By Drew Grant and Noam Cohen 12/11/12 8:46am

Homeland

"Posing like you are in a men's catalog is a sign of strength."--David Estes (Showtime)

Five Essay Prompts for Homeland 2×11: ‘The Mother…With the Turban’

These questions regard last night’s episode of Showtime’s Homeland. Please answer the prompts with specific examples from SUNDAY’S EPISODE, though supplementary material will be accepted as a secondary source. Please write legibly. No. 2 pencils only. You have an hour to finish this test. See below for questions and sample responses.

1. In last week’s episode, Dar Adal expressed nostalgia for the Cold War, when it was obvious who the enemy was. Conventional wisdom has it that militarized societies will turn on each other in the absence of a clear antagonist. And yet it is only now, when Nazir is right before them, evident and nearly in their grasp, that the CIA is really attacking itself, from Carrie tackling Galvez to Estes discrediting Saul “The Bear” Berenson. What does this self-hatred express and why is it all coming out now? Read More

By Noam Cohen and Drew Grant 12/04/12 8:40am

Homeland

jamey-sheridan-damian-lewis-homeland_202

Five Essay Prompts for Homeland 2×10: “Broken Hearts”

These questions regard last night’s episode of Showtime’s Homeland. Please answer the prompts with specific examples from SUNDAY’S EPISODE, though supplementary material will be accepted as a secondary source. Please write legibly. No. 2 pencils only. You have an hour to finish this test. See below for questions and sample responses.

1. Homeland is known for asking from its viewers a heroic amount of suspension of their disbelief (except for the parts which looked semi-plausible after the Petraeus scandal broke). But this episode may have taxed even the most engrossed fans. Out of the following plot developments, which was the most balls-out absurd and why? Please phrase your answer in the form of an under-medicated conspiracy theorist. Read More

By Drew Grant and Noam Cohen 11/20/12 2:34pm

Homeland

Brody's like a bird, he wants to fly away (Showtime)

Five Essay Prompts for Homeland 2×8: ‘I’ll Fly Away’

These questions regard last night’s episode of Showtime’s Homeland. Please answer the prompts with specific examples from SUNDAY’S EPISODE, though supplementary material will be accepted as a secondary source. Please write legibly. No. 2 pencils only. You have an hour to finish this test. See below for questions and sample responses.

1. The episode’s title refers to Carrie’s metaphorical desire to fly off with Brody, Dana’s emotional flight from Brody, and Roya physically flying off … with Brody. It’s also what I thought that Nelly Furtado’s song “I’m Like a Bird” was called for a really, really long time. Using “I’m Like a Bird,” Lenny Kravitz’s “Fly Away,” and that Christian spiritual “I’ll Fly Away” sung by Gillian Welch and Alison Krauss on the Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack for reference, pick out one line from each lyric to apply to Carrie, Dana, and Abu Nazir, respectively. Read More