ENGL 121 Robert Morris University Art of Human Vulnerability Questions

Directions: For your final ass, you will answer five questions: the two marked as “required” below and then any three of the ones from the list marked as “selected.”

How do you do this?

1*Cut and paste the questions you’ve chosen to answer into a word processing document (or directly into the Assignment screen text box).

2*Type in your answers to the questions.

3*Cut and paste whatever, as needed, until you have both the questions you’re answering and your answers in the text box.

What should your answers look like?

*Your answers should refer to specific textual evidence (page numbers aren’t needed but do refer to characters, imagery, events, dialogue, definitions, or anything else you think helps make your case). Since this is essentially an open-book exam, this should be super easy. Feel free of course to make use of your notes, D2L discussions, and the texts themselves in replying to the text questions. When I read your response, it should be obvious you did the reading and you thought about it. But other than that, I’m pretty lenient.

*How long should your responses be?

These don’t need to be super long, just long enough to answer the question. Thus, they can range from a couple of sentences to a short paragraph.

*Can you talk about the same text for two different questions?

Sure, as long as you’re talking about it in the context of that particular question.

The Required Questions (Answer these)

1*What were the three most interesting readings/viewings, concepts, or discussions for you from class this semester, and why?

2*What suggestions do you have to improve future iterations of this course?

The Selected Questions (Answer Any Three of The Below)

3*Why don’t we perceive everything in our environment according to the Camouflaged Observation Activity you completed early in the semester (9/4/21)?

4*Explain how any of the two characteristics from the handout on zombie symbolism plays out in Pontypool—using SPECIFIC details from the movie.

5*Name two primary ways that the huli jing in the Ken Liu anime is different from the huli jing in the 18th-century fable by Ji Yun.

6*Explain the criminally monstrous behavior of the protagonist in “Bright Segment” using at least one concept from Chapter 13 of Asma (this is the chapter on Criminal Monstrosity)?

7*Define either the unthinkable, or the unmanageable, or the inhuman. Then explain how the term you’ve chosen to define is reflected in any of the stories we read during the semester [please note that this question is just asking you to talk about one of these three types, not all three].

8*Please define liminality and give an example of it from one of the stories we read during the semester (make sure to explain precisely how your example is liminal)

9*Please define cosmic horror and give an example of it from one of the stories we read during the semester (make sure to explain precisely how your example meets the criteria of cosmic horror).

10*Explain what a glitch in the matrix tale is and offer a short example.

11*What is the uncanny? Please offer an example of it from one of our readings, or something we watched and explain how this example counts as the uncanny.

12*What are mushi-shi, and what do they imply about our relationship with the larger natural world?