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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. How does Bakhtin interpret the relevance of the cries of Paris to Renaissance France?

2. Why does Friar John beat thousands of men in his abbey?

3. What common fifteenth- and sixteenth-century literary device does Bakhtin identify in the Prologue to the Third Book?

4. What in particular forms the basic elements of Rabelais' novel _Gargantua_?

5. The vocabulary of the prologue of _Gargantua_ is:

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the underlying nature of all of Rabelais' images?

2. How does the marketplace become an indicator of folk culture in general?

3. How is Bakhtin's book "double-voiced," as Michael Holquist asserts it is?

4. How does Bakhtin interpret the prologue of _Pantagruel_?

5. How does Rabelais describe the human body in the context of grotesque realism?

6. Describe the Catchpoles and what they symbolize.

7. What was Rabelais' relationship with the fairs based upon?

8. What role do oaths and profanities fill in Rabelais' novel?

9. Describe Friar John.

10. What does Rabelais parody with the character of Janotus de Bragmardo?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Define the term "carnivalesque" as Bakhtin uses it. Then, demonstrate this definition by applying it to at least two of the episodes, characters, or scenes which take place in Rabelais' novel. What does the carnivalesque demonstrate about the nature of folk culture? What role does humor play in the carnivalesque?

Essay Topic 2

Explore Bakhtin's study of language in Rabelais. What is "vernacular" or "colloquial" language? How is it different from "official" languages, like that of the Church or of the monarchy? How is verbal communication different from written communication, and who or what does each type of communication serve? How does Rabelais keep his language lively and never dull? How does Rabelais transform names, nicknames, proper nouns, and all other forms of speech?

Essay Topic 3

Describe how Rabelais uses Friar John as a representative of the Catholic Church. How does he describe Friar John? What situations does Rabelais put Friar John into, and how does the Friar behave? What might these situations and characterization say about the Church? How do official and unofficial modes of speech and communication work with Friar John? Does he represent the carnivalesque, the grotesque, or popular festivity in anything he says or does?

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