The Midterm Exam will be worth approximately 150-200 points. It will test your knowledge of the development of English literature from the Old English period through the Alliterative Revival / Chaucer, as well as of Arthurian tradition through Malory's Morte D'Arthur, as represented in the readings assigned to date.   You will be asked to demonstrate your understanding of significant issues in individual works and your ability to make meaningful connections among readings. 

Exam hint 1: the sample ENGL 330 reading quizzes I have distributed are excellent study guides; use them as you prepare for the objective portion of the exam.

Exam hint 2: For the essay section, it may be useful to familiarize yourself with my ENGL 330 paper guidelines and, especially, the ENGL 330 paper prompts.  Please note that you may NOT write your exam essay on the same work or author which is the focus of your oral research presentation or (if different) of you final paper.  AUTOMATIC 50% PENALTY for writing the same work(s)!

1) Passage IDs (similar to passages on ENGL 330 reading quizzes). You will be asked to identify work/author and to answer a number of other questions about the passages. There will be an element of choice in this section. 

2) Factual questions concerning genre, form, sources, or literary terms. You will be expected to answer ALL questions. 

3) Item IDs. You will be asked to identify characters, objects, themes or motifs in or associated with works read in class AND to list all reading(s) in which the particular item is found. You must choose items from a broad spectrum of readings. There will be an element of choice in this section. 

4) Chronology (dates given in Norton, text introductions, online readings or study guides for works and/or authors, periods, and most significant historical events). You will be expected to answer ALL questions.

5) Paper Preview:  based on your Paper Prospectus.  You will be asked to identify the topic and state the tentative thesis of your final paper (what interpretation you will argue about that topic), as well as to list by authors and title some secondary works you anticipate using in your final paper (scholarly criticism about the medieval work you are writing on).

To Prepare:

-- Make a note card for each work (as well as for key historical events); note author, dates of works (or of author's presumed period of literary activity; most of these dates are found in the headings on the class discussion board, on the study guides linked to the course calendar or on the translatio online reading), genre, language; list key character names, episodes and significant objects/motifs.

-- 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 presented in study guides and online readings (including translatio and "courtly love") and in lectures (review class notes!) Review general questions on study guides.

-- Complete the sample ENGL 330 reading quizzes and use them to review. Some passages and much of the material covered on these quizzes may appear on the exam! 

-- Some hopefully obvious remarks: you should know (and be able to spell correctly) the titles and authors (if known) of all works read so far; also, know the DATES of the various works/authors read so far, as well as other significant dates and events (e.g. beginning, end and transition between Old English and Middle English periods; Alliterative Revival; relative chronology -- what happened first, next, etc. -- of works/authors metnioned on translatio online reading, and distinctions between these works/authors). 

-- Know genre, form, and particular literary devices associated with all readings. Know and be able to describe/define literary terms relevant to these genres, literary devices and forms (e.g. chronicle, dream vision, epic, romance, letter of moral instruction, hagiography, exemplum, allegory, alliterative verse, rhyme royal, prose, link-word, concatenation, bob and wheel, etc.; if necessary, consult glossary in NA A46 - A62). 

-- Review interplay between Latin and the vernacular(s) in England. Know which reading was in Latin (not Old or Middle English).  Know historical development of romance genre (see translatio online reading and study guides for Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and Malory).

-- Review your Paper Prospectus and be sure you know the titles and authors of some useful works of criticism!

To Prepare: 

-- Review thematic questions on study guides for each reading.  Review and think about the prompts on the list of suggested ENGL 330 paper topics.

-- Familiarize yourself with my ENGL 330 PAPER GUIDELINES and ESSAY EVALUATION CHECKLIST and endeavor to apply them to 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 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!!!

• There will be choice in many BUT NOT ALL sections. You are advised to have read ALL the material; it will be difficult to camouflage large gaps. You WILL be required to demonstrate SOME knowledge of ALL works/authors read to date. 
• Make a note card for each work (as well as for key historical events); note author, dates of works (or of author's presumed period of literary activity; most of these dates are found in the headings on the class discussion board, on the study guides linked to the course calendar or on the translatio online reading), genre, language; list key character names, episodes and significant objects/motifs.
• FYI: Be sure to follow instructions on exam!  In sections where there is an element of choice, do NOT answer more than the required number of questions.  You will not get Extra Credit for doing extra questions, and any wrong answers will count against you.  Also, if you have never taken one of my exams before, please take particular care to follow instructions in the Item ID section.  Item IDs are worth two points each:  one point for identifying the item by explaining the role it plays in the reading(s), and an additional point for listing all works in which the item appears.  If you ONLY list works but fail to identify the item itself (e.g. by saying what role it plays in the work or works in question), YOU WILL MISS HALF THE POINTS IN THE SECTION.
• Study wisely (with friends)!! 
• Get enough SLEEP the night before, and don't skip meals!

Return to ENGL 512 Home Page

Return to Dr. Schwartz's Teaching Page

Return to Dr. Schwartz's Home Page

Return to Dr. Schwartz's Schedule

Send me Mail