English 2202
Summer 2004

Final In-Class Essay Exam on
Jon Hassler's Staggerford

Write on one (1) of the following:

1.)  Who is the most significant character in the novel?  Miles?  Is he really the "central" or "major" character, or is it someone else?  At one time, long ago, Hassler himself remarked that Agatha "almost walked away with the novel."  What do you think?  Is Agatha rather than Miles the most significant character in the novel?  If so, how and why?  If not, argue the opposite.

2.)  Analyze the relationship between Miles Pruitt and one of the other "main" characters in the novel -- Agatha McGee, Imogene Kite, Anna Thea (Thanatopsis) Workman, Wayne Workman, Ansel Stevenson, Beverly Bingham.  Consider how the relationship is at the beginning of the novel, how it changes throughout the novel, how each of the characters affects the other character, and how the relationship is at the end of the novel, just before (or even after) Miles dies.

3.)  Analyze the importance of setting in the novel -- you can work with either time or place setting.  For the time setting, why might Hassler have set the novel at the end of October and the beginning of November?  How do Halloween and All Saints' Day play a role?  For the place setting, consider the influence and importance of the small Minnesota town of Staggerford on the characters.  Does the small town, or small town life, play a role in the novel?

4.)  Pick one of the items from the handout, Staggerford Discussion Questions -- The "Smaller" Issues, and write about how the "part" you are interested in relates to the "whole" novel.  How is the small part important in and of itself?  Then, what does the smaller part contribute to the bigger novel.  Consider how the smaller part relates to character development, or setting, or plot, or theme.

Other Guidelines:

You can prepare for this in-class essay exam by studying your copy of the novel and your course notes.  However, the exam will be a closed-book exam, and you may only bring with you a 3" x 5" index card with brief notes and/or an outline -- no complete sentences are allowed; use keywords, fragments, phrases, and/or symbols instead.  I will provide a blue book for you to write in, and you may use pen or pencil, as long as your writing is legible.  You will have 60 minutes to write your essay in class.