For the research paper, you will need to focus on one main idea regarding an original interpretation of one work we have read in this course with a focus on one mode of literary criticism. Focus on solving an issue you have found within the text and solve the issue through a historically based research project focusing on the context of the work in connection to the literary movement and the genre based on either Moral Criticism, Dramatic Construction (~360 BC-present), Formalism, New Criticism, Neo-Aristotelian Criticism (1930s-present), Psychoanalytic Criticism, Jungian Criticism(1930s-present), Marxist Criticism (1930s-present), Reader-Response Criticism (1960s-present), Structuralism/Semiotics (1920s-present), Post-Structuralism/Deconstruction (1966-present), New Historicism/Cultural Studies (1980s-present), Post-Colonial Criticism (1990s-present), Feminist Criticism (1960s-present), and Gender/Queer Studies (1970s-present). This assignment will require a critical close reading and an analytical interpretation within a contextualization of the literary work using one type of literary criticism as a specific lens of interpretation. Contextualize the literary work based on its historical significance at the time, along with how the literary work may still be relevant in our culture today based on current philosophical views, current events, sociological and economic views, religious views, political views, and psychological views of our day through the lens of literally criticism.
Grading:
Content: 50%
For the research paper, you will need to focus on an interpretation of the work based on historical components of the work. You can focus in on an issue within the genre or the literary movement that the work was written in and analyze the work with your own point of view. Solve an issue within the plot by focusing in on the specific stylistic devices the author uses based on the literary criticism you are using as your focus as you interpret the literary piece. You will need to form your own claims that you will use to argue your own point of view. You will need to use quotes and paraphrases that are directly from the work. You will also need to synthesize in outside sources from peer reviewed journals and other scholarly works that will be used to prove your point. You will need to include persuasive techniques, such as rhetorical modes of reasoning that will be used to prove your point after making a claim. You will need evidence based on the ideas of literary critics that involve specific examples, as well as logical, emotional, and ethical appeals to prove your point and form your claims. Connect similarities and differences among literary critics to define your own original claims that you will support with evidence. Look into different schools of thought found in literary criticism, such as deconstruction criticism, new historical criticism, gender criticism, formalist criticism, structuralism, moral criticism, feminist criticism, and reader-response criticism. You will need at least nine scholarly sources to support your own claims regarding how you can interpret the text.
Format: 25 %
You will need to write a detailed, close reading of the work that is at least eight to ten pages of an analysis. There should be at least eight to ten paragraphs in the essay with at nine sources from each of the required sections in the library research worksheet. You will need an introduction that includes an intriguing topic sentence that presents an overview of the purpose of the paper, the background context of the work, the issue you will be focusing in on, and your answer to your question about a specific aspect of the work that poses a debatable interpretation with your own idea in a clear thesis statement. Each paragraph will be focused in on one main idea that you will be arguing to prove how you can interpret the text from your point of view. Explain how the work can be interpreted form a school of thought within literary criticism. Apply a literary critic’s theoretical approach to your own interpretation of the work. You can also choose to explain how a debate among scholars regarding a specific issue within the interpretation of the meaning of the text can be solved with your own original take on the work.
Each paragraph will be focused in on one main idea that you will be arguing to prove how you can interpret the text from your point of view. The body paragraphs will begin with a transition sentence that connects that main idea in the last paragraph to the present. Then, you will present your own original claim based on rhetorical modes of analyzing and classical logic. You will, then, use a quote or a paraphrase from the text itself and/or a scholarly source that will be used to prove your point. You will need to have quotes from the text and scholarly sources throughout each paragraph. Explain the debate among scholars involving a specific quote or section in the work. You will, then, explain what the quote means and use rhetorical modes of analyzing to explain how it proves your point. You can use specific language from the quote itself to prove your point. Analyze the language the author uses to prove your point as to examine the style of the work. You will then repeat this cycle until you reach the conclusion. The conclusion sentence will explain how the paragraph proves your thesis. You will document each quote in MLA format. Introduce the author and the work and cite with a parenthetical citation at the end of the sentence, as follows: (author's last name pg.). Always lead into the quote by stating which character is speaking and the context of what is going on in the plot, or by stating the author’s name and the title of the work. You will need at least six to seven sentences minimum per paragraph. Paragraphs that are half a page are acceptable, but not if they reach three-fourths of the page. Be as thorough as possible. You will need a works cited page in MLA format.
You will then have a conclusion paragraph that will explain how your paper proved your point in detail. Explain the purpose of your paper in a greater context. How did each paragraph prove your point? Call to action and explain how your analysis of the work can be used to solve societal, historical, or other issues that are important in our world. Present an overview of the values that are presented in your interpretation and why they are meaningful.
Style: 25%
Always write using formal diction. Address the audience, knowing that you have a specific purpose and goal you will achieve through your analysis. Use language that is appropriate for your audience. Define all of your terms. Present your claims as though they are known facts, since you are certain you can prove your point. Avoid any slang or jargon. Do not use the word “it.” Use specific language when you write. Do not use the first person. Think about your word choice regarding the context of the topic. Be as descriptive as possible, while being as clear and concise as possible. All sentences should be complete, as there should be no fragments. Do not use run-on sentences. Vary your syntax between simple and complex sentences. All paragraphs and sentences should have ideas that connect in a cohesive way. All paragraphs should be well developed, and the ideas should be arranged in an organized way. I will focus on Feminist Criticism (1960s-present). The reading will be from A Vinidication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft