Final Jeopardy: American Lit (12-9-20)

The players for all the clues in USA! USA! in the 12/9/2020 Jeopardy! game, except the $1000 clue (*):

($200) Black pudding isn’t a dessert–it’s a type of this
($400) Someone vigorously fighting for a cause, not just in medieval Middle East
($600) Named for a composer of military marches, this instrument is made for marching
($800) The free-swimming stage in a jellyfish’s life, it sounds like a mythological monster
*($1000) Adjective for a behavior or transgression that is so bad it cannot be pardoned or tolerated

ANSWERS: show

Answers to the Sneak Peek clues — COMMON LATIN:
($400) “Firma” or not, this is the Latin word for “land”
($800) In Latin sinister means this direction
($1200) “Veni, vidi, vici” translates to this succinct summary of a victory
($1600) “Amor” & “mors” are these 2 things of concern to many of us
($2000) A Latin word for “soul” or “spirit”, today in English it means a hostile feeling

ANSWERS: show