Natasha trethewey elegy

Paper 4: Literary Analysis

For this 3-5 page paper in MLA format (see "Formatting Papers the MLA Way" on Blackboard under "Handouts"), write a paper that examines a literary text, interprets its meaning, and discusses how its various literary techniques help develop that meaning. Your analysis will be based on your close reading of the text as a primary source and will incorporate at least one book review from Literature Resource Center or Academic Search Premier as a secondary source. You may choose a story, poem, or group of related poems from the readings for this unit.

We will use a three-part model to understand the texts first on a literal level, then on a figurative level, and finally on an interpretive level. It is necessary to first achieve a basic comprehension of what is literally happening in the text. Once that is established, we can analyze specific figurative language and literary devices to see how literature creates a secondary effect beyond merely conveying information. Finally, it is possible to offer an original and arguable interpretation of the text's meaning beyond what it says about itself.

· Read your chosen text several times (any text from this unit except "Desiree's Baby")

· Read for comprehension. Look up any words that you don't know or which seem to be used in unusual ways. If you do not know what the words mean, you won’t be able to successfully interpret the text.

· Identify figurative language, literary devices, or anything that happens in the story whose meaning seems unclear (we'll call these "problematic moments"—moments in the text that resist easy interpretation).

· Draw connections between the different parts of the texts—between different sections and between the literal and the figurative. For instance, how do two scenes relate to each other in a surprising way or what extra meaning might a metaphor or simile convey? (You might literally draw these connections.)

· Find and read a book review about the author on Literature Resource Center or Academic Search Premier. Does it make any claims that you agree with or disagree with or offer any information that might help you better understand the text (besides too much biographical information; we are not psychoanalyzing the authors)? If so, make a note of passages you might quote in your paper, even if it's just basic biographical information or a comment on another story / poem / book that you think might apply to the text you are analyzing.

· Identify parts of the text that you can connect and make an interpretation about (brainstorming).

· Formulate a thesis supported by an organized series of claims (outlining).

· Draft your paper, organizing your paper according to your series of claims—NOT THE ORDER OF THE STORY OR POEM.

· Do not merely retell or list things that happen in the story or poem.

· Do not merely list your personal response to the text—what it reminds you of, what it makes you feel, etc.

· Do not argue that the story or poem has a moral. However, you may argue that it offers social criticism.

· Do not use second person.

· Do include signal phrases and in-text citations for passages, whether quoted or paraphrased, as you refer to them in your paper.

· Do include a works cited page citing your primary source (the text or texts) and your secondary source (your book review from a database).

· THOROUGHLY PROOFREAD YOUR PAPER BEFORE TURNING IT IN, PAYING PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO THE KINDS OF ERRORS YOU'VE MADE ON PREVIOUS PAPERS.

DUE

Mon 11/28 or Tue 11/29: Typed copy of draft

ENG 131.08 (MWF 1pm section) – Final draft due with final portfolio Wednesday 12/7 from 1pm to 3pm.

ENG 131.39 (TR 1pm section) – Final draft due with final po