POSSIBLE PAPER TOPICS
BC 3179x Fall 2009

Below are approaches you might consider as you prepare to write your five-to-six-page paper. You may choose one of these topics, in which case you’ll need to narrow your focus appropriately, finding your own angle rather than trying to address the question in an all-encompassing way. Several suggested topics address material that we’ve not yet covered in class. You are welcome to look ahead at these texts, and to ask for a bit of extra help if you decide to work with them. Remember, though, that this list of topics is meant to be suggestive rather than prescriptive. I encourage you to develop your own topic, which may grow out of your reaction papers, or may spring from other course material.

Once you’ve chosen your topic, write a well-organized five-to-six-page essay in which you state and argue a thesis. Your essay must be analytical, rather than merely descriptive. Don't just tell your reader what happens; be sure to consider how and why it happens, too. Also, if you choose to write a comparative essay, you must actively compare and contrast the texts you're examining, rather than merely discussing the question as it relates to each text. Finally, while this assignment is not an explication, you should support your thesis with close readings of the text.

    I’m very happy to work with you as you develop your essay. I am willing to discuss topics,  to talk about outlines and structure, and to read drafts.  However, the earlier in the term you ask for such assistance, the more likely it is that I’ll be able to provide it in a timely fashion. If you hand me a draft two days before the paper is due, I’ll be able to offer minimal comments at best. So start early if you can.

PAPERS ARE DUE DECEMBER 7 at the beginning of class. However, if you submit your paper by November 6, you will have the opportunity to submit a revised version of the paper two weeks after it is returned to you.

Option 1: Pursue an open question.

During class and in your response papers, you and your classmates have raised a number of questions that have provoked extensive discussion. For example, how are self and other treated in the autobiographical texts we've read by Bradford and Shepard? How self-deprecating is Bradstreet's “The Prologue”? This paper gives you an opportunity to pursue one of these questions further, using close reading to support your view.

Option 2: Address a theme or literary device that has recurred in our discussion.
 
A number of topics have recurred in our discussion, including familial relationships (especially marriage) both in material and figurative terms, the relationship between the individual and the community,  the relationship between the material and spiritual realms, the way an author  represents his or her relationship with his or her audience, and the author's use of humor. Choose one of these themes or issues and compare some aspect of its presence in two course texts.  Be sure to develop a specific thesis and to do active comparison, rather than simply discussing your topic in both texts. Considering the texts together should help you to learn something about each text that you would not have seen had you considered it on its own.

Option 3: Consider print history.

Several of our course texts have made their way into print in interesting ways. You might consider the prefatory material published with Bradstreet's The Tenth Muse,  which you can examine through links from the schedule of readings page. How do these materials position Bradstreet's poetry? Does her poetry seem to respond to this material?

Or you might use the the Image Annotation Tool, Digital Evans and Early English Books On-Line, look at multiple editions of A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson. Note differences between the various editions, including differences in cover matter, prefatory texts, illustrations, and concluding materials. Then choose two editions to compare in a thoughtful analysis of shifting appropriations of Rowlandson’s text. What is being emphasized in each edition, and to what purposes is the text being put? If you choose this question, be careful not to slight analysis in favor of description.

Option 4: Look ahead.

The materials we're reading at the end of the term are rich and interesting. Here are a few possibilities you might be interested in pursuing. (Because we've not yet discussed these texts in class, I'm offering more specific suggestions, but you are encouraged to pursue your own questions about these texts as well.)

  1. Both Barlow and Tyler consider the relevance of European culture for Americans. Consider The Hasty Pudding and/or The Contrast. How do Barlow and Tyler define American cultural independence, and how much do they value it? How are their views reflected in the genres in which they choose to write?
  2. Charles Brockden Brown's Wieland has often been viewed as an Enlightenment tract, cautioning against the dangers of religious enthusiasm. Is this an accurate view of the novel? Might it also be viewed as an Edwardsian argument for original sin, cautioning against overly optimistic Enlightenment views?
  3. 3.Hannah Foster's novel The Coquette traces the courtship of Eliza Wharton. Explore Foster's use of the epistolary form. How does it complicate her text? Which narrative voices carry the most weight in this novel, and what are the implications of Foster's narrative choices for the novel's impact?

Option 5:  Liberty (natural or civil?)

We've been reading rich and complex texts, and you’ve been raising interesting and varied questions about those texts. The above list of topics doesn't even begin to describe the possibilities. So I encourage you to design your own topic. If you do, your essay should remain closely text-based, and must involve close reading of at least one (and probably not more than three) of the assigned texts. If you select this option, you must confer with me about your topic by November 23.