2014 Finals Essay Prompts

On the final, you will be choosing ONE of the following to respond to:

1) Trace one of the following motifs as it develops through the text: ginger, money/materialism, flying, peeing on someone, hunger, naming, colors (especially white and gold), roots

-What is the significance or symbolism of this motif in the novel? How do you know?

-Why does Morrison include it? How does it add to our understanding?

2) Trace the development of ONE character over the course of the novel: Pilate, Hagar, Milkman, Guitar, Macon Dead II, Ruth. Consider ONE (or two) of the following questions in your response:

-Who is the strongest character in this text and why?
-Defend the character who seems most unlikeable. Convince us that they've been misunderstood. 

-To what extent is this person ultimately an individual? What is Morrison communicating about what it takes to be an individual? What hinders us?

-Compare/contrast this character to another from a major work we've read this year

3) What are Morrison’s messages about the lives of women vs. the lives of men? Focus on ONE character in your response: Sweet, Pilate, Hagar, Ruth, Corinthians, Lena, Milkman, Porter, Circe. 

Go beyond the idea that "men oppress women"--how do women oppress women? how does society? what about the men who support women? What is Morrison ultimately advocating from all of us?

4) What is Toni Morrison communicating about the nature of love in this text? How is love connected to hate? To death? To ownership? What is the ideal form of love according to Morrison? 

Consider multiple forms of love (romantic, to a community, familial, etc) and any of these questions that speak to you.

5) How could we read Guitar as justified in some small way? How does Morrison ultimately want us to come away thinking about race? How do you know?

6) Review Morrison’s introduction and the information we know from her interviews. Choose 1 idea and discuss how it applies to the text. Do you agree or disagree with Morrison on this point and why? 

Some options you might consider: 1) men have more to learn (and unlearn) than women, 2) the death of her father acted as her muse to write this book, 3) she wrote the ending first, 4) this book is about flying, 5) she wanted to include many layers of language in this text to reflect the diverse information sources of the African American community in which she was raised.