700-900 words in APA Style. This time, given the very quick turnaround time for grading, 900 words will be a hard deadline.

Please remember to:

Come up with a catchy and original 2-part title*Do not call it simply “Final Paper”*

Proofread and read aloud for typos and grammatical errors. 

* Format the essay professionally with a standard 12 pt. font (Times New Roman preferred), double spacing, and page numbers.

* You do not need to use readings from the class, but you are welcome to.

* Use at least a few section headings/subtitles to break up the flow, and avoid super-long paragraphs

* Use APA style.

* Submit as a .doc or .docx file.

* Do not plagiarize. Anything taken from outside sources must be properly cited and credited.

Prompts

Whatever you choose, be sure to include at least 3 solid quotations, and to write short, clear, and complete sentences that refer to your chosen works specifically and in detail. Also, note which number you chose at the top of the paper.

Humor and Horror. These effects seem like opposites but are connected in many ways. What is the connection between them? How are they similar or different? Choose at least one work (story, book, film, TV show, etc), from inside or outside the class, and analyze what makes it funny or scary, or both.

Be specific—how are humor and fear developed, and how are they resolved? Why are they important feelings to experience while reading and/or watching? What do these responses tell us about ourselves?

If you want to focus purely on horror or purely on humor, that is fine as well.

Mythology and Fairy Tales. Choose at least one myth, legend, parable, or fairy tale from any time, period and any culture or religion and analyze its meaning and effect. Why is it a classic story? What drives, hopes, fears, or other aspects of human life does it play on? What images or behaviors does it show, and why are these important? How has it evolved over time? You could look at several versions, or a written version and a film adaptation, to aid your discussion.

Art vs. Entertainment. What do each of these terms mean to you, and how are they similar and/or different? What makes something entertaining and what makes it a work of art? Can the same story be both at once? Why or why not? Choose at least one work to discuss these ideas or choose two and argue that one provides entertainment and the other artistic value, and why.

Childhood. The poet Charles Baudelaire once said, “Genius is no more than childhood recaptured at will.” Think about this idea and its meaning to you by revisiting a storybook, movie, or show—that you loved as a child. Consider why you loved it as a child, and what it means to you now, as an adult. What feelings did it give you before you knew much about the world, and what feeling does it give you now that you know more? What makes this story effective for children and how does that differ from stories meant for adults?

You could also consider memory: why did this story stick in your memory, and how has it changed over time?

Dreams vs. Reality. In the late 90s, as the Millennium was approaching and the internet was becoming mainstream, a number of movies came out that dealt with Plato’s Allegory of the Cave in terms of technology and virtual reality. The most famous is The Matrix, but the list also includes Dark City, eXistenZ, The Thirteenth Floor, The Truman Show, The Cell, and Being John Malkovich. Pick one (or more) of these movies (ideally, not just The Matrix) and examine any aspect of it that interests you. How does it hold up today, more than twenty years later? How has our relationship to reality and dreams, via technology, changed or stayed the same? What can we learn from these stories now? Do you agree or disagree with their understanding of reality?

OR: pick any story that deals with fantasy, dreams, or alternate realities, and consider how it works. What is “reality” in this work, and how does that change or develop over the course of the story? Is reality subjective or objective? This could be something we read in class, something from your own reading/viewing, or both.