Next time: have them look at ADDITIONAL SPECIFIC PASSAGES to practice drawing inferences and formulating thesis statements. Give them assistance with this--otherwise they wind up copying each others' boring ideas.
English
120 Project #3:
Literary Analysis
Maximum points possible: 15
Length: aprx. 3-4 pages
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Finished product due:
NO GRACE PERIODFOR THIS ESSAY.
LATE WORK WILL ONLY BE ACCEPTED WITH
DOCUMENTED EVIDENCE OF SERIOUS HARDSHIP.
You will hand in this essay with your Portfolio.
Because works of art are generally rich with both explicit and implied meanings, and because those implied meanings can be multiple and complex, we say that those works are open to interpretation. However, "interpretation" does not mean that a work of art is "anything I want it to be." An interpretation is a type of argument, and, just like any argument, requires support and reasoning to be credible. And just like any argument, it is open to challenge.
Keep in mind that we are not talking about art reviews here. A review is an argument of evaluation (it argues that something is good or bad, worthy or unworthy). What you want here is an argument of interpretation. That is, you're not judging the book; you're examining its meanings and trying to understand it more deeply and richly.
Instructions and Purpose
For this project you will analyze and interprete a contemporary literary work, Rule of the Bone.
Your purpose is to illuminate the book for your readers, help them get more out of it, and help them to recognize some of its complex meanings. That is, you want to pose an interpretive question and then develop an argument for a particular answer to that question.
Possible Approaches
- START WITH AN ISSUE OR THEME
What do you believe is the most important issue or theme in this book? That is, what, in the largest sense, is Rule of the Bone about? Is this primarily a story of parent-child relationships? Coming-of-age in America in the 90s? The meaning of "community"? The meaning of homelessness? The meaning of "education"? Alternative religion? Nonconformity in America? The quest for independence, identity or personhood? Something else altogether?
For your analysis of the novel, you would pick one of these themes/issues and then formulate an interpretive question. Examples might include:
- "How does Banks' book contribute to our cultural discussions about the issue? That is, does it challenge our usual understanding of that topic or does it reinforce a traditional view? Does it possibly open up a whole new way of seeing the issue?"
- "How might the issue you've selected be considered the most important in the book, a key to the richest possible understanding of it?"
- "How does our understanding of the issue change as the story procedes?"
- START WITH THE DRIVING QUESTION
What is the most significant or profound question raised, explicitly or implicitly, at the beginning of this story? That is, what are we ultimately turning pages to find out? And how is that question answered along the way or by the end? Why or how does that answer matter?
- START WITH A KEY SCENE OR CHAPTER
Start with what you believe is the most important scene or chapter. Your interpretive question might then be, "How is this scene key to the entire story or how might this scene reveal the richest way to understand this book?"
- START WITH OUR ART PERSPECTIVES WHEEL
Start with the art perspectives wheels we've examined in class (see .ppts), and argue for what kind of art you believe this book to be. For instance, is it a subversive work which attempts to challenge our usual view of reality and upset our normal expectations in some way? Or is it best understood as an objective mirror held up to reality, showing us as a society what we are usually unwilling or unable to look at? Do you believe it is primarily an entertainment commodity written according to a commercial forumula, perhaps to simply make us feel good, much like a narcotic? Or is its purpose to illuminate fundamental human problems? Is it perhaps the kind of art which is best appreciated as a skillfully crafted aesthetic object? Or is it "art as a hammer"--something Banks wrote to change the world in some way?
You're free to take any approach you like, as long as you formulate a clear interpretive question and then convincingly answer that question with clear reasoning and specific evidence—description, examples, summaries, quotations—from the book itself.
Finally, don't forget to acknowledge, and refute, contrasting views! This is an argument!
Audience
Imagine that your essay will appear in a casebook on Rule of the Bone designed for college students. (A casebook is a collection of essays interpreting and commenting on a literary work to broaden readers' understanding.)
Alternately, you might see this as an entry for a literary blog, your audience being any adult, avid reader of literature.
Evaluation Criteria and Rubric
_____All pages are stapled before class time. If the materials are too thick for one staple, you can make a couple of stapled sets.
_____Any drafts with instructor comments are stapled to the final product.
_____The paper shows a clear introduction, body, and conclusion.
_____The essay has a clear topic and focus which is maintained throughout.
_____The essay has a strong, clear, original central point (thesis) about its topic.
_____The thesis is apparent early on, then evident and consistent throughout the body of the essay, with special affirmation at the end. (If the thesis is withheld until the end, there should be a good reason for doing so.)
_____The thesis is supported in the body of the essay with lots of good, specific details, examples, paraphrases, summaries, and quotations from the novel or other sources.
_____Each paragraph is focused on a single, important point.
_____Each paragraph is well-developed, its point supported with lots of detail.
_____Each paragraph includes a helpful explicit or implicit transition.
_____The essay takes care to acknowledge and refute alternative interpretations or possible reader objections.
_____The essay includes a little plot summary where necessary to help the reader follow the argument. Excessive plot summary, however, is avoided. (Assume the reader is already familiar with the novel. You want to analyze and interpret--don't merely retell the story.)
_____The essay demonstrates attention to audience (college-educated people who read novels and would like to understand them better) and the needs/expectations of that audience.
_____The essay shows conscientious editing to eliminate mechanical errors such as comma splices, incomplete sentences, fused sentence, typos, etc.
_____The essay shows conscientious editing for smooth, concise, lucid sentence style.
_____All sources are documented according to MLA format.
_____The essay is formatted according to MLA manuscript guidelines.
_____The essay follows rules for literary writing (be sure you've read Conventions for Writing Essays about Literature).
_____The essay demonstrates explicit or implicit understanding of our Call to Write assignments and any relevant course Power Points.
Grade Scale
A = outstanding = 14-15 pts. Fulfills all assignment criteria with distinction; creative and insightful (thesis is genuinely illuminating and fresh); paragraphs are extra-well crafted; sentences show standard editing and proofreading, and also demonstrate elegance, varied length and structure, and smoothness. Essay may have a minor flaw or two, but these are overshadowed by the strengths.
B = very good = 12-13 pts. Fulfills all or nearly all assignment criteria; may lack creative spark or flare, or may have an undistinguished or somewhat obvious thesis, but otherwise presents a well-written argument. Paragraphs are focused and developed with good transitons. Sentences are edited and proofread.
C = ok = 10-11pts. Fulfills most assignment criteria at least marginally, or may fulfill some criteria very well and others with noticeable weakness. Some paragraphs may be unfocused and undeveloped, and/or some sentences may lack proofreading and editing.
D = poor = 8-9 pts. Fulfills only some of the criteria, or, while fulfilling one or two reasonably well, is conspicuously lacking for most others. Likely shows very weak paragraphing. Likely shows poor editing and proofreading.
F = unacceptable = 0 pts. Does not fulfill any or a reasonable number of criteria.
It finish areddi. Check mi later: Cindy.Nichols@ndsu.nodak.edu