English 401: Chaucer
Professor Melissa D. Aaron
Take home exam. Due at 11:30 am, Room 106, Thursday December 6th.
We have read several of the Canterbury Tales and discussed how they relate (or
do not relate) to the narrator: “Chaucer,” the Wife of Bath, etc.
Select one of the Canterbury Tales and compare it to the “Pardoner’s
Tale” in terms of narrator; reliability, relation of the take to the prologue/narrator,
the “double narrator” effect (“Chaucer” and the teller of
the tale), selection of topic, quotes and allusions and how they are used, and
anything else that occurs to you.
Some dos and don’ts.
DO:
Use your Riverside Chaucer.
Use concrete examples, citing by line number. Check the MLA style guide link
on my “Writing Resources”
page if you are not sure how to do this.
Type or word process.
Write about 3 pages.
Write in good consecutive prose, with an introduction, a middle, and a conclusion.
DON’T:
Use any sources other than your Riverside, class notes, or your own brain. This
means that you may not consult with fellow classmates in writing your exam but
you may consult the discussion board for ideas—they are considered “class
notes.” You may also ask for straight factual information (“The piranhas
ate my copy of the exam. What did Professor Aaron want again?”) but not
“What did you write?” You may not consult books, articles, or Cliff’s
Notes.
Stress out.
On Thursday, I will collect your exams and we will discuss them; I will return
your papers; and we may watch a humorous video on a Medieval topic (“I
didn’t know they had those.”)