Category: Literature

Remember that these are broad topics, and only serve as a starting point. You will need to focus your paper and make a claim, i.e., have a thesis statement.
General advice:
You can write on any of the short stories we have read in class. With any of these texts, you could always choose to look at the form or structure and comment on the effects. You could focus on language use, maybe even one repeated phrase, the use of dialect, particular phrasing, or anything else and build an argument around that. You might focus on one particular trope, a repeated image, a repeated idea or circumstance, and analyze that. You can also do a character analysis or compare and contrast two characters. 
All of these options require you to HAVE AN IDEA that guides your inquiry. You need to have a reason for comparing the two characters or performing a character analysis of one character. You need to make a claim about the language, or make a claim about the repeated trope that is tied into the larger meaning of the text you’re examining. For example, saying, “I am going to examine the color red in the text” is not enough. That is only your starting point. You need to say something about the use of the color red in the text, e.g., “The use of the color red is tied to the themes of childbirth and death, appearing at key moments in the text. By examining the author’s use of this color, we understand the author is challenging the natural cycle of life and inviting the reader to question conventional religious constructs of what it means to live.”
You are free to choose your own paper topic, but you need to have it approved. These are just some ideas.
Potential topics:
The concept of endings in “Zidane’s Melancholy”
Art in “Zidane’s Melancholy”
The concept of the great man in “Zidane’s Melancholy”
Nature in “Journey Back to the Source”
Time in “Journey Back to the Source”
The concept of marriage in “Marriage á la Mode”
Memory in “Bullet in the Brain”
Adolescence in “Where are You Going, Where have You Been?”
Folklore, Judeo-Christian or other sources of influence in “Where are You Going, Where have You Been?”
Music in “Where are You Going, Where have You Been?”
Power in “Where are You Going, Where have You Been?”
Compare and contrast two characters in “Man in the Case”
Various kinds of cases in “Man in the Case”
The role of the narrator in “Man in the Case”
Animals in “Now I Lay Me”
Sound in “Now I Lay Me”
Solitude vs. companionship in “Now I Lay Me”
Solitude or isolation in “Araby”
Vanity in “Araby”
Religious imagery and tropes in “Araby”
Light and dark in “Araby”
Seen and Unseen in “Araby”
Race in “Why I Like Country Music”
Memory in “Why I Like Country Music”
The role of music in “Why I Like Country Music”
You are also allowed to write about two stories if they share a similar theme. The connection should be clear, and your discussion of them together should enhance our understanding of both texts. You can also choose to read another story by one of the authors we have studied and do a comparison

For your midterm assignment, please write an essay where you apply “We should All Be Feminists” or “The Danger of Single Story” texts to Things Fall Apart. Choose one of the two texts Adichie wrote and apply it to Achebe’s famed novel to do a close reading of the text.
Link to “The danger of a single story” video and transcript here: https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_ngozi_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story/c/transcript

Finishing two discussion:
Prompt
1、Select one character (besides Michael) from The Boys in the Band. In one word, name what they’re characterized as: evil, ludicrous, hysterical, etc. etc. Then, select one or two moments of indirect characterization from the play (direct quotations) and analyze how they are characterized that way. Pay attention to word choice, actions, etc. And make sure you’re also attending to what we can infer not just what we see. 
Example: A character is described as wearing a crucifix. We can infer they are, not only Christian, but Catholic. Or if we see a character run into a burning building to rescue a kitten and subsequently perform CPR on said kitten, we can infer that they are a brave, or an animal-lover, or, perhaps, reckless. All three of those words might be true; convince us of your take on a character!
2、Watch The Boys in the Band film (1970) – what did watching this film make you realize about the play? What differences were important and why? 
Evaluation Parameters
All discussion posts should be completed with at least 500 words (not counting any quotations you include from the reading)

Task: Now that you’ve read about the Enlightenment and Sor Juana Enlightenment piece, consider the following questions:
How is critical thinking related to the Enlightenment?
How does Sor Juana represent the Enlightenment?
What parts of the text stood out to you as significant or interesting? Why?
What do you make of the style of the Sor Juana’s work. Our textbook refers to her as rhetorically savvy. Do you agree? Why?
Feel free to diverge from these questions. My goal for this
discussion is that you think about the Enlightenment and how Sor Juana
fits into the conversation. You can answer one or more of my questions
or offer your own critical interpretation. Post an initial response of at least 150 words. Your response should show that you’ve read and considered the readings. Adding a direct quote
or paraphrase is a great way to do this. Include quotation marks when you quote directly from the text, but don’t worry about MLA formatting for the discussion boards. Just make sure that readers understand what you’re quoting.

“Please make sure that your writing is easy to understand with no plagiarism, and the answer is sufficient to the questions”. You can use MLA formatting style for the writing. The writing will be about the short story book “The Little Knife”.
The instructions for the assignment is as follow: Answer the following questions in a response at least 1 page in length. Responses should be typed, double-spaced, in size 12 font. If you use a source in your response, please include citations to give credit to that source. 1. In the short story “The Little Knife,” how does the main character grow or change? 2. At the end of the story, we learn that Nathan feels “responsible” for something. Why does he feel this responsibility? In your opinion, should he feel responsible?
3. What questions do you have about this story, and/or what details did you notice?

Professor & Class,
1) On a scale from 1-10, how good of a communicator are you? Why?
On a scale from 1-10, I am a 7. Why, 7? I developed most of my communication techniques in the military, and while they are the foundation of my skills, they hindered me in some ways. For the most part, communication in the military is about relaying information in the most efficient way possible, usually with the fewest words possible. There is not much thoughtful engagement in communication and little regard for tone. We use the word “interrogative” over the radio to eliminate the recipient having to gauge tone when receiving a question. Since the end of my military service, I have learned that efficient communication is not always effective communication.
Post-military service, I have been fortunate enough to work in leadership positions, which allowed me to develop a more nuanced approach to my communication. I can honestly say that before starting my college journey, I would have given myself a 9 out of 10, but after completing several college courses, I realized how little I actually know. Through continued education and engagement, there is no doubt that my communication skills will continue to improve. 2) How might you contribute to discussion forum posts this semester the most effectively?
I find the most effective way to contribute to discussion forums is to make posts thoughtful, engaging, and respectful. I have always leaned on my unique individual life experience to relate to questions presented on the discussion forums and engage with fellow students. I believe putting aspects of yourself in your posts presents a genuine authenticity to your writing. 3) What is the most important insight you gained from the Ted Talk and how might it impact your life?
To me, the most important insight from the TED talk is to ask better questions from a place of genuine curiosity that engages in a thoughtful way. I frequently ask my kids, “How was your day?” only to receive a one-word answer and sometimes just a blank stare. I never considered rephrasing the question until watching Amber Wright’s TED talk. She gives some great examples of creating genuine connections and developing relationships with dialog. It’s amazing what you can learn from a 14-minute video! I will definitely implement some of the techniques presented in the TED talk.

Hello, i am sending you an assignment again. I have uploaded the essay guideline and the articles. Please read the articles carefully. I also uploaded the course description for you to understand the lecture. Pay attention to the underlined areas in the articles and use references from the articles that i uploaded. Please choose 1 of the 5 topics for the essay.
Essay guideline:
The focus of the final essay is on self-definition in relationship to the West or Europe, as represented by one work of travel writing about a particular place, either early modern or modern. According to Khair, travel writing entails defining the writer’s relationship, explicitly and implicitly, not only to a visited place’s society and culture but also to his or her own home (4).
For the essay, please choose and write about one of the following five works:
1. al-Ghassani’s account of Madrid or Spain
2. Evliya Çelebi’s account of Vienna or Habsburg Germany 3. the Mirza’s account of London or England
4. al-Tahtawi’s account of Paris or France
5. Zeyneb Hanım’s account of Europe.
In addressing the topic of self-definition, please consider the following questions: What kinds of observations and comments are made? To what extent, if any, is there an effort to alterize or make other what is socially and culturally different? In this regard, how significant is the rhetoric employed? And is there a marked change in the perception or understanding of the world?
Once again, the essay should be 5-6 pages in length (or 1250-1500 words), double-spaced, and in 12-point font. Emphasis in grading will be placed on the clearness and conciseness of your discussion, with the appropriate textual support. So please do not just summarize. If you do so, it will affect your grade negatively. There is also no need for you to refer to secondary readings not assigned for class. If you do intend to refer to additional works, this applies as well to Internet sources, please cite using the MLA Style guide. If it is obvious to me that you used outside sources, without citation, your grading will begin at 65. The essay is worth 100 points total and constitutes 25 percent of your overall grade. If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to speak with me.

Discuss how depictions of the naked body in the Christian Catholic visual production articulate
important religious beliefs and socio-cultural values through the following three themes: 
1. Sexuality and motherhood juxtaposed through Eve and Mary. 
2. Sacrifice (Christ, and potentially also Mary and the martyrs).
3. Salvation and damnation (Last Judgment). 
Explore these three themes with in-depth visual analysis of one primary relevant image per topic
and in addition introduce one secondary image per topic for supplemental and complementary
visual analysis that will allow you to better contextualize the main image you explore. When/if
appropriate, draw connections between the visual examples of your three different themes. 
In total you have to discuss at least 6 images: 3 primary and 3 secondary ones, a pair of each for
every one of the three themes you explore.
Limit yourself to the Catholic tradition from roughly the 11th-17th centuries.
The pictures should properly integrated into your essay and copy-pasted at the end of your text with appropriate captions, as discussed in the guidelines. Images don’t count towards the page limit. 
Write a reflection paragraph at the end of the essay: mention the feedback below and what was done to improve the performance
in the current assignment. There is no word-count requirement for the reflection paragraph. The reflection paragraph doesn’t count
towards the page limit of this assignment. 
discuss all required images with substantial visual analysis in relation to the gender concepts you want to explore,
and choose supplementary material strategically, in support of the primary focus.
pay closer attention to the structure of the essay: a different order of your material would have given more clarity and focus to the discourse.
– In all these cases you need to explain how specific visual details of the material articulate specific gender ideas (e.g. dress code, poses, actions, attributes, expressions, interrelation of figures, etc.). Simply stating what ideas the statues project is not enough, you have to show how they do it through their visual details.
– finally, pay closer attention to your captions and include only relevant information.

Read the following short stories: 
Kate Chopin, The Story of an Hour 
Andre Dubus, Killings (PDF) 
Toni Morrison, Recitatif
Judith Ortiz Cofer, Volar
Choose one of the four following topics on which to write your analytical essay.  The essay should:  
be 2-4 pages in length; 
be double spaced and in 12-point font; 
include direct quotations from the primary text; 
may include quotations from outside, secondary sources; 
put all citations into MLA format; 
include a Works Cited page; 
avoid grammatical errors and plot summary; 
Kate Chopin’s character, Mrs. Mallard, has fascinated readers.  Some find her repulsive, a callous and selfish woman who delights in her new found freedom so soon after her husband’s death.  Others read her as a victim who cannot control her own life due to the constraints of the patriarchal society in which she lives.  In an essay, offer your analysis of Mrs. Mallard’s character.
Many readers have come to conclusions about Twyla and Roberta’s race based on descriptions Morrison offers of their situations and characteristics in her short story, Recitatif. In an essay, discuss the “clues” or “codes” of race from the text that point to these assumptions.
Discuss the narrator’s internal conflict in Volar:  the desrie to escape. 
Compare and contrast the three killers in Andre Dubus’ Killings.  Use the themes morality and revenge to analyze the actions of Richard, Matt and Ruth. 

You can write from the novel itself Sula by Tony Morrison. Be sure to connect your quote to the rest of your sentences. You can do this via signal phrases (“Smith argues” OR “According to Smith,” etc) or by integrating your quote as it grammatically fits into your sentence. 
Document your quote by using the MLA in-text citation guidelines you have studied in this lesson. 
Here is an example to help guide you:
John:        Hi everyone,
Here is my paragraph with the quotes I integrated into it:
On Sula’s deathbed, she expresses to Nel her thoughts about the lifestyles and conditions of the women in Medallion. “You think I don’t know what your life is like just because I am not living it? I know what every colored woman in this country is doing.” Even though Nel wants Sula to settle down and have children, Sula takes pride in her choice not to conform. “Dying just like me. But the difference is they dying like a stump and I’m going down like one of those redwoods. I sure did live in this world.” Sula says everybody’s life is a journey to death, yet she believes her course to be nobler than that of her peers. She knows she is living her authentic self, and she does not live for appearances.
Clearly focused thesis that takes a position on the selected topic
ment your quote by using the MLA in-text citation guidelines you have studied in this lesson.