Characters & People
Identify the Norman king described as "First Norman King of England."
William the Conqueror
who is the "dread of the land" and attacker in Heorot?
Grendel
According to the General Prologue passage, in what month and at which inn does the narrator prepare to start his pilgrimage?
April; The Tabard Inn in Southwark
What sonnet form is divided into an octave and a sestet?
Petrarchan (Italian) sonnet
Define personification in one sentence and give one brief example from either Beowulf passage or the Prologue excerpt.
Personification: giving human traits to nonhuman things. Example: “the youthful sun / Half his course through the Ram has run” — the sun is described with humanlike agency.
Name the family feud also called the Cousins' War.
War of the Roses (York & Lancaster)
Which 2 phrases best describes Beowulf? (Choose one: “Mighty and canny”; “Hygelac’s kinsman”; “captain of evil”; “Dread of the land”)
“Mighty and canny”; “Hygelac’s kinsman”
Who is the “holy blissful martyr” that pilgrims seek at Canterbury?
St. Thomas Beckett
Identify the figure of speech in Wyatt’s line: "Noli me tangere, for Caesar's I am" (hint: reference to a famous person).
Allusion (to Caesar)
What is a synecdoche? Give a one-sentence definition and an example
Synecdoche: a part stands for the whole (e.g., “wheels” for a car).
Which controversial queen “was a commoner who married her king in secret”
Elizabeth Woodville
“He was desperate to flee to his den and hide…” is an indirect characterization of?
Grendel
True/False: The opening lines’ imagery in the General Prologue emphasize the end of life and sin. (Answer and give one-sentence justification.)
False. The imagery emphasizes spring, renewal, and desire to make pilgrimages — renewal rather than an end of life or sin.
Provide the rhyme scheme for Spenser’s Sonnet
Spenser sonnet rhyme scheme: ABAB BCBC CDCD EE
Define paradox and identify one example
Paradox: a statement that seems contradictory but reveals truth. Example: Spenser’s “My Love is like to ice, and I to fire.”
Which historical figure “became king by making sure his nephews, the Princes in the Tower, disappeared”?
Richard III
Beowulf battling Grendel in Heorot and the hall surviving allow for the wyrd of the hall to endure...what is wyrd?
fate
Match the pilgrim: who is described as feeding small dogs and being sensitive to manners and appearance
Prioress (she fed small dogs and cared about manners)
Explain how Spenser uses paradox in the opening line "My Love is like to ice, and I to fire"
The paradox pairs opposites (ice/fire) to show love’s contradictory effects — the speaker’s passion (fire) intensifies the beloved’s coldness (ice), which makes both feelings more intense and shows love’s power to alter nature and reason.
What is the function of juxtaposition in poetry? Give an example
Juxtaposition places contrasting ideas close together to highlight differences; Spenser’s ice versus fire is an example that intensifies the contrast.
who "used satire to expose the distorted values and corruption of the Middle Ages"?
Chaucer
explain two of the Ango-Saxon heroic ideals
courage, loyalty to one’s lord (Hygelac), and fame through deeds
Explain in two sentences why Chaucer’s description of “sundry folk” (the pilgrims) is an effective way to set up satire.
By grouping diverse social types and describing them briefly, Chaucer sets up contrast and targets for satire; the variety allows him to expose social behaviors and hypocrisies across classes.
What universal theme is in 2 texts we have read and which texts
chivalry- The Knight's Tale and Elizabethan poetry
loyalty- Beowulf and Hamlet
Fate- Beowulf, The Knight's Tale, Hamlet
Supernatural- Beowulf, The Knight's Tale, Hamlet
Corruption- Canturbury Tales, Hamlet
Explain the difference between connotation and denotation with an example
Denotation is the literal dictionary meaning; connotation is the associated ideas and emotions. Example: “pilgrim” denotation = a religious traveler; connotation = someone on a moral or spiritual quest, implying earnestness or vulnerability.