Essay Assignment #6

J. O’Neal

Literature Humanities, Spring 2008

Final Essay

 

Drafts Due by April 26 (drafts returned May 2)

Final Essays Due May 5 by classtime

1200-1500 words

 

You have three choices for our last essay assignment. For each option, you are required to use at least three texts in your discussion, though, as it should be clear in the descriptions, there is little restriction on the choice of texts (i.e. you can use things from last semester). Also, though a couple of the choices deviate somewhat from our standard prompts, you are still expected to build your analysis on direct quotation and to undertake serious, critical investigations of the works.

 

Option 1
Make an argument for including some 20^th century literary work in the Lit  Hum Syllabus. To do so, show how it connects to at least two other texts  we’ve read and suggest how it might complement the course as a whole.  Couple of notes—by literary works, I mean any of the following: poetry, non-fiction prose, autobiography, memoir, novel, short-story collection,  feature film, documentary, television series, play, musical, or graphic  novel. If you are unsure about your selection, check with me. Also, since your ‘new’ work counts as one of the three texts required for this essay,  you need to use at least two of our other texts (though in trying to suggest  how it complements the course as a whole, you probably will need to  bring in a few others).

Option 2       

Design your own Lit Hum short-course. You’ve been asked to teach a  summer, six-week Lit Hum primer for visiting students. Since it is an  abbreviated version of the full-course, the Core Office has required that each section focuses on a specific question, or couple of questions. Your task, then, is to select six-week’s worth of reading and discuss how those  selections address the question(s) you’ve identified. Clearly, you’ll need to  address more than the three text minimum outlined above, but you need  not give every selection equal treatment.

Option 3 

                        Open topic. Here you go—your chance to discuss whatever you want. There is one additional requiremen to go along with the standard things: you must discuss (via email or otherwise) your topic with me beforehand. Otherwise, take this opportunity to investigate something important to you. If I may be so bold as to offer a suggestion: address something that troubles you. Maybe it’s the impossibility of objectivity or the limits of human understanding. Maybe you are wondering about what literature does, or why we like sad stories, or why so few of these have happy endings. Whatever tack you take, I encourage you to write this for yourself.