When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom?d/Washington Irving?The Legend of Sleepy Hollow?Edgar Allan Poe?The Purloined Letter??The Black Cat??The Fall of the House of Usher?The Tell-Tale Heart?Jack London?The Law of Life?Edith Wharton?The Other Two?Theodore Dreiser?The Lost Phoebe?T.S. Eliot?The Love Song of Alfred J. Prufrock??The Wasteland?Ernest Hemingway?In Another Country??Big Two-Hearted River?Susan Glaspell?Trifles?John Steinbeck?The Chrysanthemums??Flight?James Baldwin?Sonny?s Blues?Ambrose Bierce?An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge?Nathaniel Hawthorne?Young Goodman Brown??Rappaccini?s Daughter?

ENGL202 RESEARCH PAPER READING LIST
Please choose two:Walt Whitman
When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom?d
Washington Irving?The Legend of Sleepy Hollow?Edgar Allan Poe?The Purloined Letter??The Black Cat??The Fall of the House of Usher?The Tell-Tale Heart?Jack London?The Law of Life?Edith Wharton?The Other Two?Theodore Dreiser?The Lost Phoebe?T.S. Eliot?The Love Song of Alfred J. Prufrock??The Wasteland?Ernest Hemingway?In Another Country??Big Two-Hearted River?Susan Glaspell?Trifles?John Steinbeck?The Chrysanthemums??Flight?James Baldwin?Sonny?s Blues?Ambrose Bierce?An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge?Nathaniel Hawthorne?Young Goodman Brown??Rappaccini?s Daughter?

WRITING YOUR THESIS AND OUTLINE
1 Using the information you?ve gathered on content and themes of your selection,
author background, influences, and historical times, write a cohesive thesis and

outline for your paper.

2 You may devote as much of the final text of your paper to aspects other than thematic(biography, style, influences, historical times, etc.) as are relevant, but keep in mindas you set up your outline and plan your paper that at least TWO COMPLETEPAGES of your text (not counting the conclusion paragraph) must discuss the themes

within the work.

3 Using the format provided to you (see the next link for a sample thesis/outline), typeyour thesis and outline. NOTE: If you have an A, you must have a B.
The Thesis Statement:? You should think of the thesis statement as the idea you are proposing. It isbased on some interpretation that you are making about the primary source. From the beginning of your research, you may formulate a tentative thesisstatement which you will later use, or you may even change it after you have

started writing it.? The thesis statement is the statement of an idea. It is not a question and shouldnot appear in question form.
? The thesis statement should be a complete sentence. Don?t confuse your title
with your thesis. Your statement must have a subject and a verb to form acomplete thought. It should address the themes, underlying meanings, andmessages of the novel which can be proved using primary (the novel) andsecondary (critical commentary) sources as evidence.? The strongest thesis statement is specific, not vague and general. It is precise. Itis stated in words that can only be interpreted in one way.? A thesis statement should never be a simple personal response. WEAK: Huckleberry Finn is a fascinating account. BETTER: In Mark Twain?s novel Huckleberry Finn, the character ofHuckleberry Finn can be seen as a symbol of the American

spirit.

? A thesis statement should not be simply a fact; rather, it should be something
that is arguable. WEAK: In Jurassic Park, the dinosaurs destroy and kill man. BETTER: In Jurassic Park, Michael Crichton shows that when man

tampers with NATURE, it can be self-destructive.

? A thesis statement is restricted. It is cut down in size to fit the scope of theassignment. For this assignment, it should be broad enough to be covered in five

THE RESEARCH PAPER

– Choosing a topic (the short stories you are going to read): Choose something you like!

Before you narrow it down, look in the library and the Databases to see how muchcriticism is available. Be sure your stories are not too obscure.

– Choosing a subject (your thesis):

? Don’t be too broad. The more focused you are, the better off you will be.You must have a clear thesis.

Example: discussion of themes of a work vs. one theme

? This is not a biography. You must focus on the work, not the writer.

? Good ideas: theme, symbolism, comparing/contrasting with another workby another author, character analysis, effects of a work on society,
biographical parallel; also, think to yourself, ?Why would this person writethis story? What is he/she trying to say about life or society?? (This can
help you consider a theme to discuss in your paper.)

? If you like an author but aren’t sure about what to write about, look up whatmajor concepts/foci have been studied on that author’s work.

? It must be something that you can find resources on.