Research Paper

Topic: A Tale of Two Cities through a critical lens of your choice: archetypal, biographical/historical, new historical, psychological/Freudian, feminist, Marxist, or deconstructive.

Purpose: To do some work with "BL" instead of "VISI" and to ensure that you can handle writing a research paper independently

Specifications:
1) 4-5 pages, a typical college freshman paper length
2) MLA format
3) 5 scholarly sources (nothing ending in "pedia") including at least one print source. Notecard system is up to you along with full responsibility for accurate quotation and citation -- I will not check notecards.
4) Due on-line March 18th by midnight with additional deadlines as listed below
5) Scored out of 30 points -- see rubric below

Research Phases/Deadlines (updated)
(Please email to ckirk@seattlechristian.org)

> Reading, Book 2, Monday 3/2

> Reading, Book 3 (end), Thursday 3/5

> Working Thesis, Monday 3/9 -- Consult broad sources in order to create a working thesis suitable to direct continued research. Email thesis for approval. Approval overnight.

> Verify Sources, Friday 3/13 -- Consult narrowed sources in order to complete research. Email list of 5 sources with brief justification of each source's validity. Approval over weekend.

> Paper Due, Wednesday 3/18 -- Synthesis and organization of sources up to you unless you request a conference. Quotation and citation format will be reviewed in class Monday. Email completed essay as an attachment by midnight.

Grading Rubric
10 points for content/analysis
10 points for composition skills: organization, fluency, diction...
10 points for quotation/citation format (MLA)
+Up to 5 penalty points for basic skills editing errors; one "free" error

Resources I found for you...
1) description of schools of criticism, some with sample essays
2) a quiz on critical perspectives

A note on historical criticism:
The difference between traditional historical crit and "new" historical crit can be difficult to grasp. Here's how I understand it -- In the traditional vein, you look at the work from within the historical/biographical point of view, almost as if the literary work is a type of history textbook from which you can reconstruct historical reality. New historical crit is said to be more ideological than the traditional version, and it is based on the fact that historical "reality" is impossible to reconstruct. The new historical critic looks backwards with a more postmodern, liberal-leaning judgment of the work's historical culture. A new historical critic might analyze the historical aspects of a work in order to understand a much broader treatment of cultural issues. Example: A traditional historical critic might read Hamlet as a conflict between Catholic and Protestant worldviews, delving into the Wittenburg and Reformation context of Shakespeare's audience. A new historical critic would put that conflict in the context of how human grapple with worldview in general, even noticing naturalist and postmodern worldview conflicts lurking about in Hamlet's psyche. Hope that helps.