Writing Assignments
| Paper 1 | Paper 2 | Final Exam |
How to submit your work
Your essays will be submitted to me via e-mail. Write your assignments in your word processing program. PLEASE SAVE YOUR FILE AS EITHER A WORD, RTF, or PDF FILE. Then attach that file to your e-mail message. When sending assignments, your e-mail message should include your name, the class number (English 205), and the name of the assignment which is attached.
Use correct MLA format for the appearance of your essay and your documentation.
Eliminate spelling, grammar, and other mechanical errors from your writing.
Send your e-mail to me at annw708@gmail.com.
NOTE: always keep copies of all of your assignments. If there is a problem with e-mail, you will need that copy to re-send for credit.
About Wikipedia, SparkNotes, and Databases
DO NOT cite Wikipedia in academic essays. Since it is not edited by reputable experts, it often has errors and isn't reliable. It's okay to use it as a starting point for your own research, but go on and find other sources to verify the information, and cite those in your essay.
Also avoid SparkNotes, ENotes and similar sites. Teachers hate them since they provide only the most superficial analyses. Avoid citing them in academic papers; instead, go find analyses from more reputable academic sources: university and scholarly websites, peer-reviewed journals in library databases, and books. Don't be scared by that word "databases." The databases are just collected electronic versions of articles published in print magazines, journals, and newspapers. They also sometimes contain e-books. You can search them and find tons of good material. There's more about how to use the databases on the Writing About Literature page.
Writing Assignment 1
Choose one of the following topics and write a complete, considered answer. Be sure to support your statements with evidence from the text, and be sure to document correctly. You MUST use direct quotes from the text or your paper will not be eligible for any grade higher than a C. Required length: 2-5 pages (500-1250 words).
This assignment is due Friday, October 7th.
1. Choose two of the works we have read and compare their treatment of the images of light and darkness. How are references to "light" and "darkness" symbolic? What do they represent? Be sure to use actual references to light and dark, black and white, to support your points.
2. The desire for fame (and the consequences of that desire) is a recurring theme throughout medieval literature. Choose two of the works we have discussed and compare their treatment of this theme. (Beowulf, for example, assumes without question that fame is a good thing to seek; do all of the other characters we have seen agree with him?)
3. All of the male characters in the old Germanic tales aspire to the "heroic ideal." Do the male characters in the later works we have read have the same values? Explain and illustrate. (You may compare two characters--Beowulf and Sir Gawain, for example--or you may do a general survey of the evolution in values, using specific examples to illustrate your points.) Note: You MUST use a poem, play, or essay we have read in this class.
4. In Beowulf, women are hardly mentioned; does this state of affairs persist throughout the rest of the works we have read? How does the role of women, and the attitude toward women, change as we progress through these literary works? Note: You MUST use a poem, play, or essay we have read in this class.
5. In the Old English works we have read, the characters are really just flat "types." In Chaucer, by contrast, the characters are more fully drawn, more individualized. Choose any two of the works we have discussed and compare their use of characterization. Note: You MUST use a poem, play, or essay we have read in this class.
6. In Chaucer, we see a theme which is to recur again in many works of literature: appearances can be deceptive. Many of the works we have discussed explore this theme. Choose one of them and examine the way it handles this concept. Note: You MUST use a poem, play, or essay we have read in this class.
7. Choose your own topic; clear it with me first.
For information on using MLA format to cite and document correctly, see MLA Basic Format from the OWL at Purdue University.
For help writing this assignment, go to Writing About Literature ; for more specific help, feel free to e-mail me with questions.
Writing Assignment 2
Choose one of the following topics and write a complete, considered answer. Be sure to support your statements with evidence from the text, and be sure to document correctly. You MUST use direct quotes from the text or your paper will not be eligible for any grade higher than a C. Required length: 2-5 pages (500-1250 words).
This assignment is due Friday, November 4th.
1. The danger of the sin of pride is a recurring theme throughout sixteenth century literature. Choose one of the sixteenth century works we have discussed (by Kempe, Malory, More, Marlowe, or Shakespeare) and compare its treatment of this theme. Note: You MUST use a poem, play, or essay we have read in this class.
2. In Beowulf, women are hardly mentioned. By the sixteenth century, however, women characters have come to play a major role in literature. Choose one of the sixteenth century authors we have discussed (Kempe, Malory, More, Marlowe, or Shakespeare) and analyze his or her treatment of women characters in the works we have read for this class. (You may, if you wish, compare a medieval author with a sixteenth century author.) Note: You MUST use a poem, play, or essay we have read in this class.
3. Do any elements of the medieval "heroic ideal" persist into the sixteenth century? Choose one element and discuss its use in a sixteenth century work (Kempe, Malory, More, Marlowe, or Shakespeare). Note: You MUST use a poem, play, or essay we have read in this class.
4. As we know from reading about the Wife of Bath, appearances can be very deceptive; this truth is a recurring theme in sixteenth century literature. Choose one sixteenth century work we have discussed (Kempe, Malory, More, Marlowe, or Shakespeare) and analyze its treatment of this theme. Note: You MUST use a poem, play, or essay we have read in this class.
5. Choose your own topic; clear it with me first.
For information on using MLA format to cite and document correctly, see MLA Basic Format from the OWL at Purdue University.
For help writing this assignment, go to Writing About Literature ; for more specific help, feel free to e-mail me with questions.
Final Exam
Of the works we have read this semester, which one have you liked the best? Explain. Which one did you like the least? Explain. Suggested length: 2-5 paragraphs. (Yes, 2-5 paragraphs. You read that correctly. This is intended to be a very easy final exam!) (Maximum possible points: 50.)
This assignment is due Monday, December 12th by midnight.
NO LATE FINALS WILL BE ACCEPTED!!!