Final Project Proposal

For you final project proposal, which is due next Thursday for workshop, you must write a one page proposal that answers the following questions.

Please remember that you are choosing one of the following options (fairy tale or monster); you should not answer both prompts.

Fairy Tale Project Proposal

What is the fairy tale you will re-write? State its primary title or titles.

What is the earliest iteration of this fairy tale? (Culture, time, place) EX. The Story of Grandmother, oral folk tale, medieval Europe

What is the essential tale type to the story? Remember, the tale type is the basic plot structure that remains the same in most re-tellings.

What changes do you plan to make to the cultural values, to update it for today?

What inspired you in particular to write a story that reflects these values? Where did you "find" them? (i.e. news article, library research, etc). *Please note that you must not "guess" at what the cultural values are; they must reflect some real world cultural problem, condition, or set of beliefs held by a group of people.

Where will your story be set, and how will the setting reflect these cultural values?

What will happen in your story (the plot), in order to best reflect these cultural values while staying true to the tale type?

What changes will you make to the characters to best reflect these cultural values?

Include as well a bibliography with three outside sources you plan to use for your analytical essay. These must be library-based research about either the fairy tale itself, or the cultural values/problems your fairy tale analyzes.

Monster Project Proposal

What cultural fears and desires does your monster represent? These should be as specific as possible, and you must connect them to a particular time and place. The "problem" that your monster reflects should be as specific as student loan debt in the US or pollution in the rivers of the Midwest; it should not be something vague and unrefined like "fear of the unknown" or "fear of death." Look for a real world problem--news articles are a good place to start--that is happening in our world today and use that as a jumping off point.

What is the time and place your monster represents? This should be as specific as Whittier, CA in 2017. (Please note your time must be contemporary).

How does your monster's physical body represent the cultural fears/desires? Be as specific as possible, and discuss multiple elements of its body.

How does the monster's powers (skills) represent the cultural fears/desires?

How does the monster's habitat (home) represent the cultural fears/desires?

What inspired you to focus on these cultural fears and desires? Where did you "find" them? (i.e. news article, library research, etc). *Please note that you must not "guess" at what the cultural fears and desires are; they must reflect some real world cultural problem or condition such as the imminent threat of a twitter-induced nuclear war, or the death of the polar bears due to the arctic ice melting.

What form will your creative component take? How does this form best reflect the cultural fears and desires your monster embodies?

Were you inspired by any other monsters when creating yours? If so, which ones and why?

Include as well a bibliography with three outside sources you plan to use for your analytical essay. These must be library-based research about the cultural fears/desires your monster represents.

Grade Scale

Hi everyone,

This is the grade scale I use, in case you want to know your letter grade for the first essay.

Revision Option for Essay #1

I’ve decided to allow those who received a C or lower on the first paper an offer to revise it for a better grade. This is an optional choice for those who want to utilize it; it is not a requirement. Also, those who did not submit their assignment at all may not utilize this offer.

Please understand this is an act of generosity on my part, and it creates extra work for me. I always appreciate a thank you from those who utilize offers like this. 

In order to utilize this offer, however, a few criteria apply:

1)      You need to write me an email, explaining how you plan to improve your paper specifically. Tell me what you will do to improve it, and give me a step-by-step action plan. I will then approve your plan and give you your due date for the paper. Please send this email within 48 hours of receiving your first paper score.

2)      In order to be fair to those who followed the instructions carefully and received a higher score the first time around, your final version needs to be at least five full pages double-spaced, not including the Works Cited page. If your paper does not follow these guidelines exactly, I will not grade it and your original score will remain.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Notes Allowance for In-Class Essay

For your in-class essay next Monday, you may bring one page of notes, double-sided (handwritten or typed). These notes should relate to the creation/destruction of the female companion for the creature.

While you are not required to create this page of notes, it is strongly recommended, as you will be expected to include examples from the book in your essay.

You may not use the book itself while writing the essay. You may also not write out a sample essay on the notes; your notes should be about the book and include examples but not entire paragraphs.

Lastly, you will not be expected to use MLA citations for the in-class essay, but if you choose to directly quote, you should use quotation marks and incorporate the quotes naturally into your sentences.

The notes must be turned in with your essay.

The In-Class Essay:

Aim and Organization

AIM:

To successfully prove a clear, specific thesis. The thesis should, obviously, address the prompt given in class. Following directions here, as always, is crucial to receiving a passing grade.

ORGANIZATION:

An in-class essay is organized into five paragraphs. The first paragraph is the introduction, then comes three body paragraphs, then a concluding paragraph. No more—no less!

You will want to make a brief outline before you write your essay.* Make sure the body paragraphs appear in a logical order, not simply the order they came to your mind in. Build on the information as you go.

Introductory Paragraph: Make sure not to take too much time writing in introduction. This paragraph should be about five sentences long (give or take a sentence or two). Provide a clearly arguable, well-qualified, thesis.

Body Paragraph One: Don’t forget to provide clear examples to back up your argument, as well as a topic sentence at the beginning of the paragraph.

Body Paragraph Two: Don’t forget to provide clear examples to back up your argument, as well as a topic sentence at the beginning of the paragraph. And remember, Body Paragraph Two should follow Body Paragraph One in terms of building logically upon it.

Body Paragraph Three: Don’t forget to provide clear examples to back up your argument, as well a topic sentence as the beginning of the paragraph. And remember, Body Paragraph Three should follow Body Paragraph Two in terms of building logically upon it.

Concluding Paragraph: Re-state your thesis. Summarize what has been successfully argued in the essay. End with a thoughtful and strong statement. This paragraph, like your introductory paragraph, need not be longer than five sentences, but should also not be shorter.

Grammar and formatting: Make sure to check your grammar and spelling as you go along. There is a bit more room for error in an in-class essay, but your essay must be readable and legible (so make sure your handwriting is clear). Double-check your essay for errors before you turn it in. You may choose to double-space or single space an in-class essay (depending on what your teacher requests).

*You will be required to turn in your brief outline with your essay for your this class. See “Sample Outline” below for details.

SAMPLE OUTLINE FOR IN-CLASS ESSAY

Par. 1: THESIS: Write out thesis statement here.

Par. 2: TOPIC SENTENCE/MAIN IDEA: Write out topic sentence/main idea for Paragraph 1 here.

Par. 3: TOPIC SENTENCE/MAIN IDEA: Write out topic sentence/main idea for Paragraph 2 here.

Par. 4: TOPIC SENTENCE/MAIN IDEA: Write out topic sentence/main idea for Paragraph 3 here.

Par. 5: CONCLUSION: Final thought to leave reader with.

*Remember, this is just a sample outline—yours can differ slightly. Also, you obviously will want to fully develop your intro, body paragraphs, and conclusion—so while you are providing the main idea of these paragraphs here in the outline, you will flesh them out with evidence/support in your actual essay.

Debate Prep

For Wednesday's debate, which is intended to prepare you for Monday's in-class essay, you and your team will prepare logical reasons and convincing support for your perspective.

You will also anticipate the other side's arguments and prepare counterarguments to refute their ideas.

1) You need at least five prepared points of argument. Each of these should be supported by an example from the book. Make sure each point of argument is a strong one, and arrange the order in which you will present them in class in order of strength.

2) Prepare at least five of the other side's potential arguments, as well as your corresponding counterarguments to these possible arguments. Provide examples from the book to support your perspective as well. Do not set up weak arguments for the other side; anticipate their strongest and most plausible arguments. When refuting their arguments, make sure to acknowledge any good points or partial concessions in order to acknowledge where they have a valid point.

Come prepared with the order of people who will present for your team. Each person may speak only once until all people on the team have spoken. Then, team members may speak a second time.

Monsters from around the world

MLA FORMATTING

For our next class session, we will be discussing MLA formatting, a citation style that you will need to use for many of your academic papers.

This was mentioned in the syllabus as well, but you will want to use your own reference guide, either online or in book form, in order to look up different types of citations as you write.

You cannot simply rely on your Professor's lecture on the subject, as there are many different types of citations for every single type of media, from tweets to films to books.

Here is a guide that I particularly like. Get comfortable with the site by clicking around. Bookmark it, and use it during your college career.

The site also has APA and Chicago Style, which are used for different disciplines such as history.

If you prefer to use a physical book, I recommend ordering Diane Hacker's A Pocket Style Manual. I used to assign it in my classes, but students complained of the cost, so I no longer require it. However, if you are willing to pay for it, it definitely makes looking up MLA information easy.

Lastly, make sure you use the 2016 updated 8th edition of MLA only.