English 2112: World Literature II: Study Guide for Test Two

Below you will find review questions for each work we've read for Test Two. Also, you will find the names of the authors and each work we read--study them carefully, writing each name and title as it appears on this page multiple times to learn the spelling, including quotation marks (" ") and italics (use underlining when writing by hand). You will be expected to provide these names and titles on the Quote ID section. As for the review questions, please consider them supplemental to the discussion questions found on each individual author page--you should re-study those as well.

Review Questions

Fyodor Dostoevsky (1821-1881)

Notes from Underground

Why does the Underground man consider consciousness a disease? In what way is he handicapped by his ability to reflect?
As readers, how do we reconcile what seems to be an inherent paradox of this work: the Underground man claims that he "shall never have readers"?
In the end, what is the ethical effect when the Underground man accuses his imaginary audience of self-deception?

Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910)

The Death of Ivan Ilych

How does this novella demonstrate the difference between plot and story? Why is this distinction so important to our experience reading the work?
Does Ivan's "dull gnawing ache" have symbolic meaning, or is it sufficiently significant as a physical reality? What is a symbol? What is realism?
How do we characterize the narrator's attitude toward Ivan and his ordeal? In what way does the style of narration change as the narrative unfolds?
What is the significance of the "black sack" that Ivan imagines himself being thrust into? Is it a symbol or a metaphor? What is the difference?

Gustave Flaubert (1821-1880)

"A Simple Heart"

How does Flaubert maintain our interest in the life of Felicity without the memorable events we would normally look for in a narrative?
Consider the point of view of the narrator: "But Felicite took no credit to herself, and probably never knew that she had been heroic." Why doesn't the narrator know for sure what she knows?
How do you interpret the ambiguous language at the end of the story: "and when she exhaled her last breath, she thought she saw in the half-opened heavens a gigantic parrot hovering above her head." Is she delusional?

Anton Chekhov (1860-1904)

"The Lady with the Dog"

What point of view of Gurov does the narrator give us? Do we read descriptions from the outside, or does the narrator allow Gurov's thoughts to shape his style?
What is the effect of ending this story with the word "beginning"?
Given that this story does not teach a clear lesson about love and adultery, what is the ethical challenge for the reader?

"A Doctor's Visit"

After deciding to stay the night, the doctor is burdened by thought--is this another example of the curse of consciousness? Is he a man of action?
Despite her physical symptoms, there does not seem to be anything physically wrong with the patient. If not, then what is her ailment? What is the doctor's theory?
How do you take the ending of the story, when the doctor imagines a better world: "but [he] thought of the time, perhaps close at hand, when life would be as bright and joyous as that still Sunday morning"? Can he cure the world?

Pages

Study Guide for Test Two