1. How did French drama develop during the seventeenth century? What were the unities, and how did they function in French drama? Who were the major playwrights, and what did they achieve? What role did the monarchy and royal advisors play in the history of French theater?
2. How did the Thirty Years War begin, what course did it follow, and how did it end? What role did it play on Grimmelshausen's Simplicius Simplicissimus? From what literary sources does Grimmelshausen draw, and what thematic concerns did he explore?
3. What religious, political, and constitutional issues continued to occupy the English monarchy and Parliament through much of the seventeenth century? In what events did the monarchy and Parliament clash over these issues, and how were they ultimately resolved at the end of the century?
4. Who were the major English writers of this period? What are their most notable works? What formal innovations did some or all of them introduce, and what thematic issues did they explore?
5. What was the founding document of the New England colonies, and what concerns and principles does it address? Who were the most notable colonial writers, and what were their principal thematic concerns?
6. How does the work of Bernini exemplify the distinctive characteristics of Italian Baroque art?
7. How did Baroque art develop in France in opposition to Italian Baroque? What role did Poussin play in that development? How do the palaces at Versailles embody both Louis XIV's conception of his monarchy and the ideals of French Baroque art?
8. How does Flemish and Dutch art of this period resemble and/or differ from Italian and French Baroque art? Who were the leading Flemish and Dutch artists, and what were the defining characteristics of their styles?
9. How do Wren's architectural designs transform Italian Renaissance influences into a distinctly Baroque style?
10. How did ballet develop in France? What role did Lully play in that development? How were the conventions of dance choreography established?
11. What musical innovations did Vivaldi introduce? How does his style exemplify Italian Baroque music?
12. What did Purcell and Handel contribute to the development of English Baroque music? What particular innovations did Handel employ in his Messiah? What is the significance of the oratorio in the history of English music?
13. Who were J. S. Bach's principal precursors, and what aspects of their styles exerted particular influence on him?
14. What are J. S. Bach's major works, and what elements of his Baroque style do they exemplify? How did Bach contribute to the development of the Lutheran musical tradition? Who were his composer sons, and what did they contribute to the subsequent development of music?
15. What was the Baroque legacy in art, and what were its limits? What was that legacy most influential and lasting in music?