World Masterpieces 2

Essay Assignment #2

Your essay must be at least three pages long, have 12-point font, be double-spaced, and have one inch margins around the page. Do not make a cover sheet. Use MLA
format for quotations. You must cite a primary text (the book or books from the syllabus that you are writing about). Please number pages starting on page 2. Secondary
sources (websites or books that are not on the syllabus) are not required. If you do decide to use secondary sources they must be from scholarly sites or books (for
example, Wikipedia is not a scholarly website). You must cite secondary sources correctly. Remember, if you did not come up with an idea yourself it needs to be cited.
The Honor Pledge should be placed after the last line of the text of your essay. The last page of your paper is the works cited page (the works cited page does not
count towards your page count but should be numbered).

The purpose of your paper is to persuade your audience of a position you have taken. Your introduction should include your thesis statement (one or two sentences that
explain your main argument/the main idea of the paper) as well as the name of the book and author you are analyzing. Consider your fellow classmates as your audience.
Your audience is familiar with the text under consideration and therefore does not need a retelling of the story. Keep in mind that your thesis should not repeat the
question you have chosen to answer, nor should it simply restate a point that was clearly established in class.

Papers must be submitted through SAFE ASSIGN on Blackboard by 3:10 p.m. on June 28th. Blackboard will not allow increments of ten minutes, so the assignment will
appear to be open later. However, since class begins at 3:10 there should not be any submissions after that time. You will also need to hand in a hard copy of your
paper at the beginning of class that day. Do not wait until the last minute to print your essay.
Please choose one of the following topics:
1) Select a Modern art style work of art (a painting or a sculpture for instance). What characteristics (subject matter, use of color, etc.) make this painting a
product of this particular movement? What ideas or values might the artist have been trying to share? You may also want to consider whether or not the painting could
be interpreted differently today. Keep in mind that you must cite the painting you have chosen using MLA guidelines.
2) Compare and contrast Hedda Gabler with another of Henrik Ibsen’s plays from the collection Four Major Plays.
3) Create your own topic relating to Hedda Gabler. You may use the themes and symbols discussed in class.
4) Do you think “The Dead” is a suitable title for James Joyce’s short story? If so, explain the meaning of the title. If you disagree then use an analysis of the
story to come up with a more suitable title.
5) What meaning/meanings did you take away from the story “The Dead”?
6) In The Metamorphosis Gregor is turned into a cockroach. What is significant about the main character becoming an insect (and particularly a cockroach)? How does his
characterization develop as a result of this transformation?
7) Family is one of the themes in The Metamorphosis. What can we infer about Gregor’s relationship with his family before his transformation? How do his relatives
react when they think he is ill? How does the relationship change?
8) What is the main message readers can take away from A Room of One’s Own?
9) How/why does Woolf use humor and sarcasm in A Room of One’s Own?
10) Create your own topic based on your reading of A Room of One’s Own.
11) Create your own topic and analyze the poem “Barn Burning” or “Sailing to Byzantium.” Consider form and/or subject matter.