English 2203 Paper Assignment
Select one of the choices listed below and write a 4 - 6 page
double-spaced printed paper on that topic. Be
sure to include a title page for your paper that includes your paper title, the course
name, your name, my name,
and the date.
- In Huck Finn, was Mark
Twain just telling a story about life on the Mississippi with which he was so familiar?
Was he trying to tell us more about life in 19th century America, and what a cruel
collection of specimens live
on this planet? Or was it a social commentary on life in America, including an indictment
of white America’s
treatment of blacks? Examine Huck Finn for evidence that explains what Twain was up
to. You may want to
discuss how Twain tells two stories here, in two voices: Huck’s and his own. Discuss
the notions of "point of
view" and "narrator."
- Part of what makes My Antonia an
interesting novel is that the descriptions of the Nebraska prairies at the turn
of the century are so vivid that we glimpse in a small way what life must have been like
for the early prairie
settlers. And yet, the book may be more important as a deeper exploration of the
relationship between our
place and ourselves, especially in America. Explore what you understand myth and symbolism
in literature
to be and then examine how My Antonia functions as an important American symbolic
novel that illustrates
the importance of place.
- Hemingway's novel The Sun Also Rises has
been called both "one of the greatest books of the twentieth
century" and a "sexist, alcoholic romp in Europe by a
self-indulgent oaf." Which is more accurate? Why? Use the
standards we have discussed that establish a classic or that make great
literature and apply those standards to this book. Be sure to define these
standards and cite the text for proof.
- In Hurston's Their
Eyes were Watching God, you could discuss racial conflict, cultural
conflict, or any number of conflicts. But perhaps most striking of all is
the gender conflict. For example, what are the differences between the language of the men and that of Janie and the other women? How do the differences in language reflect the two groups' approaches to life, power, relationships, and self-realization? In what ways does Janie conform to or diverge from the assumptions that underlie the men's attitudes toward women? How would you explain Hurston's depiction of violence toward women? Does the novel substantiate Janie's statement that "Sometimes God gits
familiar wid us womenfolks too and talks His inside business"?
- Writer Ralph Ellison claims that "for all
his concern with the South, Faulkner was actually seeking out the nature
of man." If that is true, how is that evident in As I Lay Dying? If that is
not true, show how Ellison may be missing
something in understanding Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying. You may want to discuss
what is meant by Southern
literature, paying attention to the notion that the place where this action takes place
shapes every character’s
action. It would also help to read what some critics have said about Faulkner over the
years to help support
your discussion.
- In Cry, the Beloved Country, the last
few sentences Arthur Jarvis wrote before his death are: "The truth is that
our civilization is not Christian; it is a tragic compound of great ideal and fearful
practice, of high assurance
and desperate anxiety, of loving charity and fearful clutching of possessions." Where
in this novel do we see
a split between high ideals and narrow self-interest? Do the characters embody one or the
other, or are they
morally mixed? Do you think what Jarvis feels applies to present-day South Africa? If so,
how? If not, how
have things changed?
- Part of how we define who we are is by our
ability to belong. Belonging gives us an identity, tells us with
which community we are members, and may perhaps, gives us meaning and purpose in living.
In Snow
Falling on Cedars, several characters struggled with belonging and consequently
wrestled with questions of
identity and self-esteem. Discuss this struggle in at least two of the major characters.
Perhaps you may want
to set up a comparison and contrast examination of two characters to illustrate how
different the struggle to
belong was for some people.
- I have suggested that our novels reveal
qualities about both individuals and the individual’s relationship to
those around him/her. Define what it means to live in a community—what is this sense
of community that these
authors implicitly value?—and discuss at least three characters and/or communities to
illustrate your definition.
You may want to select examples that show both how community can work well (when
"home" represents the
best that community can offer) and how it can fail to work well (and how isolation,
alienation, and despair can
result).