FICTION ESSAY INSTRUCTIONS

In Module/Week 3, you will write a 750-word (approximately 3 pages) essay that compares and contrasts 2 stories from the Fiction Unit.

Before you begin writing the essay, carefully read the below guidelines for developing your paper topic and review the Fiction Essay Grading Rubric to see how your submission will be graded. Gather all of your information, plan the direction of your essay, and organize your ideas by developing a 1-page thesis statement and outline for your essay.

Format the thesis statement and the outline in a single Microsoft Word document using current MLA, APA, or Turabian style (whichever corresponds to your degree program); check your Perrine’s Literature textbook, the Harbrace Essentials Handbook and/or its companion website, MindTap, to ensure correct citation format is used.

Guidelines for Developing your Paper Topic

The “Writing about Literature” section of your Perrine’s Literature textbook (pp. 1–54) and the “Writing” section of Harbrace Essentials (pp. 1–12, 15–16, 18–21, 22–28) provide helpful pointers for writing your literary essay and for academic writing in general. Be sure that you have read these sections before doing any further work for this assignment. Take particular notice of the examples of fiction essays on pp. 38–43 of Perrine’s Literature textbook.

Fiction Essay Requirements

The Fiction Essay should include:

• Title page (see the sample)
• Thesis & Outline page
• Fiction Essay itself followed by a
• Works Cited / References / Bibliography page of the short story & any other sources used in the essay

Fiction Essay choices:

Choose 2 of the following short stories to compare & contrast

• The Lottery                                                                by Shirley Jackson
• The Destructors                                                         by Graham Greene
• The Rocking-Horse Winner                                       by D.H. Lawrence
• Young Goodman Brown                                             by Nathaniel Hawthorne
• The Prodigal Son                                                       by St. Luke, the physician

Make at least 2 of these elements of fiction the focus of your essay:

Characterization                                 Conflict

Structure                                             Setting

Setting                                                 Theme

Purpose of authors                              Point of view

Tone                                                    Style

Irony                                                   Symbolism

Imagery                                              

Conflict

this is NOT a summary of the stories

5. What are the basic conflicts, and how do these build tension, leading to major complicated incidents and climactic moment(s)?
5. What are the ways in which each major character experiences conflict (either with self, with other characters, or with the social and/or physical environment)?
5. How are the conflicts resolved? Do the protagonists succeed in achieving their goals?
5. Who receives your deepest sympathy and why?

Characterization

this is NOT a summary of the stories

5. Who are the main characters in the stories?
5. What are their outstanding qualities?
   • Does the author give any indication as to how or why the character developed these personal qualities?
5. What are the characters’ emotions, attitudes, and behaviors?
   • What do these indicate to the reader about the character?
5. Can the characters’ motivations be determined from the text?

Theme(s) of Authors

5. What is the major theme (or themes) of each story?
5. Are the themes of the stories similar or different?
5. How does the author convey the theme (or themes) to the readers?
5. What unique style, techniques, or devices do the writers use to communicate the themes?

Purpose(s) of Authors

5. Do the themes relate to the purposes of the authors?
   • Examples of author purpose include:
     • to entertain
     • to satirize
     • to realistically portray life’s problems
     • to analyze emotions and responses
     • to communicate a moral message
5. What unique style, techniques, or devices do the writers use to communicate the purpose?

Tone

5. How would you describe the tone of the piece?
5. Does the tone correspond with the action of in the plot?

Style

5. What style does the author use?
   • (For example, one way an author might satirize is by including a lot of irony, hyperbole, or unrealistic scenarios.)
5. How might the story be different if the tone or style is changed?

Setting

5. Where and when do the stories take place?
   • geographic location—country, region, era
   • time of year / time period—work day, play time, vacation, daily life
   • urban, city, suburban, small town, rural
5. Do the settings make the stories believable or credible?
   • How does setting impact the plot of the story?
   • How would the plot be affected if the story took place in another setting?
5. Are the characters influenced by their settings?
   • How might they behave if they were in a different setting?
5. What atmosphere or mood does the setting create?
   • EX: darkness may create a mood of fear or unhappiness
   • EX: light or bright colors may create one of happiness
5. Is the setting or any aspect of it symbolic?
   • Does the setting express particular ideas?
   • Does setting create expectations that are the opposite of what occurs?

Irony & Symbolism

5. Does the writer use irony to communicate the message?
5. Does the writer use symbolism to communicate the message?