analysispaper.html

The Analysis Paper Assignment

You are required to write a paper for this class that analyzes an idea, characteristic, theme, or issue that is raised in two or more of the books we read in class. This analytical paper may take the form of a traditional academic essay which raises questions about the texts youíre examining and then, through careful readings of the texts, provides some answers to those questions. As an alternative, you may write a multi-genre paper which likewise raises and answers questions about the texts we read. The real difference with the multi-genre paper is in its use of implication instead of explication; that is, rather than explicitly stating an argument, the writer implies ideas which the reader must infer. The freedom to choose multiple genres allows the writer to show the way an idea looks from many angles. It also provides for a different kind of creativity than the academic essay, while still demonstrating the writer's ability to think and write critically about important and engaging ideas. Regardless of the form your paper takes, you'll need to discuss at least two texts from class, and refer to at least three secondary sources. Papers will, in general, range from 1250-2000 words--about 5-8 pages of double-spaced text.

The paper you write will have a focus of your own choosing, but should be related to some of the following questions.

How do the texts reflect social beliefs and attitudes toward childhood?
How do the texts construct beliefs and attitudes about what it means to be a child?
What is the apparent function of literature written for and/or about children and childhood?
In what ways does literature of the child reinforce and/or resist ideologies?
How are prominent cultural attitudes like (patriotism or empathy or competition) supported or questioned by literature about children?
How is childhood (or adolescence) defined by writers of childrenís literature?

The best papers will have at their core a basic inquiry, a question for which the writer really wants to find an answer. What questions do you have about the books weíve been reading? That's the best place to start. You'll need to write a proposal for the paper (see sample below; due 10/15 by email); the final paper is due on 12/3 in class.

Additional Required Elements for the Multi-Genre Paper:

A minimum of ten genre entries
A minimum of seven different genres
A minimum of three outside references
A preface that explains to the reader what the paper will be about (this is the same as the cover letters written for the papers in the course packet)
Endnotes following the paper itself that describe the genesis of each genre section in the paper (see "Finding Strengths in Our Differences" in the course packet for an example)
Evidence of participation in peer review activities

Analysis Paper Proposal Sample

Paper Format (Academic Essay or Multi-genre Paper): Multi-genre paper

Basic Topic: Role Playing

My take on the topic:

When people don't act in ways that are socially acceptable, there's always some fallout. Playing roles helps society function, but it also really limits us in ways that are not
desirable. So, there are some times when we have to break out of structured roles in order for us to grow and develop.

Texts I want to use:

"The Yellow Wallpaper"
"A Woman on a Roof"

What texts seem to say on the topic:

"Yellow Wallpaper" seems to say that the really restrictive nature of gender roles and expectations in that time period were partly responsible for the woman's madness. If she were only able to really talk with her husband, and if he were able to listen to her, things would've been much different. But they both just play their socially-expected roles instead.
"Woman on a Roof" just shows us what happens when some men ogle a woman who's sunbathing, but she doesn't "play along" and respond to her. She's defying the role of the modest woman, and it throws the men off kilter. The story seems to be about what happens when one of two teams suddenly no longer plays by the rules of the game.

How I think I'll structure the paper:

I want to explore the topic by showing some of the voices that aren't heard in the stories. I also want to have a set of writings by a person who is reading the stories and thinking
about the role playing that happens in them. I'll use these as a reader's diary or something that gets interspersed at regular intervals to give the paper some continuity and
coherence. I'm not sure what other genres I'll use yet.