Assignment on English Essay : 691693

Question:

Assignment: Develop a strong thesis statement from one of the following topics and write a well-organized argumentative essay, which analyses the literary work under consideration closely and carefully, in order to defend your thesis.  Be sure to make specific references to the work you are discussing throughout your paper.

Guidelines: Your essay must be typed and double-spaced.  Please number all pages on the top right-hand corner and include a separate title page containing your name, your essay’s title, the topic number, the instructor’s name and the due date. Follow the template given in the University of Regina Style Guide.  Remember also to include a properly formatted Works Cited page even if your only “source” is the Broadview Anthology or a webpage. Finally, be sure to include an original title of your own devising, an introduction and a conclusion, and a clear, concise thesis statement at the end of the introduction. If you are confused, please consult the O.W.L. website as this source includes some useful examples of how to document sources.

N.B. In this essay, errors in quotation integration or bibliographical citations or MLA formatting will receive deductions of 5%, so make sure you understand the MLA style!

Requirements: 

Your essay must include the following: 

1) A properly formatted title page (following the template given on p. 27 of the U of R Style Guide) and a Works Cited page created according to the MLA method. If any of these elements are missing, deductions will be made.

2) An original title which is not the same as the heading on the topic sheet.  Essays without titles will receive an additional deduction.

3) A clear, concise thesis statement at the end of the first paragraph (i.e. your introduction).

4) A preview or outline of your argument in a sentence somewhere in the introduction (it should precede the thesis statement).

5) Focussed topic sentences at the start of every paragraph.

6) At least one short quotation per paragraph, and where possible, two per paragraph, to support your points. Avoid paraphrasing or summarizing the text, but instead make an interpretation based on the evidence.

7) Your quotations should be properly integrated according to the techniques discussed in class.  There should be no comma splices and no hanging quotations – mistakes such as these will receive extra deductions. 

Plagiarism:  Your essay should be made up of your own words.  All borrowing from secondary sources must be properly acknowledged, including electronic sources.  Any student who knowingly passes off another’s work or ideas as his/her own is guilty of Plagiarism and will be liable to a range of very serious penalties ranging from failure in the class to dismissal from the University.  Please refer to the University of Regina General Calendar or speak to me if you have questions.

1. B.: Please do not attempt to answer every question in the topics below; they are offered as guidelines to help you to know what to cover as you formulate your argument. Just pick one question to answer with your thesis, or use the heading as your guide, or combine all of them and create your own unique question.

1. Essay Topics on Classic Poems 

1. The Revelation of Insanity: The speaker of “Porphyria’s Lover” tells his story in a calm and steady tone, even though actually he has gone insane. How does he betray his madness at various points?  When do you first sense that the speaker is insane? Has his “love” for Porphyria contributed to his insanity, or is the possessive and delusional quality of this love merely further evidence of it?  Look for the various clues to his state of mind in his description of Porphyria, their relationship, and his views about her character when they sit together. Then analyze the theme of possessiveness and female objectification as it manifests itself through the speaker’s insanity in this poem. 

2. The Self-Justifications of a Control Freak: Analyze how the dramatic monologue form effectively displays the speaker’s anxieties, preoccupations and possessiveness in “My Last Duchess.”  How does the Duke of Ferrara in Browning’s monologue reveal, and ultimately, betray himself as a controlling man with murderous impulses?  Why does he show this side of his character to the emissary, and is it intentional? (In responding to this topic, you may wish to consider such elements as the speaker’s recurrent preoccupations, the (apparent) responses of the auditor to the monologue, and the flow of ideas in the monologue).  Are there any points in the monologue that suggest his power has been undercut, or does he remain as powerful as he thinks he is throughout the speech?

3. The Duchess’s Last Laugh: Due to his continuing feelings frustration and jealousy about his former wife, the Duke tells his guest, the Count’s emissary, much more than he probably should have about his first marriage and the fate of the Duchess; the envoy then seems to leave quickly after hearing this story. What is it that prompts all these revelations from the Duke to begin with? Why is the Duke so frustrated with and confused by the Duchess and her blushing smiles (even if they are now only painted ones)? What does his reaction to her reveal about him and also about her?  Although she is now gone, can the Duchess be said to have “won” against him in some way?

4. Shakespeare’s Mocking Love: In Shakespeare’s day, the sonnet was conventionally a poem that idealized a woman and the love that the speaker of the poem had for her using the technique of the blazon (a systematic extended metaphor in which the various features of the lady’s face and/or body are compared to various beautiful things and substances). However, in “My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun,” the speaker presents in the three quatrains a rather unflattering, even mocking portrait of his lady.  Yet, the concluding couplet suggests that his love is “as rare / As any she, belied with false compare.”  Discuss the irony of this famous sonnet: how and why does this poem break from and modify the traditional subject matter of the love sonnet?  Considering the imagery throughout the poem, and the concluding couplet in particular, show how Shakespeare redefines the sonnet to communicate his love in a new way.  You can also discuss whether the expression of love here is heartfelt or sincere.

5. Percy Shelley’s “Ozymandias”:   The traveler suggests that the statue’s sculptor intended his work to express the cruelty of of his tyrant king (thought by many to be Rameses II), not his power.   How have the sculptor and time’s ruinous effects appeared to issue their sentence against the Pharaoh? In this rather ambiguous poem, is there also a sense that he has still somehow defeated them both?  If so, what is it?  If not, why not? What statement do the ruins  make about human history and human nature, according to the poem? Is the dead king, the artist or Time itself ultimately the victor here?
6. Characterizing Death: Compare the use of personification in Emily Dickinson’s poem, “Because I could not stop for Death” and John Donne’s “Death be not proud.” How do these poems each cope with and minimize human mortality through their characterizations of death?  Or, if you prefer to look at the techniques of personification, consider this: how do they each humanize inanimate forces while still hinting at their fundamental impersonality?  What is the difference between the two poems’ view of death, and how and why do the fictional settings/conceits encapsulate these differences?  Finally, which poem creates the most vivid and memorable personification? (N.B.:  You do not have to favour one poem to answer this question). As you answer this question, be sure to look at both similarities and differences.

Essay Topics on The Literary Essay:

7. Orwell’s Story about making the Wrong Choices:

“Shooting an Elephant” chronicles an incident in which Orwell confronts a moral dilemma and abandons his morals to escape the mockery of the Burmese people. He kills an elephant which had ravaged a bazaar while in heat, even though it has calmed down and he says, “As soon as I saw the elephant I knew with perfect certainty that I ought not to shoot him.” Why does he realize this?  Having come this realization, why does he shoot the elephant anyway, calling his actions tantamount to murder, even though he feels strongly that it is wrong? In addition, why does he tell us this story about this mistake? Throughout his narrative, Orwell also criticizes and condemns his own actions, and reveals to the reader his worst impulses and deepest regrets.  Is he feeling guilty, or does Orwell have a message for the reader in pointing out his own mistakes/ Why does Orwell set himself up as a target for the reader’s disapproval?

8. Orwell’s Audience: Who is Orwell’s primary audience in “Shooting an Elephant” and what does he have to say to them specifically about the nature of Imperialism?  Why is it harmful to this audience in particular and Orwell himself as well?  How is his attitude to Imperialism complicated by his situation and his own attitude to the Burmese people?  What is Orwell doing in this essay by illustrating so vividly his complex feelings and situation, and what is he trying to get his audience to recognize?

9. Swift’s Targets: In the essay “A Modest Proposal,” Swift shocks the reader with the idea of eating babies to solve the problems of famine and poverty in Ireland; yet Swift was not aiming at creating outrageous humour. The overstated “proposal” intentionally shocks the reader, but certain passages in the essay seem to carry an undercurrent of real anger. How is this anger achieved and what is its purpose? In order for satire to function and be effective, there must be a target, or a set of targets, to critique and undercut.  So what are the targets of Swift’s satire and how does he attack them? Which groups of people in “A Modest Proposal” are the primary targets who are singled out as special targets for Swift’s satiric attack? What traits do they have in common with each other, and what does he imply are their faults?

Essay Topics on The Short Fiction:

10. Interpreting The Unreliable Narrator in Poe’s “The Black Cat”: 

What is it that makes the central narrator of the “The Black Cat” by Edgar Allen Poe so unreliable? We immediately sense that he is deceiving us about his goodness, his kindness to animals and his love for his wife, but how does he do so?  In addition, why does he do so? What is the basis of his unreliability and dishonesty as he tells the story?  What is his reason for being unreliable? Is he consciously aware of his dishonesty or not? What does it mean that the narrator cannot understand or explain his increasing shift towards cruelty? Finally, what role does this unreliable narration play in the reader’s understanding of the story – does it help or hinder the creation of an interpretation?

11. Madness and the Self in Poe’s and Gilman’s Stories:

In their short stories, the writers Edgar Allen Poe and Charlotte Perkins Gilman seem to use their narrators primarily to explore the darker aspects of the psyche – madness, obsession, and  the fragmentation of the self.  Compare the treatment of madness in Edgar Allen Poe (“The Black Cat”), and Charlotte Gilman (“The Yellow Wallpaper”).  How are these authors using their narrators to explore the limitations and extremes of the human personality?  Why do these authors push their characters beyond their limits in these two stories?  What do they hope to reveal through these narrations of irrationality and descent? (Note: as this is a comparative essay, make sure that you come up with a comparative thesis)

12. The Question of the Narrator’s Triumph or Defeat in “The Yellow Wallpaper”:

In your view, is Gilman’s narrator triumphant or is she defeated as she frees the woman hidden behind the wallpaper? Some critics argue that “The Yellow Wallpaper” is a story about a woman who is confined and silenced. In your opinion does she become completely dependent on her husband, being utterly lost and reduced to an infantile state as the story unfolds? Alternatively, a more feminist position is that the narrator at the end finally  evades the control of the patriarchy and achieves a personal triumph.  Do you agree that the narrator achieves a greater sense of self as she acts out her madness? If so, in what ways does she triumph over her husband and the male-dominated society here? If not, why not?

13. The Question of the Narrator’s Triumph or Defeat in “The Yellow Wallpaper”:

In your view, is Gilman’s narrator triumphant or is she defeated as she frees the woman hidden behind the wallpaper? Some critics argue that “The Yellow Wallpaper” is a story about a woman who is confined and silenced. In your opinion does she become completely dependent on her husband, being utterly lost and reduced to an infantile state as the story unfolds? Alternatively, a more feminist position is that the narrator at the end finally evades the control of the patriarchy and achieves a personal triumph.  Do you agree that the narrator achieves a greater sense of self as she acts out her madness? If so, in what ways does she triumph over her husband and the male-dominated society here? If not, why not?

Answer:

Title- ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAY ON GILMAN’S “THE YELLOW WALLPAPER”

Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s short fiction, “The Yellow Wallpaper” has intended to capture a traumatic and distressful descent into madness. In the story narrated by her, the protagonist attempts to evade the norms and hassles of the male dominated medication system which subjects her to be engaged in a forceful devastating cure regarded as the ‘resting care’ that results in confining her life within the four walls of a room (Gilman). The essay aims to study about the way the narrator finds an association with the decorative yellow wallpaper of her room further believing herself to be trapped inside it. The thesis statement of this essay is, with several patriarchal dominances, the narrator eventually recognized the identity of her true self, further willing to set free several other women facing similar confinements.

Persistent confinement and loneliness made the life of the protagonist apathetic and pushed her into delusion. The narrator’s collapse was the consequence of her medication along with the factors associated with the attitudes of men towards the women. It has been stated in many essays, how the wallpaper in her bedroom has been an object of horror to her (Rensing). The dictatorship of John, her husband aroused a certain degree of possessiveness in the protagonist towards the wallpaper. She intends to draw a controlling power towards the wallpaper on the process of searching for something in her own life. John as being solely liable to his wife’s insanity for his dictatorship and obligatory nature led the narrator express her grief with actions instead of expressing through words (Beer). Through such actions, the narrator articulated her intentions to break the societal especially male driven norms that leave women to be mere objects of the society.  However, such controlling deeds of John led the narrator to be domineering towards the wallpaper that acts as the sole savior and amusement to her motionless life (González Mínguez). It has been noted in the fiction the way women’s circumstantial factors had always been associated with men. The narrator through her stern actions aimed to prove the manner in which the world has been perceived and comprehended with the perceptions and voice of men, further remonstrating the diminishing as well as marginalized state of women. The narrator initially had perceived the wallpaper as atrocious and horrifying: ‘I never saw a worse paper in my life….’ (Bausch). However, in the later section it was observed that she started to feel mesmerized and fascinated towards it and hence identified a new ray of hope through it.

It was the wallpaper through which she identified her true inner self of hers by associating herself with the shadow that was seen by her. The unvarying emptiness in made her being indulged into her own surroundings. The silhouette or shadow of many elements emerged to the narrator as the woman behind the paper. Numerous imaginations begun to develop in her mind which formed the shape of an artificial woman (Gilman). However, this hallucination acted as a source of her freedom and desires, for which she has been breathing. The narrator instead of identifying the woman as a mere human figure, she supposes it to be a female by relating her own life experiences with the shadow. By providing an identification of woman to the shadow, the narrator paves her way to condemn the patriarchal domination. The evolution  from being a confined indistinct shadow to an unseen women yielded the narrator to identify herself identity(Martin and Julie). Thus, an intentional shift has been noted, whereby the narrator instead of setting the woman free, she involves herself in confining the woman. Through the motives of capturing the woman, she unexpectedly succeeded in liberating herself by intending to set free several other women trapped like her.

However, according to few scholars, the narrator discovered that her life has begun to concentrate primarily on the wallpaper of her room that eventually became a sole reason of her survival. It must be noted that even though the narrator grew a fondness towards the room, yet a feeling of loneliness had grasped her inner self, which repeatedly desired her husband’s companionship (Gottfried). However, it was noted that John kept the narrator into darkness despite of contemplating to her advices. The struggle for raising the voices had always been much more for women in comparison to the men. The essay extensively concentrated on the way the protagonist fought to express her desires and wishes yet in return got immense dismissal from her husband. This move from her husband compelled her to get immensely involved with the wallpaper of her room, which she eventually started to consider the wallpaper as only source of her to achieve freedom and sovereignty (Lian et al). In fact, this move had impelled the narrator to become immensely fascinated and mesmerized with the wallpaper. The story critically evaluated the unequal and disturbing relationships between the men and women of the nineteenth century. The way, John suppressed his wife’s thoughts and desires eventually made the protagonist enter into the world of hallucination (Collman). The story portrays the deprived position of the women in regards to their rights and desires. It is regarded as an illusion of the narrator’s view against the decorative pattern of the wallpaper which further derived her to accomplish the state of her illness.

Therefore, from the above discussion it can be concluded that the continuous dismissal and ignorance of John resulted the narrator to recognize her own identity. Though during her initial times she felt imprisoned to view the wallpaper of her bedroom but in the later stage this state of isolation intensified the desires of the protagonist to escape. The essay evaluated the aspects of gender disparity and further focuses on the unfairness and discrimination related to the protagonist and her husband. The paper successfully acclaimed the ways in which the narrator grew possessiveness and control towards the wallpaper of her bedroom. However, it was referred as a source to occupy her emptiness in life, but later this wallpaper transpired as a group of women whom the narrator intends to release from the confinement by developing a recognition of her own identity.

References

Bausch, Richard, ed. The Norton anthology of short fiction. WW Norton & Company, 2015.

Beer, Janet. Kate Chopin, Edith Wharton and Charlotte Perkins Gilman: Studies in Short Fiction. Springer, 2016.

Collman, Elise Marie. The Discourse of Female Mental Illness in Kate Chopin’s• The Awakening. Diss. Cleveland State University, 2016.

Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. The yellow wall-paper. Penguin UK, 2015.

Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. WOMEN & ECONOMICS: A Study of the Economic Relation between Men and Women as a Factor in Social Evolution: From the famous American feminist, social reformer, sociologist and the author of The Yellow Wallpaper and Herland. Musaicum Books, 2017.

González Mínguez, María Teresa. “CHARLOTTE PERKINS GILMAN’S’THE YELLOW WALLPAPER’: ON HOW FEMALE CREATIVITY COMBATS MADNESS AND DOMESTIC OPPRESSION.” Babel AFIAL 23 (2014).

Gottfried, Heidi. Gender, work, and economy: Unpacking the global economy. John Wiley & Sons, 2013.

Lian, Olaug S., Catherine Robson, and Hilde Bondevik. “Chapter Eight: Women With Long-Term Exhaustion in Fictional Literature: A Comparative Approach.”

Martin, Ian, and Julie Le Hégarat. “Conventions of Control and Confinement on the ‘Uncanny’Female Body.” (2016).

Rensing, Susan. “Women ‘Waking Up’and Moving the Mountain: The Feminist Eugenics of Charlotte Perkins Gilman.” MP: An Online Feminist Journal 4.1 (2013): 1.

 

 

 

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