ENGL 200 Assignments for Session 3. Literary Genres.

Fiction and Poetry

Pushkin’s “The Queen of Spades”
1. How does Countess Anna Fedotovna manage to pay back the money when
she loses a large amount of money in gambling to the Duke of Orleans?
How is she finally able to pay the debt?
- Countess Anna Fedotovna knew Count St-Germain and she also knew this
man had large sums of money. This is the reason why she decided to have
recourse to him and wrote asking him to visit her without delay.
- Additionally, this man revealed to her the secret for which anyone of us here
would give a very great deal. He revealed that on the same evening,
Countess Anna Fedotovna had gone to Versailles, au jeu de la Reine. The
Duke of Orleans kept the bank; inventing some small tale, Countess lightly
excused herself for not having brought her debt. The important detail is
Countess Anna Fedotovna chose three cards and played them one after the
other: all three won and she recouped herself completely.
 This is a way for her to pay the debt.
2. Who is Lisaveta Ivanovna? What is her relationship with Tomsky’s
grandma? In Tomsky’s visit to his grandma, whom does Lisaveta see from
the window after Tomsky leaves? What is his name and what is his job?
- The Countess is the guardian of Lizaveta Ivanovna. Hlisa is noted as being
quiet and attractive. She has a young face, bright black eyes, and a tendency
to flush.
- Lizaveta Ivanovna is the child of Tomsky’s grandma.
- In Tomsky’s visit to his grandma, Lizaveta saw a young man named Herman
who did a job in the Horse Guards, but at first, she mistakenly thought this
man was an engineer.
3. What are the characteristics of Hermann? What does he desire after the night
he hears from Tomsky the story about Countess Anna Fedotova? What does
he plan to do then?
- Hermann was the son of a Russianised German and lived on his pay,
forbidding himself the slightest extravagance. In addition, he had strong
passions and a fiery imagination, but he had the tenacity of spirit. He also
never took a card in his hand, for he reckoned that his position did not allow
him “to sacrifice the essentials of life in the hope of acquiring the luxuries”.
- When he heard from Tomsky the story about Countess Anna Fedotovna, at
first, he became introduced to her, tried to win her favor, and perhaps
 became her lover. However, he thought that economy, moderation, and
industry; these are his three winning cards, these would treble his capital,
increased it sevenfold, and earned for his ease and independence.
- He intended to approach Lisaveta Ivanovna because when he wandered
around the town and found himself outside the house of the Countess. He
stopped and began to look at the windows. At one he saw a head with long
black hair, probably bent down over a book or a piece of work. The head
was raised. Hermann saw a small, fresh face and a pair of dark eyes. At that
moment, he decided his fate.
4. Summarize in about 200 words the plan Hermann does to approach
Countess Anna Fedotova.
- Countess Anna rode in a carriage with Lizaveta. Lizaveta met Hermann for
the first time as they got into the carriage. She received a letter from him that
she mulled over for the duration of the carriage trip. She hurried to her room
as soon as she got home to read the "sweet, polite" love note. She felt
anxious and excited, but she didn't know what to say. In the end, she
expressed gratitude for his message while admonishing him that it "is not the
way to begin a friendship.". The next day, Lizaveta threw the letter back to
Hermann as she saw him passing the window. He continued to write her
love letters and messages throughout the next few days. She tore them up at
first but quickly makes the decision to retain them. She eventually told
Hermann how to get inside her chamber. As she attended a ball with the
countess, she instructed him to wait for her.
5. What happens with the Countess after Hermann approaches and talks to her?
- Hermann approached her and inquired if she identified three straight
winning cards. He didn't believe her when she said it was all a joke. He
asked her another inquiry, and she remained silent. Hermann saw that
Countess was dead.
6. How does Hermann know about the secret cards from the Countess? What
does the ghost of the Countess ask him to do? What does he do after
knowing the secret? What is the result finally?
- Hermann knew the secret cards from the Countess because he heard from
Tomsky in the casino.
- The ghost of the Countess said: “Three, seven, ace, played in that order, will
win for you, but only on condition that you play not more than one card in
twenty-four hours, and that you never play again for the rest of your life”.
 - After knowing the secret, Hermann met Chekalinsky whose life had been
spent at the card table and who had amassed millions long ago. After that,
Hermann played cards with Chekalinsky. The result after many matches
with Chekalinsky, Hermann lost everything, and Chekalinsky collected his
winnings.
- The final result is that Hermann went mad. He is now installed in Room 17
at the Obukhov Hospital; he answers no questions, but merely mutters with
unusual rapidity: “Three, seven, ace! Three, seven, queen!”.
Baudelaire
1. What themes did Baudelaire usually present in the poetry that made him get
criticized for a long time? How are these themes presented in his quoted
poems?
- Baudelaire has received criticism for a long time because of the overt
eroticism and open fascination with evil that he frequently displayed in his
poetry.
- He created situations that were excruciatingly detailed in order to shock
people while also showing his own spiritual and sensuous suffering.
2. What ability does Baudelaire possess that makes him a representative of
modern poetry?
- Baudelair was a Symbolist persecutor and, in the words of T.S. Eliot, "the
greatest exemplar in modern poetry in any language" because of his ability
to present realistic detail within larger symbolic horizons, his constant use of
imagery and suggestion, his impeccable craftsmanship, and the intense
musicality of his verse.
3. What makes Baudelaire contrary to the Romantics?
- In contrast to the Romantics, who were enamored with rural settings and
nature, Baudelaire was a poet of the city who was entranced by the diversity
and energy of contemporary urban life. He collaborated with other writers
while residing in Paris, and they all published poems, translations, and
criticism in various journals. When he read Edgar Allan Poe, he was
surprised by how similar their ideas were to Poe's.
4. Who was Baudelaire’s favorite American author? Why?
- Edgar Allan Poe is Baudelaire's favorite American writer because of how
similar their ideologies are: Poe's commitment to beauty, his preoccupation
with strange imagery and death, and most importantly, his concentration on
craftsmanship and flawlessly controlled art.
Xuan Dieu