Two practice midterms

In section tomorrow we will be working through not only key points on the Chart o' Poets, but also a few entries on a poetry-only practice midterm. For the last fifteen minutes of discussion tomorrow, I am going to ask you to name two poems you would like to discuss -- poems that baffle you, or that we haven't had a chance to discuss yet, or just poems you'd like a chance to talk about some more.

I have also put together a second practice midterm involving a mix of poetry and Middlemarch. This might be a useful tool to spur studying over the weekend. There are a couple different ways you might use it:

1. To figure out areas where you are weak -- if it turns out you can't identify any of the second-generation Romantics, then that tells you to spend more time with Keats and Shelley
2. As fodder for discussion with a study group or a study partner, to talk through all the nuances of the texts we've encountered over the last month and a half; chances are that if you didn't understand what was going on in "Elgin Marbles" someone else did and would be willing to talk it through
   
3. To practice answering those devilishly picky prompts in Part I: once you've written out explanations of the thematic significance of six Middlemarch passages, you'll probably have gotten the hang of it
   

Hebdomadal topics (week 7)

Yesterday, Prof. Ortiz-Robles gave an example of the sort of question he will be asking for Part II of the midterm: "Discuss the relationship between history and memory with reference to textual details from one of the passages in Part I." (At least, that what I had copied down in my notes.)

For this hebdomadal, develop a similarly open thematic question that you think could be asked of almost any text we've read this semester. This means looking back through your notes and pulling out the conceptual problems Prof. Ortiz-Robles has returned to several times in his lectures.

When you craft the question, you might want to be more specific than asking about "the relationship" between Concept 1 and Concept 2, but don't feel that you have to be two too specific -- asking how Concept 1 shapes Concept 2 might be enough detail to get you going. (Other good verbs: reveals, limits, creates.)

After you've done this, quote a short passage from the poem about which you feel least comfortable and use this passage to answer the essay question you've created. (Poems only this week.)

If I don't drown in grading next week, I'll post the essay topics you guys come up with so you have some likely essay prompts with which to study.

[Thank you, anonymous commenter!]

Charting the Romantics and Victorians

As promised, here is a link to a Word .doc of the chart I handed out in class:

• The Romantics and the Victorians: a chart

Try to fill out columns for two poets, one Romantic and one Victorian. (Recommendation: tackle the two poets about whom you feel least knowledgeable.)

Spend the most time answering the thematic questions posed by the chart: the poets' thematic interests in the individual, society, nature, and poetry itself. If you go in to the midterm with for solid thematic questions that apply to each poet, you'll pretty much have the IDs nailed.

Hebdomadal topics (week 4)

Topic 1: Brainstorming

Craft a précis of your essay. Include in it

1. The you will be tackling in the essay
2. The portion of the text with which you will be working
3. What you think is the larger argument the author is making with this text (e.g. "I read Book II of Middlemarch as GE's exploration of authority and authorship")
4. In brief, the close reading at the center of your argument
5. The developmental stages of your argument (e.g. "First I will examine the X of Y; then I will look at how the X/Y relationship feeds into problems with Z; then I will investigate the consequences of Z in the context of X and Y; I will conclude by connecting these consequences back to the general project of the author")
6. How you think your essay will improve the way we understand the text (be specific)
7. Any questions or problems you find yourself running into

You're welcome to include more in your précis -- possible thesis statements, a description of the critical context of your argument, a connection between your reading and the topics that Prof. Ortiz-Robles has been developing in lecture, etc. -- but those are the building blocks. Again, feel free to be creative and to take risks. I will try to respond promptly to hebdomadals answering this topic so you can proceed with your essay in a timely way.

Topic 2: Textstorming

Return to the Romantic Epiphanies handout we began working through in class last week. What are the significant similarities in the ways in which our four Romantic poets understand the relationship between nature and epiphanic realizations about the order of the world? What significant ideas do the poets have in common in the ways they treat the role of the imagination in constructing these epiphanies? What are the significant differences among the poets on both of these points?

Alternatively, you might consider offering a specific definition of Romanticism -- or at least of Romantic epiphanies -- on the basis of these four excerpts. Your definition can acknowledge what isn't shared in common among the authors, but should dwell on their similarities and the significance of these similarities.