One of the possibilities with writing your analysis paper is having it take a multi-genre form. But this form of paper is often unknown, and therefore baffling and/or intimidating. We're going to practice writing in multiple genres by completing the exercises below.

Your group has been assigned to a specific character from The Princess Diaries (Lilly Moscovitz, Tina Hakim Baba, Lars the bodyguard, Grandmere, Michael Moscovitz, Lana Weinberger). Your charge is to create, collectively, a multi-genre paper about that character. Your paper is intended to help the class understand the character's personality more fully. See the sample below.

Focusing on your assigned character, complete the following steps:

1. Brainstorm the main traits of your chosen character. What type of person is he/she? What are the character's likes and dislikes? Interests? Personality quirks? How does the person probably talk and/or behave?
2. Distribute the following genres among the group members. You should try to demonstrate one or two of the traits in each genre entry:
• Advice Column and Reply
• This is a familiar genre to many--Ann Landers and Dear Abby have been icons of advice column wisdom for decades. In this genre, you will write a letter to the columnist from your character. The character should describe a problem or dilemma that he or she faces in the story, and the way the problem is described should tell us about the person's general attitude or demeanor. You should include a reply from the columnist offering advice on the problem, and perhaps pointing out some aspect of the character's personality that might need improvement.
• Recipe
• A recipe has a familar format. It begins with a listing of ingredients at the top, and is followed by a procedure for putting the ingredients together to create something new. Recipes often have very specialized language--whip, puree, saute, mince, tenderize, etc.--that you should feel free to use to depict something about the character. This will not be a literal recipe, but a metaphorical one: Mia, for example, might want a recipe for the perfect date.
• Found Poem
• A found poem is a poem written from words and phrases "found" in the text. The poet's task is to take those "found" words and rearrange them in a way that allows us to see the words in a new light. You can mess around with the language a bit--feel free to add words here and there so that the work flows. When focusing on a character, your found poem will probably come from things said about that character by Mia (or others whom Mia quotes in her diary). You'll want to look for words, phrases, or sentences that really focus on the character traits your group has agreed are most important.
• Want Ad
• A want ad is a classified advertisement placed in a newspaper or other periodical. Generally, want ads are short, and can employ specific language ("o.b.o." stands for "or best offer," for example). Like the recipe, this is a metaphorical want ad, not a literal one. Again referring to Mia, she might write a want ad seeking a normal family, or poise, or a bustline. What would your assigned character want?
• Diary Entry
• You already know what Mia's diary entries look like (and Jonah's, too, for that matter). So the task with this genre is to figure out what the character you've been assigned would include in his or her diary.
3. Individually, write the assigned genre, using your character's particular personality traits as the focus of the piece.
4. Get back together with your group, and put the paper in an order that makes the entries have the greatest impact.
5. Read the paper aloud to the class.

Desperate for Advice
Dear Abby,
I am a high school math teacher at a private New York school. I have a pretty good rapport with my students, as a rule--they like me, even though some say I grade too hard. My problem is that one of my students--I'll call her the princess--is failing, and when I asked her mother for a parent-teacher conference, the fireworks began. Not the kind where the parent blames the teacher or vice versa, but the kind of sparks that fly when romance is blooming. The princess's mother and I got along so well that we've begun to date, and I suspect that a more lasting relationship may be on the horizon. The problem is that the princess has never been gung-ho about this, and she was especially upset to find me eating pancakes in my underwear at the breakfast table last Sunday morning. She's a little embarassed, and I'm feeling a little odd having to "grade" my girlfriend's daughter. Can you help me? --Stumped in New York

Dear Stumped,
Normally, I would advise you to stay away from your students' parents romantically, as a common-sense rule, but since you're already in the middle of everything, I'll just recommend that you slow things down. Any woman with a daughter will respect such behavior. You might also want to look up the word "discretion" in a dictionary--you need a dose of it, young man!
 

Recipe for Success in Math
3 heaping cups determination
1 1/2 cups number sense
4 T. after-school time
2 T. geekiness
1 cube organization
1/4 t. luck
Dash genius

Carefully sift determination into large mixing bowl. Gradually add number sense; blend until well mixed. In a separate bowl, combine geekiness and after-school time; mince luck and stir. Fold into large bowl, beating until mixture is smooth. Add genius to taste. Bake in high school classroom for 60 minutes each afternoon until correct homework is produced. Makes 1 serving.
 

Found Poem
Who truly cares about polynomials
besides Mr Gianini? Anyone?

Wearing a t-shirt and
boxer shorts, Mr. G started talking
about seeing people in their
pajamas--Principal Gupta in sweatpants
Mrs Hill in flannel not feathers

Today I watched Mr Gianini
very closely
he had a good time on his date

For a boring guy, he sure gets around
 

Want Ad
Wanted: engaged, enthusiastic student of mathematics. Must be conversant with FOIL method, and intimately knowledgeable about quadratic formula. Geometric, trigonometric knowledge a plus. Calculus should be in your future before applying. Personal pocket protector not necessary, but preferred. External interests in art and royalty welcome. Contact via email at mr.g@mathwhiz.alberteinstein.k12.ny.us

Diary Entry
I tell you, there is something about the mathematical mind that just attracts the ladies. I'm not sure what it is, but there's bound to be a logical explanation. I bet if I find some free time, I'll be able to write it out as an equation, and it'll be just a matter of solving for x. But anyway, the date with Helen went better than expected--I was eating pancakes with her this morning, and that's a good sign, huh? Who'd have thought I could ever get the time of day from a woman who has been profiled in Art in America? Damn, I'm one lucky algebra teacher.