choose five 5 of out of the following twelve 12 to write about each response should be carefully developed answer the prompt directly please answer with a full paragraph of 1 3 to 1 2 page for each prompt 2

Choose five [5] of out of the following twelve [12] to write about. Each response should be carefully developed—answer the prompt directly. Please answer with a full paragraph of [1/3 to 1/2 page] for each prompt. Each answer will be worth four points for a total of 20. I will score more highly if you respond directly to the prompt and if you develop the answer [with quotes of passages, etc.]. Put the number next to your response please so that it’s clear which one you’re responding to. Again, mid term is due Sunday, April 12, Midnight. You should submit directly to Canvas via the ASSIGNMENTS tab under “Mid Term.” If you can’t figure it out, you can submit via email [but only if you have to].

  1. Aristotle laid down a number of criteria for tragedy. He felt that a play achieves the “tragic” when it follows certain standards/criteria. These are listed in his essay “Poetics” and we talked about them on Zoom. Apply at least five of these standards to Hamlet—does Shakespeare adhere to at least five of these? If so, how?
  2. Apply these same standards to Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, especially in relation to Kurtz—does Conrad meet these standards in his novella? If so, would you then identify Heart of Darkness as a tragedy?
  3. According to the “Dramatic Structure” handout, the fourth century Roman grammarian Donatus defined the play as having a three part structure: protasis, epistasis, and catastrophe. Apply these three to Heart of Darkness as a way of demonstrating Conrad’s plotting structure.
  4. There are 12 “hero” archetypes listed on the Archetypes for Literary Analysis handout. Select three [3] of them and apply them to Hamlet, explaining why Hamlet fits each of the three archetypes.
  5. In the same Archetypes for Literary Analysis document, you’ll find a list of ten archetypal “journeys.” Apply three of these to Hamlet. Is Hamlet questing for several things at once [at least three]?
  6. Apply three of these same “archetypal journeys” to Kurtz. What is Kurtz’s quest? Are there at least three in his case?
  7. On the Archetypes for Literary Analysis doc you’ll find a set called “Characteristics of the hero’s journey.” Does Marlow experience some of these on his journey into Africa? Which of these does he experience?
  8. Identify three “shadow” archetypes in the plays and in Heart of Darkness. In what ways are these characters shadows? Choose at least three characters—
  9. Marlow meets several “threshold guardians” on his journey into Africa. Who are these threshold guardians and how do they function as this particular archetype?
  10. There are a number of “archetypal places” listed on the Archetypes for Literary Analysis doc. Marlow experiences three of these archetypal places on his journey. Which of the three archetypal places does he encounter and in what ways are they archetypal?
  11. There are damsels in distress and dark mother archetypes in the plays and in Heart of Darkness. Identify one damsel in distress, one dark mother, and one character who is strangely both at the same time. I’m thinking of at least five characters who fit these descriptions—
  12. I posted a document on Canvas called “Theater of the Absurd.” Some of you might be interested in this movement in theater. Explain how Pirandello’s “Six Characters in Search of an Author” fits into this movement [according to the doc].