Looking for Answers/Finding Meaning Essay

Directions: Answer ONE of the following questions. Plan your answer before you begin to write out the essay. Use SPECIFIC examples from the readings to explain and support your ideas.

Toni Morrison believes every writer—on some level—is fighting a “secret war.” In other words, each writer is advancing his or her personal and political agenda. Choose ONE work of literature and examine the writer’s agenda. What is the writer advocating? What social change does the writer want to occur?

As Plato describes in “The Allegory of the Cave,” we often only see a shadow of reality, allowing various interpretations of “Truth.” Select ONE work of literature and examine how Plato’s allegory adds to your understanding of the literature. If you choose this, you must first make it clear your essay is based on Plato’s allegory and compare it to another work of literature. Are any characters in chains? Who are the puppet handlers? Is there anyone who has seen a new reality? Finally, what IS the “truth” the writer trying to make you—the reader—see?

Real learning often occurs after a state of confusion or dissonance—the learner must work out how to take in an uncomfortably new idea. Choose ONE work and describe how this relates to the lesson learned in the literature.

Due Date: Upload your final paper by 11:59pm on Thu May 28. Use a valid file type for Turnitin (Microsoft Word, Acrobat PDF, Postscript, Text, HTML, WordPerfect (WPD) and Rich Text Format).

Length Requirement: 6 pages

Formatting Requirement: Adhere to MLA guidelines for formatting.

Note: You must include a Works Cited page that lists the work you are discussing. Also, while I don’t encourage you to use outside sources, if you do, include those in your list of works cited. Your Works Cited page must adhere to MLA works cited page guidelines, and it does not count as part of the page-length requirement.

Further Instructions:

– Make sure you include a title for your analysis. Your title must clearly indicate that this is an essay about (the) literature.

– At the end of your first paragraph, include a clear, direct thesis statement in your essay’s introduction that provides focus for your discussion. Your thesis must clearly focus on the prompt, and it must offer up a statement that needs to be proven in your discussion.

– In your introduction, you must also preview the works you will discuss in the order you discuss them. Mention both the authors and the “titles” (in quotations not italics). Also, make certain the works you choose are from the “Looking Answers/Finding Meaning” unit.

– Write in present tense. When you write about literature, use present tense—the words continue to speak to you from the page.

– Make sure you supply sufficient textual evidence to support your ideas. In each body paragraph of your essay, provide 2 to 3 direct quotations to indicate a close reading of the literature. This does not mean “padding” your essays with lengthy quotations. Choose quotations wisely, integrate them correctly, and analyze them in your discussion.

– Remember—and I can’t stress this enough—the essay is not merely a series of plot summaries. Rather, I am more interested in what you have to say about the literature and any comparisons or contrasts you can make.

– Make sure to proofread your paper before turning it in. Grammar, spelling, and punctuation count.

Readings:

“When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer” by Walt Whitman
“Allegory of the Cave” by Plato
Page
“Allegory of the Cave” by Plato
“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson
Page
“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson
Discussion for Plato and Jackson
Discussion Topic
“Little Red Riding Hood” by Charles PerraultPage
“Little Red Riding Hood” by Charles Perrault
“Little Red Cap” by the Grimm Brothers
Page
“Little Red Cap” by the Grimm Brothers
“The Company of Wolves” by Angela Carter
Page
“The Company of Wolves” by Angela Carter
Discussion for Perrault, the Brothers Grimm, and Carter
Discussion Topic
“The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Page
“The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Discussion for Gilman
Discussion Topic
“A&P” by John Updike
Page
“A&P” by John Updike
Discussion for Updike
Discussion Topic
“The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara
Page
“The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara
Discussion for Bambara
Discussion Topic
“Cathedral” by Raymond Carver
Page
“Cathedral” by Raymond Carver
Discussion for Carver’s “Cathedral”
Discussion Topic