LITS3303 EXAM ADVICE

LITS3303 EXAM ADVICE, 2007-2008

1. Given that the term paper examines your knowledge of Module One: Marxism, the final exam is based on Module Two. Of course, some general information discussed in Module One (e.g. our discussions of the nature of the self or whether knowledge can be objective) may inform what we did in Module Two, so it might be important to recall some of that as well. But your focus should be on MODULE TWO: PSYCHOANALYSIS.

2. There are SIX questions to choose from. You are required to answer TWO.

3. Some, though not all, of the questions are comparative in nature (i.e. the question may ask you to compare and contrast the views of TWO theorists).

4. We addressed the following TOPICS (and sub-topics) in the course of Module Two:

What is Freudian psychoanalysis?
- How does Freud conceptualise the psyche?
What is Jungian analytical psychology?
- How does Jung conceptualise the psyche?
- How is his model similar to / different from Freud's?
Psychoanalytic literary theory:
- What does the text reveal about the Author: Freud's The Interpretation of Dreams, "Creative Writers and Day-Dreaming";
- How should we undestand the Reader's response to the text: "Creative Writers and Day-Dreaming," "The Uncanny";
- What is the nature of the relationship between authors which comprises literary history: Bloom's The Anxiety of Influence, A Map of Misreading.
Archetypal (mythological) literary theory:
- Jung's "On the Relation of Analytical Psychology to Poetry" -- how are his views similar to / different from Freud's?
- Frye's "The Archetypes of Literature" -- how are his views on literature similar to / different from Jung's?
Psychoanalytic / archetypal Post-colonial theory:
- Fanon's Black Skin White Masks: "The Psychopathology of the Negro" -- what does Fanon draw from Freud and/or Jung in an effort to conceptualise the identity of the 'Antillean'?;
- Harris' "History, Fable and Myth in the Caribbean and Guianas" -- how does Harris conceptualise literature in the Caribbean?

5. I would advise you to revise THREE of the topics (which might include sub-topics) listed above by

familiarising yourself with the school of thought studied in this module by
- consulting the relevant PhilWeb page devoted to that school; and
- studying some of the secondary sources listed there;
carefully, in the case of each theorist,
- studying the primary sources in question in conjunction with my own summaries / notes;
- trying to recall the argument advanced in each essay;
- consulting relevant secondary sources for the light that these may shed on the views of the theorist in question (for suggested readings, consult the relevant PhilWeb pages); and
- comparing and contrasting the point of view of particular theorists.

Remember that the goal is not merely to paraphrase the argument of a particular theorist but to marshall that information in order to answer the particular question asked.

One way to get a handle on a particular theory is to consider the implications of the argument in question for your own work as a theorist and critic: how has it changed how you think about the nature of human identity, or the nature of knowledge, or the criticism of literature, etc.? How has it also accordingly changed what you do as a literary critic?

Another way to grasp a theory is to study a practical application of it. For example, if you are trying to come to grips with Freud's model of the psyche and the applicability of psychoanalysis to literary criticism more generally, it might be useful to read Marie Bonaparte's famous psychoanalytic study of Edgar Allan Poe.

Last but not least, remember that the secret in doing well in any exam is to anticipate the kind of questions which may be asked. To this end, prepare thoroughly: study the past exam papers in this course and try, in the case of each topic and each theorist, to recall my emphases (and even hints), to put your finger on the main issues at stake and, thus, to figure out the kind of question which may be asked of you.