Feminism Literary Analysis

Feminism Literary Analysis

Choose one of the following prompts. Be sure to note which prompt you are attempting to answer.

1. Often in literary works, authors choose a physical object which takes on a special significance in the work and becomes a symbol of something beyond itself. Show how the author uses a symbol to convey a deeper meaning. In your essay, focus on the symbols and what they symbolize. Be sure to discuss how the author uses them to convey a message to readers. You may choose three important symbols from the short story, or you may choose to elaborate on one symbol in each body paragraph.

3. As we discussed in class, many of the stories we read often provide a certain portrayal of women based on their class and societal views. These differ from story to story. What is the role of women/the role of class/status or the depiction of women mean to the story and how does it support the theme, plot, and setting of the story?
4. Discuss the author’s use of figurative language. Identify three examples of figurative language from the short story. Why did the author use these examples? What impact does the figurative language have on characterization, description of setting (imagery), mood, foreshadowing, theme, or the novel overall? In your essay, use a different example in each body paragraph. Be sure to explain the significance of each use of figurative language. Examples of figurative language vary. Some are symbolism, metaphor, simile, hyperbole, personification, allusion, conflict, dialogue…

4. Literary Devices give a linguistic technique that produces a specific effect and style to writing. Your job is to create a literary device essay concerning one of the stories we read in class and the author’s specifics uses. Your essay should answer the question: How does the author use literary devices (example: foreshadowing, symbolism, and irony) throughout the short story to produce a specific effect? Each device must have examples textual support. Please use appropriate citing and page numbers.

You may choose from the following stories to write your essay:

1. Kate Chopin, “The Story of an Hour”
2. Charles Baxter, “Gryphon”
3. Sherman Alexie, “This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona”
4. Richard Wright, “Big Black Good Man”
5. Alice Walker, “Everyday Use”
6. Nathaniel Hawthorne, “Young Goodman Brown”

Each essay requires textual support. Use MLA citation guidelines and in-text citations. If you are using a quote from a source for the first time, integrate them into your sentence:

According to Sheila Jackson, an example of imagery in the story would be, “the morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely, and the grass was richly green” (409).

Or, if you have already mentioned the author’s name in a previous sentence:

An example of imagery in the story would be, “the morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely, and the grass was richly green” (Jackson 409).

Type double-spaced and use 12-pt Times New Roman font with 1-inch margins. Remember to upload your document as a .doc or .docx file. Include page numbers in the upper-right hand corner of each page starting on the second page (like on this assignment sheet). Format your identifying information like so: