Essay Assignment 1: Documented Literary Analysis
Your literary analysis essay will be on the novel Sula by
Toni Morrison. You can choose from any of the topics listed below (recommended)
or explore further topics in the chapter on Sula, in the book How to
Write about Toni Morrison.
Your literary analysis should be between 700
to 750 words, not including the Works Cited page, should be double spaced in
Times New Roman 12-point font and must meet the following criteria: · A
clearly articulated thesis that states, somewhere in your introduction, the assertion
(position, interpretation) that your paper will prove
· An
introduction, a minimum of 3 body paragraphs, and a conclusion
· At least
two quotes from the novel itself that are integrated into your discussion
· At least
two citations of outside sources (such as literary criticism on the novel). At least
one source should come from the MDC databases. All sources must be academic.
· Topic
sentences that focus the discussion of the body paragraphs
· Examples,
details, explanations in the body paragraphs that clearly support your thesis
· Clear
connections between ideas from paragraph to paragraph and within paragraphs
· Proper
MLA style format in the heading, in the in-text citations, and in the Works Cited
page · Works Cited
page includes articles from two sources and from the novel for a minimum of
three total listed sources · Standard
usage, grammar, and mechanics Choose any ONE of the following 5 topics: 1. Analyze the ending of the novel. What are the
“circles of sorrow” that Nel experiences? Is the ending pessimistic,
optimistic, or something else altogether? 2. Nel and Sula’s friendship is central in the
novel. As children, the girls develop their self-concept through the
friendship. When they are adults, Nel feels betrayed when Sula sleeps with
Jude, but Sula has also felt betrayed by Nel during the Chicken Little
incident. How did Nel betray Sula as regards Chicken Little’s death and what is
the significance of this mutual betrayal in their lives? 3. How do people who are intensely individualistic fare
in the novel? Is it possible to break away from the values of the community and
to be one’s own person Answer the question with reference to at least two of
the novel’s characters.
4. How and by whom is love expressed in the novel?
In what ways does the love in the novel ease the suffering of the characters?
How is love not enough to diminish the suffering of the characters? Answer the
question by discussing at least two characters in the novel.
5. In what ways are the various characters in the
novel alienated from the community? How do they cope with their loneliness,
their preoccupations, and other effects of feeling alienated?
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Your literary analysis essay wi appeared first on Course Hero.
