ENGL 102.008/.009
Fall 2005
-- Essay # 1 (Drama) Assignment --

Dr. Nick Melczarek | anmelczarek@salisbury.edu | 410-546-6203 (66203)
Pick a topic from the list below and write a 1,500-word essay on that topic. Follow MLA-style formatting as you learned in ENGL 101 and as shown in the Writer's Resource, pp.230-42. Keep margins at 1" all around, use 12-point font (either Palatino or Times), and double-space. Type on only one side of each sheet. You do not need a cover sheet; at the top right of the first page use a single-spaced header including
Your Name
ENGL 102, Section#
Essay 1 (which draft)
Submission date

Example:
Nick Melczarek
ENGL 102.022
Essay 1 Drama (rough draft)
February 17, 2005

Number all pages except page 1, in the top right-hand corner. You do not need a works cited page. Also give your paper a title that gives readers a clue of what your paper is about -- do not simply use "A Raisin in the Sun" or "Antigone" as your title, because those are already the titles of the plays. Centre your title on the first page on the line after your header, and begin your essay on the next line -- no big extra spaces. Staple your paper before you turn it in; papers not stapled will not be read.
TURN IN YOUR ESSAY ON TIME TO MY OFFICE (Holloway 344). PAPERS THAT DO NOT ADHERE TO THESE GUIDELINES WILL BE RETURNED UNREAD AND COUNTED LATE. PROOFREAD YOUR PAPER FOR BASIC ERRORS BEFORE YOU TURN IT IN. EXCESSIVE UNNECESSARY WRITING ERRORS WILL CAUSE A PAPER TO BE RETURNED TO YOU UNREAD.

Be sure to use literary terms that apply to your discussion (e.g. protagonist instead of main character, etc.) and use them in such a way that shows you understand the term. Be sure to quote and cite the plays to illustrate and support your argument, in MLA parenthetical format. No bloc quotations, though. Avod plot summary as well; papers that contain mostly plot summary will be returned unread.

TOPICS:

Topic 1: How does either Lorraine Hansberry or Sophocles use any one of the following dramatic elements?

  • foreshadowing
  • setting
  • allusion
  • foil
  • symbolism
  • irony (situational, verbal, dramatic)
  • dramatic tension (See Bedford Glossary and the anthology for help with these terms.)

    Topic 2: Do any of the characters in A Raisin in the Sun or Antigone grow or mature during the play (are they dynamic characters)? How do you see this happening in either their actions or statements? In what way do they grow or mature?

    Topic 3: What about minor or secondary characters in the plays --Ismene or Lender, or even Bobo, for example? What part do they play? What do they represent?

    Topic 4: What part does verbal imagery (characters' long descriptions of places or things) contribute to either Raisin or Antigone?

    Topic 5: What traditional gender expectations do the plays show? How does either play discuss the ideas of "woman's place" or "man's place"? How is this shown in dialogue between characters? How do characters react to these ideas?

    Topic 6: What part does money serve in either play? What does money represent? How does money influence characters, or how do characters think money influences other characters? What does this thinking say about those characters?

    Topic 7: What role does the idea of family play in Raisin or Antigone? Is "family" a divisive or cohesive issue? What importance does either play put on "family"?

    Topic 8: Pick a theme from either of the in-class note sheets, and show how the respective play presents that theme.

    • FIRSTf DRAFT DUE FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 22, TO MY OFFICE BY 4 P.M

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