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Essay Questions

The following are just some of the possible questions. They are grouped to suit different levels of study from pre-university to third year undergraduate.

Pre-University questions

  1. Compare and contrast the way evil is depicted in two or more of the texts, paying special attention to its physical form.
  2. Compare and contrast the way heroes are depicted in two or more of the texts.
  3. Compare and contrast the way EITHER evil OR goodness is depicted in any text and its film version.
  4. Compare and contrast the way women are depicted in relation to evil in any text.
  5. Comment on the way goodness is depicted in any text, paying special attention to the historical and social context of the text.
  6. Comment on the use of horror in one or more of the texts/films.
  7. Comment on the use of language to create atmosphere and imagery in any text. You may use more than one text.
  8. Comment on the depiction of human relationships as these are affected by evil in a selection of the texts/films studied.
  9. Discuss the use of children or small characters as opponents of evil in any text or texts studied.
  10. Discuss the link between fantasy and evil in any text or texts.

First year Undergraduate questions

  1. Discuss the distinctive features of evil in one or more texts, and consider their relationship to the society which produced the text.
  2. Compare and contrast representations of evil in texts from before and after 1900.
  3. To what extent does the fantasy in The Lord of the Rings represent a means of dealing with new concepts of evil in the twentieth century?
  4. To what extent does Frankenstein present the reader with demonised views of masculinity, and what forms do these take?
  5. To what extent is language an issue in the representation of evil?
  6. Heroes and monsters share similar characteristics - discuss.
  7. Discuss the association of evil with the Female in any text or film.
  8. To what extent is knowledge or science associated with evil, and how is this represented? Discuss with reference to two or more texts.
  9. Is it possible to justify the treatment of evil characters by those characterised as heroes or 'good guys'? Discuss.
  10. Is it possible to define common features which may be said to constitute evil in any society and at any time? Discuss with reference to the widest possible range of material studied.
  11. To what extent does a reading of the Beowulf monsters in Christian terms conflict with their representation in the poem?
  12. Discuss the absence of goodness in the representation of Satan's Fall in Paradise Lost.
  13. To what extent is the past associated with evil in Dracula?
  14. Discuss the representation of evil in Dracula with reference to gender relationships in the book.
  15. The absence of control represents evil in all historical periods - discuss, with special reference to Lord of the Flies.
  16. Compare and contrast the use of history, myth or legend, in two or more texts as they contribute to the authors' representations of the conflict between good and evil.
  17. To what extent is prejudice an issue in these texts? Discuss with reference to the construction of Otherness particular to specific texts/films and their historical context.
  18. Compare the representation of devils in Faustus and Paradise Lost with special reference to changing cultural contexts.
  19. Does size matter? Discuss the effect of using small boys and hobbits in the confrontation with evil in Lord of the Flies, Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings.
  20. Discuss the use of postmodernism in the representation of evil in any selection of the texts/films.
  21. Discuss the use of animal imagery in association with evil on one or more texts/films, with special attention to cultural contexts.

Third year Undergraduate questions

The questions offered above may be used in this section, but other follow:

  1. Discuss the representation of female sexuality in its association with evil in any selection of texts/films.
  2. Discuss the contexts which define evil in one or more texts.
  3. To what extent, and in what way, is Christianity depicted in tension with society in any of the texts?
  4. To what extent is change a factor in the depiction of evil in these texts and films?
  5. To what extent is language, vocabulary, poetic style, and genre a defining force in the depiction of culturally specific forms of evil in these texts?.
  6. Discuss the cultural contexts which define the goodness or virtue of the hero with reference to one or more texts.
  7. Discuss the proliferation of evil forces paying attention to the historical contexts of the texts/films, with reference to one or more texts
  8. Discuss the demonisation of gender, race, religious persuasion, with reference to one or more texts.
  9. Discuss the problematising of masculinity with reference to one or more texts.
  10. Discuss the use of 'the medieval' as a framework, topos, or set of references within which to depict evil and the valour of the hero in appropriate texts/films.
  11. Discuss the mythological aspects of the confrontation of evil and good. Christianity may be included here.
  12. Discuss the changing scale and intensity of depictions of evil in an appropriate selection of texts/films, with special reference to cultural and social contexts.