Short Story Analysis Paper

Minimum Length: 3-5 pages

Book Chosen: Is the Wall of Fire Rising by Edwidge Danticat

Links to the book: 

https://fliphtml5.com/vpoqq/pxll/basic  

Assignment:

Select a theme you wish to explore, such as blindness, race, family, marriage, quest, betrayal, sin, death, love, the relationship between men and women, appearance versus reality, etc.

Choose a short story/stories, from our syllabus that deal with this theme. You may need to read the story/stories several times, taking notes as you go.

Go through the story/stories and mark how the author uses narrative, character, setting, symbolism, etc., to convey that theme. Then, write an analysis of the short story/stories; employ as many of the literary terms that we have studied as you legitimately can to present a thorough literary analysis of how the theme works in the story/stories you have selected (as if to enlighten an educated reader about the important aspects of this particular short story.) You must select AT LEAST TWO of these techniques. Some of those literary terms are:

 

setting

plot

characterization

conflict

symbolism

point of view

irony

tone

stereotypes

exposition

rising action

falling action

climax

foreshadowing

flashback

protagonist     

 

Construct a thesis that indicates a) your focus, and b) the relation of that focus to the story as a whole. For example, a thesis for A Good Man is Hard to Find might be: Characterization and irony help convey OConnors theme that perhaps we should first be good men ourselves rather than judging others. For The Cask of the Amontillado, a thesis might be: The narrators revelations of his own vices as well as the actions of Fortunato underscore the lesson in this short story: overwhelming pride leads to ruin. Though not as obvious as the first thesis, the second thesis will focus on narrative/Point of View and characterization. To use more than one story, you might argue: Lack of communication can lead to disaster in marriage, as it does in the stories The Yellow Wallpaper, Story of an Hour, and The Jewelry. Another one might be: The use of foreshadowing in the stories A Cask of Amontillado and A Good Man is Hard to Find helps create tension and interest. Also, note that there is some latitude in assigning meaning to a short story. What I see as the major theme may be different than what you see. The important criterion to keep in mind is: can you prove it? Therefore, you need a thesis because you are arguing for your interpretation of the story. The thesis should not be so obvious that your reader will say so what? Dont settle for trite generalizations. Instead, make a statement that indicates thought and depth, and which requires support and proof. Your goal should be to illuminate for the readers some points that they might not have noticed upon first reading the story.

Find evidence in the text to support your thesis, and organize the rest of your essay around these quotations and examples. Dont rely on generalizations about or paraphrases of the story to convince your reader, but provide specific evidence and discuss the importance of that evidence for your thesis. Please note: you should not insert huge chunks of quotes in your paper and count that against your minimum page length. Roughly 70% of the paper should be your own words and thoughts.

Conclude your paper by summing up your argument so that the readers see that your evidence does support your thesis.

 

Format and Conventions:

   1) Put quotation marks around story titles.

   2) Follow direct quotations with the authors last name (not the editors name or the title) and page numbers from your text, in parentheses. Close the quotation marks before the citation; put the end punctuation after it. For example: Thus she passed from generation to generationdear, inescapable, impervious, tranquil, perverse (Faulkner 31).

   3) Always write about literature in the present tense and do not use I statements.

   4) Your essay should be analytical, thus you should not waste your (or your readers) time with plot summary.

   5) Your paper should be typed, doublespaced, on 8 1/2″ by 11″ white paper. In the upper left-hand corner of your first page, include:

Your name

Prof. McLore; ENG102 and section number

The date

Assignment (Short Story Analysis)

Below this block of information, center your title; begin your text below that. Use an interesting, informative titlePaper #1 is mildly informative, but completely uninteresting. Number your pages (starting with the first) in the top right-hand corner, with your last name and the page number. This should be in the Header/Footer area of the paper.

It is important to write succinctly.  DO NOT JUST RE-TELL THE STORY.  DO NOT risk plagiarism if you use information from our textbook, then you must cite that information correctly the Norton Anthology discusses how to write a paper, including how to document outside sources; DO NOT write a plot outlinethis assignment is to analyze: what is the author saying to the reader.  What literary techniques and conventions does he or she use to say it?  What is the point of the story?  Does it show us anything worthwhile about people or about life?  Keep your discussion focused on analyzing how the THEME works within the short story.

Do not use I in your essay.