Compare and Contrast to create analytical insight

Description

Your final “exam” in this course is an essay which explores a theme and/or element of literary style that caught your interest this quarter. Like the mid-term, this essay relies on compare and contrast to generate analytical insight. Unlike the mid-term, you must come up with your own topic for investigation. Use the Guide for Writing About American Literature for help in developing a topic and shaping your essay. You may also find these links (Links to an external site.) at the OWL (Online Writing Lab (Links to an external site.)), and these links  (Links to an external site.)at the Excelsior Online Writing Lab (Links to an external site.), useful in developing a topic and planning your literature essay. In this culminating assignment, focus on developing an interpretive claim (evaluative claims are usually reserved for advanced literature students, in graduate school, etc.). Repeat: your essay should have a focused thesis or central point, one supported by evidence drawn from the texts we’ve read. As always, there are many possible themes or characters or passages you could explore. You won’t be able to include it all. What matters is that you have a substantial, focused point and that you demonstrate your view with clear evidence. Which texts? You should certainly include at least one of the texts we’ve read since the mid-term–i.e., Everything That Rises, Housekeeping, or the poetry of Herrera and/or Rankine. From story or novel or poetry, include analysis or explication related to theme, style, and story or character or poetic insight, as appropriate. Develop your essay by comparing a central theme or stylistic feature in the text to any other texts we’ve read earlier this quarter. Look for the ways in which those themes or features are developed and presented in a contemporary context. As you interpret passages or make analytical points, use quotes from the text as supporting evidence.  Make sure you have an intro and conclusion. Your essay must be at least 750 words minimum, though it may be substantially longer than that. You may copy/paste text or upload a file. Good sentence and paragraph structure count. I will not grade for MLA or other kinds of formatting, though this is certainly welcome. If you quote other texts or explanatory sources for supporting evidence, be sure to acknowledge your source by including the author’s name in your essay.