Reference for writing essays in 1102

student essays

DUE WEDNESDAY - May 7th - 1 p.m.

There is a first time for everything, so "they" say.  Here are your topics for your final essay. It is to be completed out-of-class, typed, in MLA format,  and the hard copy handed in on Wednesday.  I will NOT accept email or late papers under any circumstance.  If your paper is NOT completed and submitted Wednesday, plan to stay from 1- 3 p.m.and write your essay in class.

English 1102 final essay topics. Choose one of the following topics for your final essay. Please note that you MUST use specific words, phrases, and lines from the poems to support the essay development. Employ your skills of writing--interesting introduction, organization, clear transitions to keep your essay coherent and provide adequate development that leads to a thoughtful conclusion.

Time and Man -- poets are more keenly aware than most people of the brevity of man's life and its relationship to time. Select two poems of those we've read that deal with time and man. Discuss each poem with emphasis on the speaker's perspective (or the poet's) regarding time and its relationship to man. Use specific words, phrases, lines from each poem to support your analysis.

The Insignificance of Man - The Wizard of Oz was only a m;an who presented himself as "great and powerful." In at least two or more of the poems we've read, the speaker or poet seems to be reminding readers that we are no more or less than human, a small thing in comparison to the galaxy, nature or eternity. Select two of the poems we've read that illustrates this concept and using specific words, phrases, and lines from each poem, explain how man's place in the universe is conveyed.

Situational Irony in Poetry - Explain the concept of situational irony. Then identify two poems of those we've read in which situational irony is evident and explain the point that is made by the speaker's/poet's use of irony in the poem. In what way is irony used to help convey the theme. How would the poem fail without the use of irony? Be sure to use specific words, phrases, and lines from each poem to explain how situational irony is developed.

The Development of Theme by Tone - Select EITHER two poems that are opposite in tone and theme OR two poems that are similar in tone and theme. Specify the tone using specific words, phrases, and lines from each poem and explain how these carefully selected words help to convey the poet's theme.

EXTRA CREDIT OPPORTUNITY

Your final exam counts 20% of your final grade. Wouldn't it be wonderful if you could add 5 points to the final essay grade?!  All it takes is your time and attention. Attend a performance of Middle Georgia State's production of The Glass Menagerie this week and bring in proof of your attendance (this is given out after every show).  The performance is FREE for all MGSC students. Here are the specs:

Poetry for Discussion

Acquainted with the Night

By Robert Frost 1874–1963 Robert Frost

I have been one acquainted with the night.

I have walked out in rain—and back in rain.

I have outwalked the furthest city light.

I have looked down the saddest city lane.

I have passed by the watchman on his beat

And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain.

I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet

When far away an interrupted cry

Came over houses from another street,

But not to call me back or say good-bye;

And further still at an unearthly height,

One luminary clock against the sky

Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right. 

I have been one acquainted with the night.

The Journey by Mary Oliver

One day you finally knew

what you had to do, and began,

though the voices around you

kept shouting

their bad advice--

though the whole house

began to tremble

and you felt the old tug

at your ankles.

"Mend my life!"

each voice cried.

But you didn't stop.

You knew what you had to do,

though the wind pried

with its stiff fingers

at the very foundations,

though their melancholy

was terrible.

It was already late

enough, and a wild night,

and the road full of fallen

branches and stones.

But little by little,

as you left their voices behind,

the stars began to burn

through the sheets of clouds,

and there was a new voice

which you slowly

recognized as your own,

that kept you company

as you strode deeper and deeper

into the world,

determined to do

the only thing you could do--

determined to save

the only life you could save

The Significance of Titles in Poetry

IN poetry, as well as prose and drama, titles are of great significance; in some cases the title itself becomes the first line of the poem. In other instances, if there is no title to a poem (also common for poets), the editor/publisher uses the first line of the poem as the title.

In the Robert Frost poem, “Out, out—“ the title is taken from Shakespeare’s Macbeth. In his speech, Macbeth considers first the untimely death of his wife, then the brevity of human life and whether life itself has meaning. By using the title “Out, out—“ Robert Frost expects his reader/audience to:

• make the connection to the speech in Macbeth
• see a similarity in the situation he presents in the poem
• contemplate the same eternal aspects of death

It is important then to familiarize oneself with titles and question whether there are underlying meanings or allusions* to fully understand the poem. (*allusion – a reference to the past, whether historical, literary or religious)

From Shakespeare:

Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

"What are the topics going to be like on the final essay?"

Sample:

A dramatic monologue is a poem whose speaker is NOT the poet, but a persona created by the poet. In a dramatic monologue, the speaker addresses a silent audience and in his/her speech reveals the dramatic situation and his/her own character. Explain "Hazel tells Laverne" and "My Last Duchess" as dramatic monologues. What words, phrases, lines from each poem indicate the situation and reveal the speaker's character.

Poems for Discussion the week of 4/21

The  Dramatic Monologue - an emphasis on the SPEAKER of the poem
*A dramatic monologue is a poem in which the speaker addresses an unseen or silent audience, imagined to be present; in so doing, the speaker reveals the situation and some aspect of his/her own character/personality.

• 608 - "Hazel Tells Laverne"
•  please read the student essay on this poem, pages 609-610
• 702 - "My Last Duchess"

Irony in poetry:

• 685 - "Richard Cory"
• look for symbolism in this poem
• 691 - "Surprise"
• 554 - "Oh, oh"

Carpe diem [seize the day] in theme and importance of diction that creates tone:

• 612 - "To the Virgins to Make Much of Time"
• 888 - "Nothing Gold Can Stay"
•        - "Ozymandiaz"

Similarity and difference in tone and theme:

• 689 - "A Man Said to the Universe"
• 885 - "Out, Out--"
• be aware of the source of the title