Research Essay

Description

Write a critical essay on a group of stories, plays, or poems from any of our assigned readings.

You select the authors and determine how you want to examine them by literary terms.

For instance, perhaps you have a keen eye for irony or symbols and are eager to explore that concept in a story and set of poems. On the other hand, perhaps you have an interest in the way different groups of people are portrayed culturally or socially in a set of poems and a play.

You may, if you so desire, expand on any of the papers you have written thus far. Use that one story (or play) and add another story, play, or set of poems, and expand.

Here are some examples of topics:

1. Compare how two very different authors of different genres look at war. Look at how O’Brien shows war through “The Things They Carried” to how Owen shows war in “Dulce et Decorum Est” through imagery. Develop the thesis in terms of what you notice about these works.

2. Two stories are by prominent southern authors yet show very different independent women. You could look at Welty’s “Worn Path” and Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” and their very different independent southern women. Develop the thesis in terms of what you notice about these works.

You need a thesis – what is your opinion?

Your paper needs a thesis – your opinion about the topic. You will prove your opinion is correct through an examination of at least two primary sources and three secondary sources. You must have at least 5 cited sources.

At least two of your sources will be from your textbook. You may also cite the criticism included in your text, but you must have at least three additional critical sources – even if this means you have more than five cited sources. These critical sources can come from library or library database. If you want to include additional sources beyond this, go for it.

I encourage you to re-read all the Discussion Board Posts. You have already thought and written about a number of stories and concepts in detailed and interesting ways. Any of these discussion board posts could be a good starting point for a larger paper.

To summarize: your paper should not be a report, a collection of long quotations from your research, or a biographical interpretation of the works. It should be your analysis of a particular aspect of the subject, developed and supported by your study of the text and of your research. Your words (your argument) should comprise roughly 75-80% of the paper, with the remaining 25-20% quoted material. Use these quotations to supplement your ideas and justify why it is there. In other words, do your best to tell me why that quotation is important.

Length: 4-6 pages
Format: Follow MLA format in handouts I have posted under Writing Resources.

Research Essay Description Write a critical essay on a group...