Your going to be reading “Aren’t You Happy for Me” by Richard Bausch

It’s a very short entertaining read… I laughed a lot!

• Remember that you are persuading the audience that your opinion about a literary aspect of the work(s) is valid and important. So, you might argue that the theme of X is that a woman’s role in a romantic relationship is subservient, but that women find ways to take back power, for example. Other things to consider are the impact of symbols, setting, point of view, description, etc. on a specific work.
• Be sure to let me approve your topic as I can help you strengthen a weak topic or point you in a better direction.

Requirements:

• 750 words minimum, but closer to 1,000 is better. It is difficult to develop a good essay in less than 1,000 words.
• Must be a literary analysis of some aspect of a work (or works) we’ve studied from Weeks Five through Nine–not a biographical sketch. If you like, you may discuss a work from Weeks Five- Nine AND a work from earlier in the course, but one of the works must be from the current period. It is also NOT a researched paper, so you will not include quotes from outside sources though you may certainly look at outside sources to give you ideas.
• I DO check for plagiarism and have given zeroes on essays for plagiarism. Do NOT add yourself to this infamous list.
• Possible types of papers: character analysis, discussion of theme or symbolism, comparison/contrast of two characters. Look at the Course Information in the Start Here module of the website for samples essays and guidelines.
• You MUST include quotes from the source (i.e. the work you are discussing) to support your points. A good rule of thumb is to use a minimum of two quotes per body paragraph.
• Include a Works Cited page at the end of the essay.
• If you are quoting from only one work, include only page numbers in the parenthetical citations within the text. If, however, you are discussing two or more different texts, you will need to include both author’s last name and page number in the parenthetical citations to differentiate from which source you are quoting. You might use two texts if, for example, you wanted to discuss the role of women during a specific time period, the impact of setting, the choice of narrator, the symbolism of water, etc., in different works.
• Be sure to read the General Essay Guidelines before you begin writing. These guidelines discuss your thesis statement, topic sentences, use of quotations, and so forth within the essay.
• How one phone call can change your life, coming to terms with information you weren’t ready for.
• Persuading the reader the affect that one phone call has on her parents and how difficult it is as a parent to accept the choices ones children make.