In a two page, formally written paper argue for what you think is the most important word in one of the assigned texts in the course. Focus on a word that speaks to the idea of how American fiction sought to shape the idea of an American identity.

Pick one of the roles below to perform as a writer and follow the directions related to just that role.

Please note that the essays and PowerPoints included in the directions for each role are distinct parts of the writing, meaning each (the essay and PowerPoint) should contain original writing and the use of original sources.

The Role of the Writer

If you choose to take on the role of the writer, you will revise a single brief moment from one of the pieces of fiction read this semester, reconsidering its action and language or shifting the perspective of the scene to present the point of view of a different character who appears in it. You may even completely reimagine a story, changing the gender or race of one of the primary characters or setting the moment in a different time period and/or location. No matter which path you choose to travel, you must retain the original themes intended by the author.

 

Include a 250-word reflection. The reflection should consider the changes you made and why you made them and should identify why making them does not detract from the author’s original vision for his or her story. The writing should be formal and follow the rules for academic writing and use APA 7th edition formatting.

Multimodal Element for the Role of the Writer

In addition to rewriting a moment,  include a multimodal element, a narrated PowerPoint, that addresses a board of investors interested in investing in a movie version of the story that includes your rewritten scene. The PowerPoint should use original wording and images, words, and your voice to address the following questions:

Why would contemporary audiences be interested in a movie version or a new movie version of the story with your rewritten moment? What is the central theme (message or lesson) of the story, and why might that theme still resonate with modern-day audiences?

Who would star in this new production and why? What work have the actors done in the past that would suggest they would make sense in the roles?

Consider the costumes your actors would wear and the music that would be played. What types of clothing, based on the setting, region, and time period, would your primary actors in the scene wear? What songs might you include on the soundtrack? Why did you choose the songs you did? How do they speak to the themes in the play?

Make sure that you include a title slide, an introductory slide with a hook and thesis, and body slides that focus on the argument promised within your argument . The PowerPoint should have five body slides, so that’s eight slides overall (title slide, introductory slide, five body slides, and a References slide). The PowerPoint and essay should each be unique parts of the assignment.

Include two sources that you cite using APA 7th edition formatting, web-based (.edu or .gov only) or database sources (found through library databases like ProQuest or J-Stor).

The Role of the Actor

I will admit that every now and then, I will bust out my version of Hamlet’s soliloquy, “To Be, or Not To Be.” If you’re like I am, then this is the assignment for you. Record yourself performing all of the roles in a portion of a scene from a course reading or reciting one of the plays from the course. This should be at least 2:00 minutes long. In two pages, reflect on your performance in a formal academic essay with a thesis noting two strong points you will argue for and one weakness you may have noticed upon reviewing your work. For instance, when I do pretend to be Hamlet, I always pause after the second “be.” I find this to be an effective technique, adding to the suspense of the line. People have heard the line so many times that they know the ending, but I intentionally pause so as to disarm my audience and to allow them to savor this very famous line even more.

What conscious and unconscious choices did you make that informed the final performance as you watched yourself perform the scene? Did you change any of the words, even unconsciously? Did you use an accent, which I will admit to doing? Did you use body movements as you said the lines? Did you change your voice to reflect if it was male or female, or was that not of primary importance to you? Did you use props or change your clothes to reflect the setting and period, or did you do a reimaging of the scene, maybe taking it into modern times?

Since it’s a reflection essay, it may seem tricky to include resources, but include, at least, two sources that speak to some aspect of your performance. For instance, I may include a quote from Ruth Negga, a female who has also played Shakespeare, about her approach to vocalizing and presenting the words of a male and note a similarity or difference between our performances, or I might include a source that provides information on how actors normally approach the role of Hamlet and discuss how I did or did not follow the norm.

This is an example of a source that I might use: https://www.stagemilk.com/hamlets-advice-to-the-players/ (Links to an external site.)

These should not be generic sources on what it means to perform in a play. These should be meaningful sources like the example I include here.

Your sources should be cited within the body of your work through in-text citations and in a References page using APA 7th edition formatting.

The Role of the Literary Critic

Reflect on the ideas the roles intersectionality, agency, and control play in shaping, transforming, and redefining an identity in American fiction. Pick a story or poem and consider how various societal constraints the characters or speakers cannot control impact things like their mental and physical reactions to their environments and the social, economic, and/or cultural limitations and boundaries they face. Focus on two connecting intersectional ideas (gender and race, class and race, age and ability, etc.). Using, at least, one piece of textual evidence from a story or poem in each paragraph and, at least, two cited resources, consider how the ideas function in the text.

Example – In Richard Johnson’s novel Once Again, the author uses the ideas of class and gender to demonstrate the metaphorical blindness of the characters by showing how they fail to see the social struggles of those they claim to love (first supporting point) and how they fail to recognize true love when presented with it (second supporting point).

Introduction

One paragraph arguing for the existence of the intersectional ideas and identity. (with textual evidence from the poem or story, at least one analyzed piece)

Second paragraph arguing for the existence of the intersection ideas and identity. (with textual evidence from the poem or story, at least one analyzed piece)

Conclusion

References page

You may focus on health-care related issues or social, professional, and/or cultural concerns, maybe even both.

Please include two resources, credible web-based resources (.edu or .gov only) and/or library database resources (from databases like J-Stor and ProQuest). This should be a formally written and formally formatted argument that includes analyzed textual evidence and full accountability for all of the sources used.

Here is a way to think about how to approach the paper: I’ve seen “The Yellow Wallpaper” reduced to being described as a story about a woman’s descent into madness, but is that what the story is really about? Does she descend into madness, or is she driven into a precarious psychological situation by constraints placed upon her by others based on her gender and domestic and social standing? Is the story really about a progressive loss of psychological and even physical control, or does the experience of being victimized by her husband, his role as a doctor, and the society he represents result in a creative rebirth where, in the end, the woman triumphantly re-envisions her “self”?

When looking for a source to use in my paper, I might paraphrase and cite from a source like this one: Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in particular, American women considered deviant or morally corrupt were deemed mentally unwell and subjected to medical institutionalization. Superficially, this may have looked like a product of early psychiatric innovation; however, the pathologization and institutionalization of deviant women actually functioned as a heavily classed and raced form of social control designed to preserve the gender roles of the time. Specifically, women’s mental health and minds were medicalized, with traditional domesticity viewed as the perceived cure. At the same time, the very fact that the patriarchal establishment considered it necessary to medicalize nonconforming female behavior suggests that women of various backgrounds were indeed challenging and creating resistance to gendered expectations. The medical act of framing female autonomy as a form of mental illness sought to obstruct women from having the agency to make social change in terms of gender.

Autonomous and Insane: The Gendered, Classed, and Raced Pathologization of Women’s Minds

Multimodal Element for the Role of the Literary Critic

In an originally written and narrated PowerPoint (meaning, none of the wording or sources should come from your essay), that combines words and images, develop a mini conference presentation for an audience of academics and scholars who may teach the story or poem themselves and argue for why your chosen story or poem is still relevant to study in the modern world. Consider, as you make your argument, how your chosen story or poem has been used and referenced within pop culture.

In a no less than 2-minute PowerPoint, include a title slide, a slide with a full introduction, the hook and thesis, and slides that use your voice, the written word, and visuals to address your argument about your point and why that point proves your story is one that still connects with those who exist in the word today. Use, at least, 2 credible resources (web-based or database). All of the sources used must be cited on the slides and on an ending References slide. Cite as you would if you were citing within an essay. The PowerPoint should have five body slides, so that’s eight slides overall (title slide, introductory slide, five body slides, and a References slide)

The Role of the Literary Super Sleuth

“Identifying the most important word in a text can help students, especially struggling readers, understand bigger or more abstract ideas and themes by allowing them to focus on a small portion of the text.”

If you take on the role of the literary super sleuth, you will be tracking down the most important word in the text and arguing for why that word is the most important one. Of all of the words you could have chosen, why did you choose that one? How does the word you’ve chosen from the essay encapsulate the author’s primary argument?

In a two page, formally written paper argue for what you think is the most important word in one of the assigned texts in the course. Focus on a word that speaks to the idea of how American fiction sought to shape the idea of an American identity. This identity can be a social, cultural, or professional one.

Your claim must have three parts: The story + the argument you will make about the story + your two or three supporting points for the argument (these are sometimes called justifications)

Multimodal Element for the Role of the Literary Super Sleuth

You’ve been asked to present at a medical conference or a college. They would like you to take your argument and present it to a group of nurses or high school students. In a narrated PowerPoint, with original language, find four images that encapsulate your chosen story or poem’s primary theme and that relate to the word you’ve chosen. These images should be appropriate for the audience you will address, either a medical audience or a first-year freshman literature course.

In a no less than 2-minute narrated PowerPoint, include a title slide, a slide with a full introduction, the hook and thesis, and slides that use your voice, the written word, and visuals to address your argument about your word and make your discussion relevant for your audience, so it needs to include images and ideas appropriate for medical students or freshman college students. Use, at least, 2 credible resources (web-based or database).

All of the sources used must be cited on the slides and on an ending References slide. Cite as you would if you were citing within an essay. The PowerPoint should have five body slides, so that’s eight slides overall (title slide, introductory slide, five body slides [four images + a conclusion], and a References slide)

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