ENGLISH 313:
AUGUSTAN WRITERS I
(English Literature, 1660-1700)
Fall 1999
STUDY QUESTIONS
| Exam #1 | Take-home writing assignment |
| Due: | Monday, September 20 (revised date) |
| Length: | 3 pages, typed and double-spaced |
| Procedure: | Based on the reading we have done this semester, discuss both changes and continuities in seventeenth-century England. To what extent might the world have appread to have been turned upside down? What remained the same? Be specific. You may want to consider political, religious, philosophical, and literary approaches to the topic. Organize your answer carefully, and document sources appropriately. Append a brief bibliography as the fourth page of your paper. |
Study Questions for Absalom and Achitophel (Nov. 1, 1999)
Absalom and Achitophel is John Dryden's response to
the nervous political situation that resulted from the Popish Plot and the subsequent
events surrounding the Exclusion Crisis. One of the great achievements of Absalom
and Achitophel is its portrayal of current events by drawing parallels between them
and the story of the biblical King David. Dryden forces us to see similarities
between the biblical David and Charles II; in the process, he suggests that human nature
is rather constant in its failings, thereby deflecting criticism of Charles's moral
lapses. It would be helpful if you familiarized yourself with the David story
in 2 Samuel for class on Thursday so that we can begin discussing Dryden's drawing of
parallels.
The following partial key of correspondences may be helpful.
| King David | King Charles |
| Absalom | James Scott, Duke of Monmouth |
| Achitophel | Anthony Ashley Cooper, Earl of Shaftesbury |
| Michal | Catherine of Braganza, Charles's Queen |
| Saul | Oliver Cromwell |
| Ishbosheth | Richard Cromwell |
| Jebusites | Roman Catholics |
| Chosen people (line 88) | Protestants |
| Zimri | George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham |
| Corah | Titus Oates, chief witness of the Popish Plot |
| Barzillai | James Butler, Duke of Ormond |
Final Exam Preparation
(Bring a blue book and pen or pencil to the exam.)
The exam will be in two parts. The first question will concentrate on Thomas Shadwell's The Virtuoso. The second question will be broader, focusing on the satirical nature of the material we have read this semester. For the second question, it will be useful to familiarize yourself with the following passage from John Dryden's A Discourse Concerning the Original and Progress of Satire (1693) in which he describes satire:
This is the mystery of that noble trade, which yet not master can teach to his apprentice: he may give the rules, but the scholar is never the nearer in his practice. Neither is it true that this fineness of raillery is offensive. A witty man is tickled while he is hurt in this manner, and a fool feels it not. The occasion of an offence may possibly be given, but he cannot take it. If it be granted that in effect this way does more mischief; that a man is secretly wounded, and though he be not sensible himself, yet the malicious world will find it for him: yet there is still a vast difference betwixt the slovenly butchering of a man, and the fineness of a stroke that separates the head from teh body, and leaves it standing in its place.