The Multiple Choice: Chaos Unfolds

I. Understanding the beast- Question Types
a. Rhetorical function: AKA explaining why.
b. Context: Discerning the meaning of the word, in context.
c. Antecedent: Asks to identify who or what a passage refers to.
d. Style: Explain author’s choices
e. Tone: Identifying the tone.

II. Practice: The only way to overcome the multiple choice.

a. Basic Strategy: Careful, thorough reading is probably the most important aspect of the handling the multiple choice.

b.Terminology: The terms test and the games have really proved useful for questions on the multiple choice.

The Closed Prompt- Practice, Practice, Practice!

I. Getting comfortable with the pieces

a. Reading: Probably the most important thing I’ve discovered about both the open and closed prompts is to carefully read both the prompt and the selections. There’s plenty of time, and understanding is critical before responding to the question.

b. Spotting techniques: As with the open prompt, DIDLS, DIDLS, DIDLS! Marking up the works helps a lot.

c. Creating an effective thesis: The thesis is the crux of an essay. Strengthening it strengthens your points. It can be multiple sentences or just one, but must always answer the prompt (TAP!).

II. Essay Practice

a. Blog posts gave us experience spotting technique, without the formality of an actual essay.

b. Eros poems
c. “The History Teacher” and “A Barred Owl”

The Open Prompt: Practice, Practice!

I. Understanding the Open Prompt-- Harder than you might think

a. The question: Breaking down the prompt into its elementary components ensures that you fully understand what the question is asking. Be sure to note if the question asks for techniques, effect, or meaning. If the prompt neglects to ask for meaning(the classic, “hidden so what? question), be sure to include it anyways.

b. The relationships between techniques, effect, and meaning: Technique creates effect, and effect creates meaning. Sometimes, if the question allows it, you can skip the effect and jump straight to meaning from technique.

c. DIDLS: Diction, imagery, details, language, syntax. All the technique you will ever need.

d. TAP: Thesis answers prompt! ALWAYS.

II. Essay Practice
a. Our delightful blog posts, six in all.

b. 2003. “According to critic Northrop Frye, "Tragic heroes are so much the highest points in their human landscape that they seem the inevitable conductors of the power about them, great trees more likely to be struck by lightning than a clump of grass. Conductors may of course be instruments as well as victims of the divisive lightning." Select a novel or play in which a tragic figure functions as an instrument of the suffering of others. Then write an essay in which you explain how the suffering brought upon others by that figure contributes to the tragic vision of the work as a whole.”

c. 2007. “In many works of literature, past events can affect, positively or negatively, the present activities, attitudes, or values of a character. Choose a novel or play in which a character must contend with some aspect of the past, either personal or societal. Then write an essay in which you show how the character's relationship to the past contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole.”

Analysis of Selected Literature: Fodder for the Open Prompt

I. The American Dream

a. First read: Can you say, “what?!” A play immersed in ambiguity and sexual references.

b. Second read: The ambiguity didn’t exactly disappear, but bits of nonsense began to form meaning.

c. Basic theme: The decay of the American Dream

II. Death of a Salesman

a. First read: Much easier to get through than The American Dream. A tale of tragedy that evokes a strong emotional response for readers, even on the first read.

b. Second read: Subtleties became more clear, such as allusions and symbols, adding to the picture Death of a Salesman created on the first read.

c. Basic theme: The fallacy of the American Dream

III. Ceremony

a. First read: Another “what?!” first read. Without any background information on Native American culture, Ceremony was difficult to get through.

b. Second read: I loved Ceremony. Seriously though, I thought Silko did a spectacular job weaving her novel together, although it took me a while to understand it.  

c. Basic theme: There are many-- The cyclic pattern of life, how the world is inter-related, the power of rituals to define a community, and the ever-changing way of the world are just a few. Each time I think about the book though, more come to mind.

IV. Pride and Prejudice

a. First read: A monotonous tale about the struggles of a family of sisters to find suitable men for marriage.

b. Second read: Jane Austen actually had more in mind than the struggles of marriage for five sisters.

c. Basic theme: Exploring the options for women in the 1800’s with consequences that reverberate to present day, feminism.

V. Hamlet

a. First read: Getting past the Elizabethan-age English was probably the biggest hurdle when getting though Hamlet. Beyond that though, the tragedy also proved difficult to digest in just one read. Although the play is compelling and mysterious, it is hard to understand just what Shakespeare wanted his audiences to know after watching Hamlet.

Revision #4- Open Prompt #6

1976. The conflict created when the will of an individual opposes the will of the majority is the recurring theme of many novels, plays, and essays. Select the work of an essayist who is in opposition to his or her society; or from a work of recognized literary merit, select a fictional character who is in opposition to his or her society. In a critical essay, analyze the conflict and discuss the moral and ethical implications for both the individual and the society. Do not summarize the plot or action of the work you choose.
 

It’s never easy to stand up to the crowd, but it can be even more difficult when the crowd consists of neighbors, friends and families. In Ceremony, by Leslie Marmon Silko, this is the struggle of the protagonist Tayo as he attempt to reconcile with his dark past. Unable to find peace with himself using traditional Laguna methods or American ones, he consults a radical medicine man who shows him the problems  with the  Pueblo’s traditional ways as they do not take into account changes in the new world. Ceremony illustrates that the strength and power of rituals derives from their ability to adapt in an ever-changing world-- a direct contrast to the views of Tayo’s society.

 Due to his mixed ancestry and his characteristic “hazel eyes”, Tayo serves as a continuous reminder of the white influence. To the Laguna Pueblos, two contradictory sentiments dominate regarding the white-American culture: a desire to either gain approval from the culture,  or to scorn it.. Through his army stories, the character Emo reveals this ambivalence. He speaks highly of the days when white women swarmed around him, showing a desire to be embraced by the white American society. However, Emo is also the first to bring up Tayo’s mixed ancestry and to attack Tayo for his heritage. He cries out “There he is. He thinks he’s something all right. Because he’s part white. Don’t you, half-breed?” This illustrates Emo’s feeling of resentment caused by the white culture that directly contrasts with his longing to be immersed in it.

Although Tayo notices the ambivalence in the Pueblos’ view of the white culture early on, he is unable to find a solution. While Tayo’s army buddies turn to liquor, “the medicine for the anger that made them hurt”, Tayo searches for another way to make peace with himself. When Tayo visits Betonie, Betonie reveals that the Pueblo customs of old have become obsolete because they fail to take into account the presence of whites. By manipulating the old rituals, Betonie actually fortifies the Pueblo traditions  because they become applicable to the present. Through this, Betonie helps Tayo achieve peace and break free from the anger and ambivalence. Betonie and the new rituals help Tayo renew a sense of pride in his culture- something that had been  lost by many of Tayo’s people.

Ceremony suggests that traditions and rituals rest at the crux of cultures. When the traditions become obsolete, society loses a sense of pride and unity. By tweaking rituals to suit the modern world however, a culture’s strength can be restored. Although Tayo is the only one to realize this key detail, his transformation implies the potential for the entire Pueblo community to be revitalized.

Revision #3- Open Prompt #5

1975.
Although literary critics have tended to praise the unique in literary
characterizations, many authors have employed the stereotyped character
successfully. Select one work of acknowledged literary merit and in a
well-written essay, show how the conventional or stereotyped character or
characters function to achieve the author's purpose.

Ironically, one-dimensional characters sometimes allow readers to glimpse multiple
dimensions of an author’s meaning. Due to this, plays like Edward Albee’s The American Dream, rely on stock characters in order to better illustrate the playwright’s meaning. In The American Dream, Albee crafts the stock character of Mommy in order to amuse audiences while simultaneously demonstrating the fallacies in the American
society.

One of the most humorous yet horrifying characters, Mommy best exemplifies a typical
stock character. Her childish and controlling personality remains immutable
throughout the play. In the opening scene, Mommy forcefully directs Daddy to
listen to a story of dissatisfaction. She continuously repeats phrases like
“What did I just say?” to keep Daddy’s focus directed on her and giggles when
Daddy responds saying that he’s “all ears”. While Mommy’s phrase repetition
itself might serve to characterize her as child-like, her inability to
comprehend Daddy’s idiom further emphasizes her immaturity. Her name itself even
exaggerates her child-like qualities as her personality stands in sharp contrast
with her ironic name, Mommy. In a darker segment of the play, Mommy’s literal
interpretations have disastrous effects. When Mommy brings home her adopted son,
her discontent with him “having eyes only for his Daddy” and other subsequent
complaints compel her to slowly disfigure her own son. This mutilation can be
attributed to the the fact that Mommy cannot stand Daddy having more power than
her in any sphere of influence- including their child. She therefore sees it fit
to mutilate the child in order to bring the power back to her.

On the surface, Mommy’s actions might lead to comedic effects, however as the play
unfolds and the major themes start to emerge, it’s clear that Mommy’s character
provides other uses as well. Mommy’s characterization allows the audience to
both laugh and shudder at her, yet it becomes apparent that Mommy represents
something much deeper than a character in a play. Mommy signifies the American
people who Albee believes have since become simultaneous childish and
power-hungry. Never satisfied, they mutilate things before they even have a
chance to grow. The stock character of Mommy allows audiences to shift from
being entertained to enlightened about Albee’s thought on the weaknesses of the
American society.

Therefore, Mommy serves as a stock character in order for Albee to draw out the flaws
within the American society. As a stock character Mommy is amusing and
unassuming. However, only as the rest of the play unfolds does the audience
begin to understand that Mommy resembles the antithesis of what America should
be.

Revision #2- Open Prompt #4

1972. In retrospect, the reader often discovers that the first chapter of a novel or the opening scene of a drama introduces some of the major themes of the work. Write an essay about the opening scene of a drama or the first chapter of a novel in which you explain how it functions in this way.


          Often, the opening scene of a work allows readers to glimpse at a works’ major themes and over-arching meaning. This holds true for Edward Albee’s The American Dream. In this play, Albee conveys in his stage directions, the play’s opening line, and  Mommy’s hat anecdote that The American Dream intends to show that consumerism and a focus on appearances without regard to substance can only bring dissatisfaction.

          Although Albee includes few stage directions, they convey pieces of both The American Dream’s theme and its meaning. Albee describes a layout of a simple living room consisting of two chairs and sofa. These directions, purposefully vague, create an atmosphere that is cold and generic. These spartan living conditions suggest the family inhabiting the room comes from a lower social class. The fact that there are more furniture than people, however,   suggests excess more characteristic of the upper-middle class. With these two contrary indicators of class, the opening scene leaves the family shadowed in ambiguity  and allows them to fall anywhere on the social ladder.. Therefore, Albee’s stage directions help audiences to understand that the family portrayed in the play and their grievances reflect that of America at large. This provides the foundation for the theme of conformity which is explored throughout the play.
          The opening line of the play also helps to illustrate Albee’s themes and meaning. After the curtain rises, mommy announces “I don’t know what can be keeping them”. Ordinarily, this would not seem like a strange line, or at least one that would carry on thematic significance. The “they” Mommy is referring to, however, is actually one entity, the character Mrs. Barker. Mrs. Barker is unique in that while she is the only named character, her character is actually the vaguest. Throughout the piece, Albee seems to suggest that Mrs. Barker represents a faceless, shifting authority  whose purpose is to grant either disapproval or approval. Throughout the play, Mrs. Barker takes on various titles such as “the chairman of the woman’s club” and the “lady who does Good Works”. She abides strictly by polite conventions, always replying “I don’t mind if I do” in the face of a question. Both Mommy and Daddy crave the attention of this nameless authority, evidenced by the fact that the two are waiting for her arrival with only complaints of her tardiness to entertain them. Therefore, the opening line helps to introduce the concept of an ambiguous “they” that serves as the sole-authority for the American people.

          Mommy’s reflection on her incident at the store also illuminates many of Albee’s key themes. Daddy’s complaint about his overall dissatisfaction with life prompts Mommy to begin a story about the purchase of a hat. The juxtaposition of these two ideas allows readers to see that Mommy is also dissatisfied and that she merely sublimates her dissatisfaction through consumerism. Without leaving out a single detail, Mommy reveals how she was talked into buying a “beige” hat only to become embarrassed as the chairman of her woman’s club, (or the faceless authority) decreed that Mommy’s hat was actually “wheat”. This introduces a theme that the rural or the traditional of America, suggested by the color wheat, are becoming undesirable. Furthermore, the sub-sequent fit Mommy throws and her demand for satisfaction at the hat-shop foreshadows the mutilation of Mommy’s adopted son, said to resemble the American Dream. Both her son and the hat shop don’t give Mommy what she wants, and so she takes it upon herself destroy them. Through this, Albee seems to suggest that the American focus on shiny exteriors and consumer goods has destroyed our traditional principles and  only leaves people dissatisfied in the end.

          In conclusion, the opening section of The American Dream brings to light several of Albee’s key themes and the play’s meaning. Through his stage directions, opening line, and  the hat anecdote, Albee allows readers to preview the key components of his play before delving into them in earnest.

Revision #1- Open Prompt #3

Authors constantly rely on a dark counterpart of a beloved place in order to create a contrast that emphasizes the themes of a work. JRR Tolkien, for example, employs this tactic in his masterpiece The Lord of the Rings. In this work, Tolkien creates a world divided by starkly different cities to ultimately illustrate that good has the power to conquer evil by resisting temptation and maintaining integrity.
  Tolkien uses the cities of Minas Tirith and Mordor as foils to represent the forces of good and evil. Tolkein points out that the two cities were once identical and in fact, were founded  as twin cities. Mordor however became plagued with evil because of its leader, Soron. Since then, Mordor is said to possess “[an] evil that does not sleep”. . and Minas Tirith on the other hand, is distinguished with honor and bravery as it is the “City of Kings. These details allow readers to understand that the two cities are meant to be considered counterparts to one another.
  Although the tale weaves its way through all of the corners of Middle Earth, in the final sscenes, the main characters, Frodo and Sam, find themselves departing from Minas Tirith for the land of Mordor. Throughout their journey, Mordor has been a tantalizing goal; it is always in sight, but the travelers never seem to reach it. Many obstacles, both spiritual and physical, delay their journey, but as Frodo and Sam finally reach the city the trials only increase.To uproot  evil, the travelers must bear through Mordor, the darkest of places, and survive the temptations and hardships it presents, such as abandoning their mission and succumbing to the forces of evil. In the end, the travelers do succeed in their mission, but only through personal integrity and strong wills. Tolkien uses the journey from Minas Tirith to Mordor to show that by avoiding temptations, the forces of good can conquer evil.
  Therefore, the Lord of the Rings is a tale which explores the powers of good and evil. Good, represented by the mythical city Minas Tirith proves to eventually conquer evil, symbolized by the dark city Mordor. However, it is only by facing the evil itself and resisting its dark tantalization that the conflict of the novel can be resolved.