FIRST ESSAY

Spring 2020 Dr. Kevin Donovan English 2030, Sections 29, 37, & 42

I n s tru c tio n s f o r th e Firs t Es s a y

Write a comparative essay of 850-1000 words on two of the literary texts on the syllabus assigned from Jan. 27 to Feb. 18. You are to arrive at a topic of your own choice, involving the comparison or contrast of two works (stories, poems, or plays). The assignment requires constant reference to the relevant literary texts, including judiciously selected quotations which support your interpretive argument. The topics are designed to encourage your efforts at critical reading and writing; additional secondary reading is neither required nor expected. However, if you do incorporate some ideas from secondary reading, be sure to cite these secondary sources appropriately.

TOPIC: Focus on the literary treatment of innocence vs. experience as a subject in the two works. For instance, do they share some central moral idea, or some philosophical, social, political, or religious concerns involving their attitudes toward innocence and experience? Or instead do they differ significantly in their treatment of such concerns or attitudes? Are there interesting or surprising points of similarity or difference in the ways in which ideas of innocence and experience are represented in the works?

Your paper should take into account at least two significant features of form and style that express the works’ attitudes towards the theme of innocence and experience. These may include the works’ structure, point of view, tone, irony, imagery, symbolism, etc.

You have probably written comparison/contrast essays in previous writing courses, so this may seem a familiar task. However, you must keep in mind that comparison/contrast essays need to make a point. A thesis like the following is worthless: “Poem X is similar to Poem Y in many ways, but also different.” An effective comparison/contrast essay always keeps the reader’s focus on the purpose of the comparison, i.e., what significant insights can be gained by the comparison. See Abcarian & Klotz, pp. 56-59 for useful advice on organizing an essay of comparison on a literary topic, including a sample student essay.

PURPOSE: Your paper should develop an argumentative thesis: you are trying to persuade a reader that you have valid points to make in interpreting these texts, ideas that a casual reader of these texts would likely overlook. And your thesis should be analytical–that is, it should make a significant point in defense of your interpretation.

AUDIENCE: It is unavoidable that you should think of the instructor (me) as your audience, but that can be potentially confusing and a source of anxiety, since you really don’t know much about me, nor should you be expected to. I suggest that you think of your fellow classmates as your audience. They too have read the works you’ll discuss, but they haven’t thought about your particular points of focus as deeply as you have. You are trying to persuade these fellow students of the validity of your interpretation.

CONFERRING WITH THE INSTRUCTOR: It will be useful to schedule a conference with me in my office before turning in this first paper. Accordingly I have cancelled the class meetings for the week of February 22-25 and will schedule individual 20-minute appointments with each of you to discuss your papers in process. You should bring to the Zoom conference whatever draft you have finished

at that point. At the very least you should have drafted your introduction, including your thesis statement, and an outline of the main body of the essay. The more material you bring to the conference, the more worthwhile it will be.

FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Many inexperienced writers on fiction spend too much time summarizing the plot of a story, leaving too little space for the more interesting (and challenging) task of critical analysis. Don’t make this mistake. Keep plot summary to a minimum. Be sure that your paper addresses the purpose of the assignment: analysis of an interpretive issue.

2. Be sure to follow the MLA style in such matters as the layout of the first page, pagination of subsequent pages, citation (parenthetical) and documentation (include a Works Cited page at the end of the paper). Instructions for correct MLA style in these matters can be found at the website of the University Writing Center (https://www.mtsu.edu/writing-center/online-resources.php), as well as in the textbook, pp. 71-75.

3. When quoting poetry, your parenthetical citations should refer to line numbers rather than page numbers. However, the citation of the poem(s) in your list of Works Cited should include the page numbers in Abcarian, Klotz, & Cohen where the poems are found. When quoting poetry be careful as well to indicate verse line endings with a slash [/] (unless you’re quoting four or more lines of verse, which should be indented and set up on the page line by line as in the original text).

4. Before your final round of revisions to the paper, be sure to look carefully at the “Guidelines for Papers” posted to the D2L page for this course.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: The staff at the University Writing Center can work with you on drafts of your papers, providing advice on organization, development, clarity, and effective diction. However, they will not proofread or edit your work. The Center is located in the Library, Rm. 362, phone number: 615-904-8237. It is best to reserve an appointment, though they do take walk-ins when possible; appointments can be made online at their website. During the pandemic they are coducting virtual appointments.

DUE: Monday, March 1 (Section 29); Tuesday, March 2 (Sections 37 & 42).

Coraggio!