<p>Are the lit hum finals all the same (like for. lang.) or do they differ by teacher? Also do they test on comprehension or theme like ideas or both? b/c I'm reading the Iliad now and I'm over my head with all of the things that are happening...</p>
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<li><p>They are departmental finals.</p></li>
<li><p>I can only speak for the final, as your midterm will be drafted by your instructor. The final consists of three parts, none of which are directly related to comprehension, though you should have a solid background on the plot should you wish you receive a good grade. Theme will play an important role in the essays.</p></li>
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<p>In the first part of the exam, you will be given a passage (at most, 8-10 lines) from any of the texts covered over the course of the semester. You will be asked you identify the text, the author (which can be a blast when dealing with the Bible), the speaker (or narrator), and its importance to the rest of the text. You'll probably be advised to take the 'kitchen sink' approach to this final point, cramming in as much information as you can about the passage as it relates to the rest of the text. Believe it or not, this can actually be a fun little task if you've done all the reading. It was for me, anyway, and I didn't find it difficult. If you read everything and land a good instructor, you should be more than prepared.</p>
<p>In the second part of the exam, you will be presented with I believe two passages, and you will be need to choose one to write a textual analysis on. You will be told all identifying information regarding the passage. You will need to go line by line, discussing genre, theme, use of language, and finally ground it back to the remainder of the text. For me, this filled up 5/6 blue book pages.</p>
<p>In the final part of the exam, you will be presented with a broad question asking you to compare contrasting elements (good and evil, outsider and insider, light and dark, etc) in three texts of your choice. You may not use the same text used to answer the second part of the exam. When studying, you should think most about elements unique to the main characters in each text. It would be a good idea to draft a list of all characters and work toward learning their importance, while watching for emerging chracteristics that can be used to compare cross-texts.</p>
<p>If you are having trouble with the Iliad, don't sweat it. I was awful with the first six books, but then went back and reread everything after the first class (then everything again during reading week) and was fine heading into the essays and exams. In fact, I was plowing through the Odyssey two weeks later. Also, there are plenty of online resources out there to help you out, on top of Cliffs Notes and whatnot. For me, slowing down and marking up the text did the trick.</p>
<p>What percent of the grade is the final worth?</p>
<p>That is up to the instructor / section.</p>