Exams

Exam 1

Exam 1 will consist of short essay questions, which can be found (once the exam opens) in our Georgia View “Quizzes” panel.

There will be three questions, and you will have 15 minutes for each one.  The questions will require you to write a paragraph of 4-6 sentences. Use specific detail from the texts and films to support your answer. (If someone could have written the paragraph without studying our readings and discussions, it is not specific enough.)

A note on plagiarism: Because I have had to fail students in the past for problems on a similar exam, I want to stress that all work must be your own. Do not consult any sources other than our readings, and cite the author’s name or the title of the text when you borrow ideas from it. Since you have only 15 minutes for each question, I do not require or expect direct quotes from our readings. However, if you choose to include any direct quotes (i.e. any language written by another author), use quotation marks and cite both the author and the page number.

Final Exam

We will meet on campus to complete the final exam at a time and date listed at the bottom of our Schedule. It will consist of multiple choice and short essay questions. No question will require an answer longer than one paragraph.

The entire exam will be closed book and closed notes.

You must bring a blue book and a Scantron form to the final exam, along with pencils (for the objective portion) and pens or pencils for the short essays.

Multiple Choice

These questions will resemble the questions from our quizzes. Many will ask you to compare or contrast the assigned films and/or assigned songs. Others will ask you to identify motifs and major plot elements in particular songs or films. For example,

Which film includes a protagonist who is a graffiti writer?

1. 1. Beyond the Lights
   2. Superfly
   3. Juice
   4. Gimme the Loot

Short Essay

These questions will resemble the questions from Exam 1.

The short essay responses must include specific detail from the texts, songs, and films support your answer. (If someone could have written the paragraph without studying the thing that it talks about, it is not specific enough.)

For example,

Compare or contrast the portrayal of the record industry in Beyond the Lights and Straight Outta Compton.

In answering this question, the student should pick a single point and write one paragraph that makes that point and offers textual evidence to support it. For this particular question, for example, you might

• Choose “Compare” and argue that the films both portray the industry as predatory and exploitative, OR
• Choose “Contrast” and argue that Beyond the Lights critiques the industry’s treatment of  women as nothing more than  sex objects, while Straight Outta Compton participates in that same sexist objectification of women.

As these examples suggest, there is no single right answer to the essay questions. The key is to make a clear claim in the paragraph’s first sentence and then support that claim with concrete evidence from the film(s) and/or song(s).