A possible question for the midterm could be to discuss the themes and motifs in Fredrick Douglas’ Narrative. Elaborate on what these themes and motifs say about the time and discuss how they relate to themes of the Enlightenment and how it relates to prior readings. Possible readings to compare to are Immanuel Kant’s “What is Enlightenment” or one of the multiple declarations read in class.
I think this is a very good question because it asks to make relations from texts that were separated by many years and compare how the themes are similar. There are many connections between the texts and this gives an opportunity to discuss those connections. Also, this question brings one of our more modern texts that we have read and relates it the the overall theme of the class that we first discussed. I also think that this question is broad so there is a lot to discuss yet still has set guidelines that will make for a great essay and discussion.
