own grave. Truths and gossip – which to follow or let be the driving force for one’s motive is an issue that Mr B is dealing w/ in the passage. What mode of social acceptability to let form not only his decisions but consequential actions.