To pass this paper, you must respond to all four of the prompts below. You can c

To pass this paper, you must respond to all four of the prompts below. You can choose to either divide your essay into sections by prompt or to write a continuous essay that adequately addresses all four prompts.
To pass this paper, you must always italicize the titles of all published works within the body of your paper (such as King Lear) and never italicize the name of any title characters (such as King Lear).
To pass this paper, you must quote directly from at least two different works on our syllabus and provide correct parenthetical citations for each quotation. Follow the quotation examples from previous papers to see how to quote from verse (Beowulf), dramatic verse (Twelfth Night), and prose (the Bulman essay).
Prompts
NOTE: The “hints” provided for each prompt below are intended to assist students who have no idea how to approach this essay. There is no need to follow these hints. You can, literally, write about any works on our syllabus that you think support your argument. As always, your paper will pass or fail primarily based on your adherence to the formal requirements outlined above.
Prompt One:
One thing the texts in this course have in common is that they are British literary texts before 1785. What else connects the literature we read this semester?
Hint: While our syllabus admittedly covers a broad range of texts, many of them embrace common literary forms. For instance, Marlowe, Jonson, and Shakespeare all use iambic pentameter for their dramatic writing. Meanwhile, Donne, Herrick and Lanyer use this same meter for their lyric poetry, and Milton employs it in his epic Paradise Lost. Another thing that unites many works on our syllabus is a kind of humor based on understatement. This is true of the figure of litotes found in our Beowulf translation, as well as in the Miller’s understated descriptions of Nicholas’s sexual frustration, and the way the speaker of “A Modest Proposal” downplays the heinous cruelty of his policy suggestions.
Prompt Two:
Often, literary texts are about how choices lead to consequences and many texts offer lessons about making ethical decisions. Choose one literary text that you read this semester that related choices to consequences and explain what this text taught you about making important decisions in your own life.
Hint: Arguably, “The Miller’s Tale” taught you not to commit adultery; Dr. Faustus taught you not to sell your soul to the devil; and Othello cautions against the dangers of jealousy. However, what really makes the characters in these texts (and others, like Paradise Lost) interesting is that yielding to temptation makes them human. It would therefore be as valid to suggest that these works encourage readers to emulate the behavior represented in them as it is to claim that they advocate against that behavior. You can therefore argue for any character on our syllabus as either a role model or a cautionary example.
Prompt Three:
In this literature class, you read literary texts from a variety of cultural groups. Choose a literary text you read this semester and explain how that text gave you a deeper understanding of another culture or community.
Hint: This works equally well with prompts three and four, so you could write about Oroonoko for number three and Twelfth Night for number four or vice-versa. While the chronological limitations of our syllabus limit our exploration of cultural diversity, Oroonoko may have changed your perceptions about colonialism and the legacy of slavery. Similarly, our exploration of Twelfth Night (on both page and stage) might have expanded your understanding regarding issues of gender identity and alternative sexualities.
Prompt Four:
Choose a text you read in this course and explain how this text continues to be relevant today.
Hint: This works equally well with prompts three and four, so you could write about Oroonoko for number three and Twelfth Night for number four or vice-versa. While the chronological limitations of our syllabus limit our exploration of cultural diversity, Oroonoko may have changed your perceptions about colonialism and the legacy of slavery. Similarly, our exploration of Twelfth Night (on both page and stage) might have expanded your understanding regarding issues of gender identity and alternative sexualities.