updated April 2016

HEL 2.2. GUIDELINES

FOR
PORTFOLIO AND EXAMS

To the HEL Student

Here are some notes regarding the academic expectations for passing the
HEL 2.2. exam
They include
-

the assessment system

portfolio requirements (projects 1 and 2)
project requirements
working tips
examination frame
ASSESSMENT GRID

Seminars

50 %

Seminar attendance

20

Seminar practicals

10

Portfolio (projects 1 and 2)

20

Exam

50 % (minimum 25% required for a

PASS)
TOTAL

100 points

PROJECTS

PROJECT 1
Translation and summary)
Content

Each student is assigned the study and work on anindividual and

personalarticle of literary criticism related to the subject matter under study
(source: The Cambridge Companion to English Literature).
For the actual body of assignments, go to
-

pdf. body of articles from The Cambridge Companion to English

Literature
proiecthel 2.2 repartizaretematicanominala 2014_15

Aim
The aim of this task is to allow students to develop their documentation
techniques and ability by exposing them to the language and conceptual
complexity of a genuine piece of criticism.
In order to check the accuracy of the comprehension and the actual
assimilation of the ideas, students have to
-

read the whole article

provide the translation of one page( specifically indicated) from the
input( 10%)
select 10 key ideas and turn tem into questions with answers to be
found in the text(10%).

The Q&A assignment is meant to show students that writing is an active skill:
the writer actually attempts to answer some specific questions he /she
assumes the reader might have. Thus, students might develop a critical
attitude toward assessing the quality ofa good piece of literary criticism.
Tips for Q&A
-

it is not necessary to cover the WHOLE article;

do not worry if you do not understand everything! This is just a first
step!
you may answer the question by Copy/Paste or by summarizing a
paragraph from the original

an example has been done for you below

Model

Input
TIMOTHY MORTON
Introduction,
Contesting Shelley
Shelley was going to be a Member of Parliament, but the publication of his
pamphlet on atheism sealed his fate as a figure on the margins of political
legislation. Perhaps this is why in the Defence of Poetryhe insists that poets
are the unacknowledged legislators of the world (Pr 297). Parliaments loss
was cultures gain. Shelley was interested in all aspects of literary culture. He
was not simply content to write and publish works: they had to be
disseminated properly too. The Necessity of Atheism, written with Thomas
Jefferson Hogg while Shelley was at Oxford, was scattered prominently at the
front of Slatter and Mundays bookshop in the High Street (RH 50). A passing
pastor noticed it and Shelley was swiftly expelled.
Question
1. Why was Shelleyexpelled from
the Oxford University as
astudent?
2. Did Shelley think there was any
relation between poetry and
laws?
3. What incident sealed his career
as a politician

Answer
the publication of his pamphlet on
atheism sealed his fate as a figure on
the margins of political legislation
the publication of his pamphlet on
atheism sealed his fate as a figure on
the margins of political legislation
The fact that he published the
pamphlet The Necessity of Atheism

PROJECT 2 ( Essays)
Content
Students are invited to choose ONE of the topics in the list of essays
recommended as a follow up to the study of the canonical writers in the 4th
term of hel studies. (see document entitled project titles)
Aim
The aim of the essay writing task is doublefold:
-

to allow students to show they are familiar with the conventions of

literary analysis
to give them an opportunity to express their genuine thoughts and
feelings
Minimal Model (one possible answer)

Task:

Draw up an analysis of the poem DARKNESSby

Lord George Byron (2000 3000 words)

Title
Who was the author?
(who, when, where)

Darkness ( Lord George Byron) 1788 - 1824

Lord George Byron (1788 1824) was considered
to represent the epitome ofEnglish Romanticism at
the turn of the 19th century
He lived up to this image through both his work as
a poet and his exceptional life destiny
Both work and life spell out the same quest for
freedom, whether from social conventions and
taboos or freedom from national or social
oppression.
The former are illustrated by the characters in such
poems as Childe Harolds Pilgrimage (develop),
Don Juan (develop), The Giaur (develop). The
latter is the represented by his involvement and
support to the cause of the Greek patriots rebelling
against the Ottoman oppression and the fact that
he died during this pursuit.
Byron was concerned not only with the conventions
and taboos of human (English) society but also with
the very fate of the human race and its role in the
great chain of being. The poem Darkness (1816) is

Why did he become a

canonical writer?
What were the key
values he upheld?

Which works illustrate

these values?

What is the place of

the poem Darkness
against
the
background
of

Byrons work ?

such an example. The poem was written in the

prime of the poets youth (the poet was only 28
tears old!) at a particular critical moment in time
and in his life. The poem was written as a reaction
to the mass hysteria provoked by the prophecy that
the sun might go extinct on the one hand and the
unnatural phenomena that accompanied the
eruption of the Tambora volcano on the other. As
far as his personal life circumstances where
concerned, he wrote it at a time whenhis liberal
conduct (drinking, running into debt, marriage
failure after birth of his daughter, alleged
incestuous relations) was under such severe
scrutiny. That made him leaveEngland in April 1816
and never return.
What is the theme?
The poem Darknessis an outcry of despair on
several levels: the prospect of mans extinction if
the sun light dies out and the degradation of
human race when facing such a catastrophe.
What
is
the The description of the apocalyptic image of steady
structure?
decay of the world as we know it might be divided
into two parts: the changes that distort the earth
and the creatures living on it
(quotes to be
indicated at students discretion) then the changes
that destroy the waters and the air (quotes to be
indicated at students discretion)
What are the mostTThe world was void,
impressive
artisticTThe populous and the powerful was a lump,
effects? How are theySSeasonless, herbless, treeless, manless, lifeless
created? What is yourA lump of deatha chaos of hard clay.
TThe rivers, lakes and ocean all stood still,
favourite quote?
Aand nothing stirr'd within their silent depths;
(repetition)
SShipssailorless lay rotting on the sea,
What is the relevanceE(express your personal opinions)
of the poem for
modern day readers?

EXAMINATION
PREPARATION and FRAME

1. Preparation:
a. concentrate on the set of questions in the course hand-outs
b. overview the great trends
i. Pre-Romanticism (The Gothic Novel),
ii. Romanticism,
iii. the Victorian Age,
iv. The pioneers of Nonsense)
c. refer to the syllabus for specific issues
2. Examination Frame
a. The written exam 2 hours
b. You may bring dictionaries as HARD COPIES
c. No electronic resources (smart phones, tablets etc.) are allowed
d. Learn by heart a few lines (2-5) from the great English Romantic
poets and prepare to explain why you find it artistically relevant

PORTFOLIO REQUIREMENTS
Format:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.

front page (name, date, subject, i.ehel 2.2.)

contents page (titles of assignments)
body including two projects
on-going seminar work ( notes or practicals) (optional)

Essay requirements
v. the title has to be one of the titles on the list. DO NOT
SUBMIT ESSAYS ON TOPICS NOT INCLUDED ON THE
LIST OR MERE DOWNLOADS OF AUTHORS OR WORKS
( i.e. Dickens, Vanity Fair).The topic has to be SPECIFIC!. If
not, you will not earn any points for it!
vi. do not forget to indicate the

sources

of

your

documentation (including electronic ones)

vii. do not forget to introduce and comment on significant
QUOTES
viii. handwritten essays may earn extra-points at teachers
discretion!
e. Please PUNCH the portfolio pages.
DO NOT PLACE PROJECTS INSIDE A PLASTIC FOLDER as the
teacher wastes time in taking them out
DO NOT PLACE PROJECTS INSIDE A PLASTIC FOLDER as the
teacher wastes time in taking them out DO NOT PLACE PROJECTS
INSIDE A PLASTIC FOLDER as the teacher wastes time in taking
them out
Make sure your portfolio is a convincing academic document of your
work!!!!!!!!!
Good luck!
dis