English Literature

This assignment is based on the texts ‘Heart of Darkness’ by Joseph Conrad and ‘An Image of Africa’ by Chinua Achebe. You must grasp the meaning in both of these readings before going on to answer the prompt. You should read ‘An Image of Africa’ after reading ‘Heart of Darkness’ – these readings correlate with each other. ‘Heart of Darkness’ – https://www.gutenberg.org/files/219/219-h/219-h.htm ‘An Image of Africa’ – https://msallensapenglish.weebly.com/uploads/5/6/4/6/56468729/image_of_africa_achebe_lecture.pdf Above is the link you must visit to read both texts. After having comprehended both readings to your best, there is a detailed and in-depth question you must answer very detailedly and with quotes from both texts and strong comprehensive analysis. Your response must respond to all parts of the question, showing you have a good understanding of the text – your analysis must be strong.  The question to fully answer is as follows – Please answer in a lengthy and comprehensive response with quotes to back up your words and analysis.   ———Prompt Question – Is Heart of Darkness fundamentally an anti-colonial text or is it colonial text, that is to say, a text that reinforces colonial ways of thinking? In his essay, Achebe clearly thinks the latter. What do you think? ———- When replying to the question YOU MUST ALSO INCLUDE IN YOUR RESPONSE; — ON TOP OF ANSWERING THE QUESTION, THROUGHOUT YOUR RESPONSE INCLUDE comments or questions that enhance the discussion, help move the conversation forward. These may include follow-up questions, examples, or new perspectives (AT LEAST ON IS FINE — WHETHER IT BE a question to further the discussion about the text that relates to the question at hand, examples, or a new perspective in how to look at things — try to include two if you can! Your reply to the question must be responsive to the question and substantive. — MUST show ample evidence of having reviewed or completed the relevant reading — MUST HAVE constructive where differences of opinion are expressed in a collegial manner  — If your post is too short or not substantive enough, you will not receive full points for the comment Please follow all the guidelines and make the response to the question very well written, formally!

Assignment: In this writing exercise, you’ll be given a thesis statement and several topic sentences, making up the skeleton of an argument. Your job will be to write the paragraphs for each topic sentence, providing sufficient textual evidence and analysis to support the claims of the topic sentences. Your three body paragraphs must each begin with the appropriate topic sentences I have given you below.  Format: Times New Roman font, size 12. The paper should have 1-inch margins. No title page, introduction, or conclusion. You have a choice between two different arguments- Option A: Thesis: Shakespeare’s King Lear offers a grim diagnosis of the human condition: the speeches and actions of the characters reveal that man is little more than a brute beast, and even the best moral actions bear no lasting fruit.  Topic Sentence 1: Shakespeare’s play offers frequent statements that man is nothing more than a base animal. Topic Sentence 2: Indeed, the actions of his characters reinforce the rhetoric about man’s brutish nature.  Topic Sentence 3: Even the best of moral actions and intentions remain thwarted in the play, revealing that human goodness matters little.  Option B:  Thesis: Shakespeare’s King Lear offers a hopeful vision of human nature: although man can choose bestial evil, he is also capable of great good, and can even learn to better himself.  Topic Sentence 1: The play does show an awareness of man’s capacity for base brutishness. Topic Sentence 2: Yet Shakespeare also provides beacons of moral goodness in the play. Topic Sentence 3: Within the moral universe Shakespeare’s play, even wicked characters can be transformed for the better.

Understand how to format the DQ and paper APA Be able to format, cite and reference sources used in the paper and DQ APA style Recognize incorrect APA citations and references. Part A: In the paragraph below there are 3 direct quotes and/or paraphrases, rewrite the paragraph in correct APA format. Part B: Write the following references in correct APA format:

Topic: Researched Essay Format: MLA. Access the Purdue OWL MLA Formatting and Style Guide here- https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/ Length Requirement: minimum of 1000 – 1500 words All sources must be cited Your Process: You are researching and writing an essay on Arthur Miller’s play Death of a Salesman (1949). Here is a link to the text: Death of a Salesman (Text) http://www.wcusd15.org/kershaw/ENG%20302/DS%20Death%20of%20a%20Salesman%20Complete.pdf [Open in new window.] Here is a link to the breakdown of scenes: Breakdown of Scenes https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/d/death-of-a-salesman/play-summary Here is a link to a film version of the play: Film Version of Death of a Salesman http://fod.infobase.com.proxygsu-sga1.galileo.usg.edu/p_ViewVideo.aspx?xtid=49016 Instructions: Part 1: There are a few different ways you could approach the writing of this essay: The thematic approach: You will choose a theme or idea that you see in the play and then make an assertion about how and/or why that theme is being used. Consider the following themes: Love Alienation/Otherness The American Dream/Nightmare The Quest for Identity/Coming of Age Conformity/Rebellion Perform a character study. Discuss what motivates this character to do what he or she does or perhaps discuss how and why the character deals with the conflicts within the play. You could also choose to compare and contrast two characters. Compare and contrast the play—or some element of the play—with another literary work. Please contact your instructor if you are planning to use a literary work for comparison that has not been covered in this class. In addition to or in place of the approaches described above, you might want to employ a formalist’s approach to analyze and interpret the literary work you have chosen. You might consider the following questions and considerations: How do paradox, irony, ambiguity, and tension work in the play? Is there a central or focal passage that can be said to sum up the entirety of the work? What are the key symbols in the play? Part 2: Once you decide on an approach and a topic: If you have any questions or need guidance, discuss your choices with your instructor. Make sure you have a strong thesis statement. This should not be a question or something “obvious” and undebatable like a synopsis of what happens in the play. Instead, it should be your own fresh idea that takes a firm stance on your chosen aspect of the play. Set forth to prove your assertion about the text. To do so, you need to: Analyze your primary source (Death of a Salesman) and find quotations that support your assertion. Find secondary sources (scholarly articles) to back up your assertion. (Include these sources in your working bibliography.) This is your scholarly research. By finding scholars to support your ideas or even counter them, you are backing up your own thoughts using evidence from experts in the field. Follow MLA Format: Use MLA format for the paper: Purdue Owl: MLA info Length:  minimum of 1000 – 1500 words Include a Works Cited Page, not to be counted in the 1000-1500 word minimum Appropriate Scholarly Secondary Sources Included:  minimum of 3 scholarly sources Be sure to have an appropriate title for your essay (See Titling Your Essay) Write with an analytical purpose: Do not spend too much space summarizing the text.  Assume that your reader has already read or seen the play. Aim for an organized paper that offers your reader some new insight into the play. In summary: You make an assertion. You prove it with textual examples. You back it up with other scholarly support from your research. Academic Honesty Plagiarism in any form is unacceptable. Please ask if you have questions about what constitutes plagiarism. Your words and your ideas must be your own. Formatting and Style Be sure to maintain an appropriate academic tone (no slang, second-person, contractions, etc.) Your essay should be typed, double-spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman font, with one-inch margins, and numbered pages. Include your name, my name, the title of the class, and the date in the upper left-hand corner of the first page. Center your title (you do not need to underline or italicize it) and place it above the body of the essay. Do not include a title page.

Decide on the dominant impression that Elizabeth Keckely gives of President Lincoln and write a description paper, drawing your supporting illustration from her memoir.  You must include one of her anecdotes that gives an example of Lincoln’s prevailing characteristic. Readings and Resources:    –Elizabeth Keckley’s memoir, https://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/keckley/summary.html –from the OWL at Roane State, description: http://www.roanestate.edu/owl/Describe.html http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/24968 Particularly interested in chapters  5 – 11

TIMELINESS IS VERY IMPORTANT. Technical difficulties are not acceptable excuses for failure to hand in your work on time. Format: • Double spaced, 1” margins, 12 point font, Times New Roman • Heading in upper left corner: Your name, EN 213, Essay Questions 1, Date Plagiarism Reminder: Please review my plagiarism policy in our syllabus and remember that it is not negotiable. Put bluntly, plagiarism = failure in class. You should be able to answer the questions by referring to our textbook and your notes. If you quote a passage from our textbook, cite the page number only in parentheses after your quote. If you paraphrase information in our textbook, you should cite that as well. Notes will be considered common knowledge within this class and do not need to be cited. You should not use outside sources. You may consult your classmates to gather additional information and brainstorm, but you should be the sole author of your essay. Essay Questions Choose only ONE of the following questions write a well thought out but concise essay. You must include direct references from the texts that are being discussed in the essay. 1. In “Hills like White Elephants,” describe what you think the characters’ relationship is like and has been like in the past. Do they seem to be expressing their feelings or avoiding them? How can you tell that they are at some point of crisis? 2. In “Young Goodman Brown” and Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been?” both Connie and Young Goodman Brown are being initiated into adulthood. Compare and contrast their respective journeys and its outcome for the character.

Short Comparative Research Paper Assignment: Write a short research paper in which you quote, summarize, and paraphrase two different scholarly critiques of Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun.” You will find these two scholarly articles written by two literary critics on EbscoHost. The lecture for this week describes how to find your two scholarly sources on “A Raisin in the Sun” using EbscoHost. It also looks at how to cite scholarly works in the Works Cited. What kind of paper NOT to write: I am not asking for a paper that summarizes “A Raisin in the Sun,” and I am not asking for a paper or a thesis about “A Raisin in the Sun.” The purpose of this assignment is to steep you in the literary analyses of this play written by two scholars who do this for a living. The assignment leads you to read two professional interpretations of Hansberry’s classic drama. Your thesis is to be an assertion about these two literary analyses, not about the play itself. What you should write: Write a comparison or contrast paper in which you describe how the two scholarly critiques you have found on “A Raisin in the Sun” share (or don’t share) similar points of view on the drama. Length of paper: The paper should run no less than two-and-a-half pages in length. Title of essay: The title of your essay should be a two-part title (separated by a colon) that contains the last names of the two authors and that hints at your thesis or angle. Introduction paragraph: The first paragraph of your paper should be a four-step introduction paragraph. See the formatting checklist for directions on how to do this. It is located in the key information area for this course. Thesis statement: Your thesis statement should be italicized and take the form of While Smith sees X in Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun,” Garcia gives more emphasis to Y. Just be sure the “x” and the “y” assert something of significance. What kind of thesis statement NOT to write: Be sure your thesis doesn’t just say the two authors have some similarities or differences. That only states the obvious. Instead, assert what the differences are between the two authors. This will make your thesis statement substantive and give you something concrete to support in your paper. The rest of your paper should then develop and support for this contention (your thesis statement). Use the name of the two scholars often in your paper (Smith also argues that …). Do this starting with the introduction paragraph. How to handle the title of the play: When you cite the play, place the title in quote marks (not italics). Example: Smith says that in “A Raisin in the Sun” Hansberry constructed a world of … How to organize your paper: After your introduction paragraph, choose one of these two ways to organize the body of your essay: The umbrella approach: Here each of your topic sentences name both authors as you contrast one similarity or difference about them in each paragraph. Your topic sentences will show right away if you are writing a comparative analysis of these two authors (and not Hansberry or her play). This is sometimes called an umbrella topic sentence because your topic sentence gives an “umbrella” assertion about both authors instead of starting with a sentence that plunges directly into details about just one or the other authors and their analyses. The block approach: With this organizational approach, each paragraph is about just one of the authors, with the next paragraph offering a contrasting (or comparing) view of the same topic with the other author. Your paragraphs go back and forth between the two authors as you move from difference (or similarity) to difference. Use transition phrases/words when you shift from one author to the other: For either organizational approach above, you need to use transition words and phrases as you move from one author to the next. Examples: By contrast, likewise, on the other hand, at the same time, similarly, etc. Quote and paraphrase: Study these four ways of quoting and paraphrasing carefully and use them in your essay. Notice how they are constructed and where commas and quote marks go or don’t go. Author-centered quotes: Smith writes, “The problem is not complex or complicated” (45). Idea-centered quotes: “The problem is not complex or complicated” (Smith 45). Author-centered paraphrases: Smith believes the problem is simple. Idea-centered paraphrases: The problem is simple (Smith). Works Cited bibliography: List Hansberry and the two other authors for a total of three sources. Let EbscoHost format Works Cited entries for you. I explain how to do this in the Formatting Checklist in the course syllabus. Also, this website is helpful for how to format these sources in proper MLA format: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/

More than a half-page written response to Lisa Tyler’s critical essay (you could agree or disagree with her argument (or a point or two) and explain why, OR, you might take a scene from Lessing’s story that Tyler comments on in her critical essay and propose a different interpretation of that scene.

The Story of an Hour:          A Rose for Emily:                  A&P: 1)  Louise Mallard                  1)  Emily Grierson                  1)  Sammy 2)  Brently Mallard                 2)  Homer Barron                    2)  Queenie 3)  Josephine                           3)  Judge Stevens                    3)  Lengel 4)  Richard                              4)  Tobe                                   4)  Stokesie                                                 5)  Colonel Sartoris                 5)  The First Friend (“Plaid”)     6)  The Second Friend (“Big Tall Goony Goony”) Pick one character from any of the three short stories we have read so far.  Be sure to follow the guidelines for a proper character analysis.  The paper should be two pages (typed) in MLA format.  Points are taken off for MLA format.  Refer to the text or the Purdue Owl website if you need a refresher. Guidelines: 1) Pay attention to the character’s ethics. Does the character make just or unjust choices? 2) Decide whether the character’s actions are wise or unwise. 3) What is the character’s motivation? As you are mulling over the pros and cons of each character’s internal thoughts and external actions, you will want to also consider why the character is acting or thinking in a particular way. Has the author given you any clues about the character’s past? 4) Consider the effects of the character’s behavior on other characters. 5) Look for repeatedly used words that describe the character. Those words often give insight into a character’s psychology and motivations. 6) Be aware of items associated with the character. They may say something about his or her state of mind. 7) Read between the lines. Often what a character does not say is as important as what he or she does say. 8) Is the character “flat” or “round”? A character is considered flat (or static) when he or she does not experience change of any kind, does not grow from beginning to end.  Round characters are those who do experience some sort of growth. 9) Consider the historical time period of the character. Refrain from making modern judgments about the past; put the character’s actions and thoughts in context. 10) Finally, what does the author think? Look for any of the author’s own judgments about the characters he or she has created. The author may be directing you toward an intended interpretations. THIS IS THE WEBSITE FOR ” THE STORT OF AN HOUR” – https://archive.vcu.edu/english/engweb/webtexts/hour/ THIS IS THE WEBSITE FOR ”  A Rose for Emily by William” -http://xroads.virginia.edu/~DRBR/wf_rose.html THIS IS THE WEBSITE FOR “A & P by John Updike” -http://www.tiger-town.com/whatnot/updike/

Choose one of the topics below on Mandel’s Station Eleven. Your essay should be a minimum of 750 words and a maximum of 1000 words (Times New Roman, 12 pt. font). Your essay must offer a clear argument on the topic, well supported with textual detail. Word count matters: stay within no more than 10% under the minimum or over the maximum. Do not consult secondary sources for this assignment. Do not search the internet. Use correct MLA format: provide in-text citations for your quotations, a works cited page, and a correctly formatted first page. Drafts: A draft of the essay—a minimum of 2 double-spaced pages—is due on Oct. 1. Topics: 1. Analyze the function of theatre in Mandel’s Station Eleven. 2. Analyze the theme of survival in Mandel’s Station Eleven. 3. Many works of dystopia take up the topic of religion in some way. How does Mandel approach it in Station Eleven? 4. Who is the protagonist of Station Eleven? Why? 5. Develop your own topic about Station Eleven. It’s a good idea to discuss a topic of your own invention with me before you begin working on it. * Note that these topics are intentionally broad. It’s your job to narrow the broad topic