EN11M: Texts & Contexts
I
Third Essay Assignment
A draft of the third essay is due at the beginning of class
on Monday, December 6. The paper should be 4-5 pages long and you should bring
three copies of the draft to class. You must bring a complete draft
of the essay to class. Students who do not present a complete draft
of the essay on the 6th will not receive full credit for the essay.
In this essay, you should analyze some element of Shakespeare's
The Tempest and state and defend a clear thesis on it. Here are some
suggested topics:
- Is Prospero a good ruler of the island? Is he a good father
to Miranda? What does he want, and is he able to achieve it? Does his character
change over the course of the play? Write an essay proposing and defending
a precise reading of Prospero's character or what he stands for.
- The Tempest is full of references to art and drama,
and among other things Prospero is himself a stager of shows and a figure
of the dramatist. What does the play suggest about art or about drama, and
its power or its limitations?
- Prospero and Miranda assert that Caliban is inherently evil.
Is he? Analyze Caliban's character and make a precise argument explaining
his actions in the play and interpreting his nature.
- Who properly should rule the island? Prospero? Caliban?
Someone else? No one? What does the play suggest about power, politics, and
justice?
Note these dates:
- On Wednesday, December 1, come to class
with a thesis for the essay. This thesis should be typed and should be stated
as a single, complete sentence. The thesis of the essay is the one,
central idea that you want to convince the reader of. A good thesis is one
that can be proven (that is, you can cite evidence to support it)
and that needs to be proven (that is, it is not obvious or self-evident).
A thesis does not have to be a single sentence, but it is a good exercise
to write it as a complete sentence since it forces you to articulate the single,
coherent idea that drives the essay as a whole. We will workshop our theses
in this class.
- On Monday, December 6, we will workshop
our drafts in class.
- On Wednesday, December 8, the final draft
of the essay is due at the beginning of class.