In order to prepare for the final exam on Friday, please think about, discuss, and jot down answers to the following questions. Also, read through all your notes on Much Ado and through your Quotations sheets. There will be three sections on Thursday’s exam: Quotation Identification, Short Answer, Essay. Completion of the study questions and the preparation of one page of notes (including an outline, quotations, thesis statement, etc. ) for the essay topic is required for Thursday. This will be worth 50 points. The entire exam will be worth 200 points.
1. Describe the following
characters and reflect on their function in the play: Benedick, Claudio,
Dogberry, Leonato.
2. Describe the following
characters and reflect on their function in the play: Hero, Beatrice, the Friar.
3. Define the term metaphor.
Give an example from the play. Which characters use metaphors most often? How
does Shakespeare’s use of metaphor contribute to the play as a whole?
4. Define the term pun. Give an
example from the play. How does Shakespeare’s use of puns contribute to the
play as a whole?
5. Define dramatic and verbal
irony. Give at least two examples (of either) from the play and label them. How
does Shakespeare’s use of irony contribute to the play as a whole? How would
the play be different without irony?
6. Define the term foil. Give
an example of a foil in the play. Explain how the two characters are a foil and
how this foil contributes to the play as a whole. (i.e.
How is Shakespeare’s use of foils so important to the play as a whole?)
7.
Analyze the concept that the
beautiful is the good and how it develops in this play.
8. Explain how Much Ado About
Nothing is not only a play for Elizabethan times, but also a play for
modern times.
9. How does Shakespeare develop
the theme of the power of words in this play? Give several examples where
Shakespeare reveals the power of the word and then analyze them. Be sure to
discuss Benedick and Beatrice’s connection through
language, the power of words used well to create great disorder or to restore
order, and Dogberry’s role as a poor speaker.
10. Analyze Claudio’s love for
Hero. Is it a deep, true love? What is the love based on? What are your
predictions for their future?
11. Analyze the love between
Benedick and Beatrice. What is their loved based on? What are your predictions
for their future? Compare their relationship to that of Claudio and Hero.
13. How does the theme of
slander develop in the play? What is Shakespeare saying about slander, reality,
and love in this play?
14.
Explain the definition of a
classical romance and how it applies to Much Ado. For each of the following
terms, a) define it, b)give an example of it from the play: arete,
hubris, sophrosune, order is restored.
15. Is Much Ado About Nothing a romance or a tragedy waiting to happen?
Essay Topics: To prepare for this section, brainstorm and then prepare one sheet of notes for each topic to use on theessay exam. Include an outline, quotations, and a thesis statement on each page of notes. You will find out which topic to actually write on on the morning of the exam.
The Power of Words: Analyze how Shakespeare develops the theme. How do words create and destroy? How do they reflect intelligence or the lack of? How do they bring people together or force them apart? Why do they matter? Use specific examples and quotations from the play to support your opinions.
-or-
The Beautiful is the Good: Analyze how Shakespeare plays with the concept. What does he say about the nature of our world through this concept? Use specific examples and direct quotations in order to support your opinions.