Essay Assignment #1

Essay Assignment #1

Literature Humanities Fall 2007 | J. O’Neal

Due Sept.23, 2007 at

midnight

via email

Length: 700-900 words

 

 

Close Reading Assignment

 

For this assignment, write 700-900 words on a passage of no more than 200 words.

 

 

Suggestions

 

This assignment requires that you look closely at a particular piece of text and consider it in detail.

This assignment, however, is not asking that you come up with a coherent thesis or specific argument about the text. This does not mean that a series of observations is acceptable; you should try to connect your ideas together, but it just doesn’t need to form a coherent whole.

You are free to mention text that does not fall directly in your passage, provided your passage is still the focus of the analysis.

It can be especially generative to focus on paradox, ambiguity, ambivalence, contradiction and omission.

Take time to think about word choice, grammar, syntax, style. You will need to be able to analyze such things on the final exam and this is a good way to start.

Focus on possibility rather than probability. Often, it is more interesting to suggest the possibility of a surprising reading rather than to try to prove the existence of a more pedestrian one.