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Essay 3 ENG102 Length: 7 pages Readings: “Much Madness is Divinest Sense” – Emily Dickinson (p

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Essay 3

ENG102

Length: 7 pages

Readings:

“Much Madness is Divinest Sense” – Emily Dickinson (p. 349)

“Salvation” – Langston Hughes (p. 251)

“Shooting an Elephant” – George Orwell (p. 556)

“The Lottery” – Shirley Jackson (p. 315)

Points to consider:

• Dickinson’s ‘Much Madness” sets the tone for the thematic focus of this essay – the complex relationship between an individual and the larger group he is a part of, which we may alternatively refer to as society, the majority and so on. Dickinson’s poem establishes how ‘divinest sense’ and ‘starkest madness’ are a matter of perspective and how those who have the strength of numbers are heard the loudest. She also vividly portrays the consequences of those who ‘demur’(disagree/protest). They are ‘handled with a Chain’ – the consequences of not falling in line with the majority may range from ridicule, alienation to imprisonment, institutionalization and death. We see how a young Hughes feels the pressure of the ‘singing, praying and shouting’ crowd in his church and concedes to being saved by God and later weeps in the quiet of his bedroom for the loss of innocence. We see how Orwell succumbed to the pressure of “two thousand wills pressing [him] …irresistibly” to pull the trigger to shoot the elephant that’s past his hormonal aggression and is timid now. “The people expected it of me and I had got to do it”. Jackson in “The Lottery’ gives a glimpse of a horrendous lottery where people who are friends and neighbors a minute earlier participate in the mindless cruelty of stoning a woman to death because she ‘won’ the lottery and it was a tradition.
• Prompt 1: Based on the readings, craft your own argument that explores the relationship between an individual and society. Use the following questions to get direction/ find focus. Can we find a balance between being an active member of society and being our own selves without compromising on our voice? Do you think if you go against the tide, you’ll face devastating consequences? How much of your views (on any issue) is shaped by being a part of/feeling the need to be a part of the “majority”? Do you feel any day-to-day practice that we have/adhere to is “stark madness”? 

Refer to all the readings and at least 4 sources from Mercer databases to write your essay.

All papers must be turned in Blackboard.

Checklist:

• Title (Come up with your own title; try to make it reflect your position in the paper. A title is not the topic given or the statement of thesis. Do not use quotes or italics on your title.)
• A strong arguable thesis.
• Introduction leading naturally into the body of the essay.
• Fully developed paragraphs.
• A conclusion that provides closure.
• MLA incorporated correctly.
• Paraphrase, summary and quotation included
• At least four additional sources incorporated (Books, peer-reviewed journals, news articles from reputed sources/Mercer database).
• In-text citations and Works Cited page
• Avoid sentence fragments, run ons and comma splices.
• Consistency and parallelism.
• Writing is recursive, so write, revise, edit and then turn in.
• Meet me for clarification before turning in your paper.