The Day Before

And so it begins. Tomorrow at this time, you (my English 1101 students) will be writing your final exam.

I've done my best to prepare you, and I'm sure that if you've been to class most of the semester and for the past couple of weeks, you know exactly how to prepare for the exam. Right from the first class, I emphasized how important it is to just come to the classes. And while some of you constantly "had to study for another class" or "had a paper due" or just didn't feel like coming, the vast majority of you found a way and a reason to show up day after day. The reward for that is built in, I would think, as you probably feel more confident than you would have about the kinds of questions, as well as the particular strengths and weaknesses of your writing. I have honestly done my best for each and every one of you. If you asked, I did whatever I could for you. If you came to see me, I talked for as long as you needed. I wrote long notes on your essays--and they should be your key to fixing whatever issues you've had all along. Go back and look at them and see what you need to do. On the final exam, before you leave the exam room, you should take a few minutes to review your exam and make sure you've fixed whatever problems I kept saying you needed to pay attention to. You'd be amazed, most likely, at the difference it can make to your grade.

What else can I say? Well, maybe it's best to do the old question-and-answer routine. That usually gets the best responses.

Q. What can I expect in the exam room?

A. Most of you have done this before, though for some of you it's been a while. First, show up on time. That's crucial. Come in and get yourself comfortable in a good seat and try and get your head into the zone. Try to stay loose and relaxed, but focused at the same time.

Don't bring your books or bags to your to your desk. They have to go against the far wall or somewhere away from you. And don't bring food or beverages. They cause mess and distraction.

The room will be crowded, so just breathe and look around. Get your bearings. Be in your own little world in your own little desk. It's not comfortable, but pretend that it is . It'll go easier for you that way. The way you focus your thoughts will decide the quality of your experience.

I'll be there, a little anxious for you, a little sad that the semester's almost done, and secretly overjoyed that I'll soon have the freedom to do some writing of my own and be able to enjoy a little time to replenish my own (admittedly) tired soul. Mostly, I'll be concerned that you're doing okay, that you're focused, that you've fully prepared, that you don't have any blankness, that you're relaxed. If you have a question to ask me, make sure it's something I can answer quickly, without being too disruptive to those around you. But be assured that I'll be there to help in any way I can, within reason.

Remember: I WANT you to succeed. It makes me feel good. It means neither of us has been wasting our time for the past four months, and it means your exams are beginning on a positive note, and your semester with me will have ended nicely. All's well that ends well, as the bard once said.

Q. How can I prepare for this exam?

A. The best way to be prepared is to do what comes natural to you. By "natural" I don't mean not studying, necessarily, although that works for some people too--not many, but a select Chosen Few. Even the best students and the best writers can benefit from have a read-through of the passages you know you might possibly discuss on the exam. I do this before every class, all semester long: I know the parts I plan to talk about, but I also read through the highlighted parts of the novel, just to specifically remind myself of what the story is about and how it's written. I always find that I'm surprised at where my mind wants to go and the kinds of connections it makes through the hour. It can be like that for you on the exam too. Just know the book real well. Make it real and immediate and fresh for you by re-reading some parts. It would be ridiculous to try and re-read the whole thing at this point.

I'd also suggest you take into account the kinds of issues we've been dealing with all semester for each and every novel. I won't go into them again b/c I talked about them, not only in the last class for the semester, but all throughout the term. Come into the exam room knowing that if such-and-such is asked, you have at least five or six parts of the novel you can refer to. But your extra reading will also allow you to make more connections to other parts of the novel.

Be able to show that you "get" what each novel is about. ASK YOURSELF THAT QUESTION, IN WRITING: What is this novel about? WRITE AN ANSWER, making as many connections as possible to various scenes, images, symobls, bits of dialogue or brief quotes. Be able to say that Edward Hyde REPRESENTS (something) or that Uncle Reg SYMBOLIZES (something) or the fact that a novel is set in Victorian England, 1960s St. John's on Fleming Street or post-apocalyptic America SIGNIFIES (something). Please don't write at this point and ask me the answers to such questions. We've been though it all. If you're not comfortable discussing such issues or specific symbols, find others to discuss. You're the writer. It's up to you what you want to talk about. But stay focused. Use those kinds of words (represents, symbolizes, signifies, means, indicates, connotes, and so on) to get your thoughts about a certain character, setting, symbol, scene, image, or moment focused. They will help you put the words to the thought. Then all you have to do is explain what you meant, using examples.

Q. Do I have to be able to quote from the novel?

Not necessarily. Sometimes it can help, certainly, but I'm not demanding it. But, let's face it--if you can't say by now, "If he be Mr. Hyde, then I be Mr. Seek," then you're just not paying attention. In other words, there are certain lines and phrases that you should know by now. I mean, aren't the boy and the man in The Road "each the other's world entire"? Doesn't Victor want to benefit "the species"? Doesn't Draper get the "Doyle" beaten out of him? Are there certain lines that you associate with certain characters? Certain scenes or images that typify, or define, exactly who and what they are and what they are all about? If you're talking about "identity," such scenes, moments, images, and symbols are crucial, or at least helpful to understanding who they are. Oh, and be prepared to think about whether the characters change during the course of the novel: do they get what they've wanted? How do they react to their dreams or nightmares coming to fruition? Does it change them? Does it change their worlds? If there is change, then be specific about what kind of change (emotional, psychological, physical--does the physical represent the psychological, perhaps? Is there a change in setting that signifies any of this emotional, or personal, change?) Make as many such connections as you can. That would impress me.

And don't worry. You don't have to know/do ALL of this. This is just to show you that there are many, many ways to add substance to your essays.

So, no, quotes aren't necessary, but sometimes they'll just come out. And sometimes you'll memorize them because they'll help you be more specific. That's up to you.

If you refer to a particular scene, make sure it's clear exactly which scene you're referring to. You can be talking about Victor trying to enter the gates of Geneva, for example, and it's late at night, so the gates are locked. If you mention that the gates are locked, and that that is because of the laws at the time, meant to maintain law and order, and the safety of the citizens of that society, then the moment when Victor tries to enter Geneva late at night, and the gates are locked becomes symbolic of him already being a cast-out, estranged from decent society: he has become the monster that law-abiding citizens should fear. He is the monster come to live among them, just as Mr. Hyde steals the bedside of such seemingly decent people in Victorian London, as Mr. Utterson dreams. See how I specifically mentioned the gates being locked, that such a moment is symbolic, what exactly it is symbolic of (making a connection to the bigger issue of social safety, which could be connected, if I choose, to monstrosity and identity b/c that is how people see themselves, as one or the other, the victim or the monster, the one whom the laws favor versus one who acts in contravention of law), and I even make the connection to another novel and a specific scene in that nove, and how it, too, is symbolic of something similar to the scene in Frankenstein. This is the kind of thing a good comparative analysis does once in a while: a little digression to show that you "get" it: the big picture of what these novels have in common and what this course has, to some extent, been about.

So: be specific. It never hurts and always helps.

Q. What if I draw a blank during the exam?

A. Make notes to yourself. Ask yourself questions in writing. Raise your hand. Staring off into to space might help, but it usually only compounds the feelings of helplessness and wastes valuable minutes.

Q. How much should I write?

A. As much as you can write in two and a half hours. Divide your time equally, though. Don't write just one good essay. Leave plenty of time to write TWO quality essays. It will sink your grade badly if you write only one good essay and leave yourself only half an hour to write a rather shabby second essay.

Q. Is it possible to ace this exam, even though my grades have been relatively low all semester?

A. Let's face it: if you've been doing the work all along, coming to see me, paying attention to my comments, coming to see me again, going to the Writing Centre perhaps, your grades have been getting better all semester. But if you're well-prepared and all of a sudden you get what I've been trying to teach you all therm, then, yes, you can ace the exam and get the best mark you've gotten all term. It happens quite often. I've seen students get an "A" on the final despite getting no higher than a 75 all semester. I've seen students who are borderline 50 get in the high 60s and low 70s. It can happen. And it always brings a huge smile to my face.

Q. Will praying help?

A. Couldn't hurt, maybe. Depends on the relationship you've got with your God.

Q. What's up with all the Lady Gaga stuff all term?

A. I just think she's an original and a risk-taker, but she also borrows from the best. I think we could all learn a lesson from Gaga. I'm not saying she's perfect, but it's her very humanity beneath all those masks and those outlandish wardrobes that make her interesting. This has nothing to do with the exam, but there's been a definite Gaga theme, usually related to the "fame monster," all semester long, and I just wanted to clear it up. I'm not obsessed, just fascinated. If I was obsessed, my shrine to her would be a lot bigger.

That's all I can think of to say for now. If I think of anything else, I will certainly blog later. I wouldn't count on it though. I've got another busy day ahead.

Just come prepared tomorrow, whatever that means for you. And trust that you will likely do your best if you're well rested and confident in what you know. Oh, and a little music wouldn't hurt. Breathing definitely helps.

That's all for now.

Thank you for such a great semester. I've had an absolute blast the entire time, especially when you've come to class ready and eager to talk about everything and anything.

As for the exam, don't stress too much. To quote Kat Von D: "It ain't rocket surgery."

Gerard

Vote Caster

This is my second blog for the day (see below), and I'll be blogging again sometime tomorrow, as early as possible.

Just wanted to remind you to click on "Cast Your Vote" on the top right if you want to have a say in a few matters regarding English 1101. Also, the voting is completely anonymous, so feel free to be honest.

Thanks!

GC

Blog, Blog, Blog

Strangely appropriate we should have talked about identity so much this semester, and I've been struggling with my own blogging identity so much. As some of you know, I also keep a blog called Gothic Times (changing the name soon) which is supposed to be somewhat of a chronicle of my personal exploits as a writer. I'm going to keep doing that blog, but at the time I started it, I declared that I would do just academic blogging here on "Literary Pursuits" and do my personal-type blogging on "Gothic Times". I've started to doubt that choice.

You might have noticed that I haven't blogged on "Gothic Times" in a few weeks. That's simply because it's been hard to get time to keep it up. Once the semester gets revved up, I do little outside of grading essays, preparing lectures, meeting with students, answering hundreds (sometimes thousands) of e-mails from students, and dealing with all the details associated with teaching at a university. Thus, I do very little writing, if any. Thus, there was really not much to report on "Gothic Times". That's about to change, of course, as I slip into my writer's garb for the next four and a half months and become author instead of professor. In many ways, as much as I truly love teaching, writing is my first love. But then, it's reached a point where it's hard to tell which one is the real me. I think, like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the truth is that I am not truly one, but truly two. And so I keep both blogs going.

But I've always felt more comfortable writing about the world, my perspective, about my life during the summer months, the wacky and thoughtful, the funny and serious on THIS blog--"Literary Pursuits". This blog was begun about two years ago, I believe, and there are somewhere around 19,000 hits on it, which means somebody's listening. It's not just students, of course. Some are former students of mine, and some are just people from all over who are interested, though I do believe it's mostly students and former students. Many of you have told me you recommend this blog to people you know (writers, students, and so on), so I'm aware of my audience, and that's helpful.

So I've decided to keep posting here over the summer months. I'll still blog about the writing process as it relates to my upcoming short story collection, Moonlight Sketches, over on "Gothic Times". Anything related to my own writing, news of publications, and that sort of thing, that's where I'll be talking about them. I'll do my best even to talk about writing generally in a way that will possibly provide food for thought for the starving writers out there who simply want a place to go for that kind of thing, from someone you know. I'll also be continuing to work on my three novels: Finton Moon (90% finished), Darwin Day (99% finished), and Two Sisters (75% finished). If there's time, I have another project I need to finish by summer's end. I'll be talking about all of that over on "Gothic Times".

Here, I'll just be talking about me and stuff that interests me that's in the news. I'll be musing about stuff I see in my running throughout the city (I run a few miles several times a week in the summer), my planned road trips, maybe posting some pictures along the way. I'll certainly be ranting about stuff that makes me made or amuses me in some way, and talking about the kinds of things that I find fascinating and beautiful. So if you're interested in reading more, I'll be on here occasionally throughout the summer. I'd be happy if you'd join me and even drop a comment now and then (the less anonymous the better).

With that in mind, would you please take a couple of minutes to do the survey I'll be posting in the top right corner of this blog in a little while. It's about the course (English 1101) and about the usefulness of "Literary Pursuits".

Thanks.

I'll be posting more soon to get your primed for the final exam as best I can. There's not much more to say, but, as always, I'll find some words for you.

Peace out.

Gerard