Short analysis essay

Write a short essay, of about three pages, that constitutes an initial study of one or two of the dramatic monologues on the course. The paper must treat dramatic monologues that have not yet been discussed in seminar; as such, the paper must be handed in no later that the beginning of class on the day the poems the paper treats are discussed in class. Essays shorter than two full pages may be returned unread or with a failing grade.

The approach you take to this assignment is open; however, your essay should be an argumentative essay. You should propose a theory (or thesis) and argue for it. You may talk only about the poems at hand; you may compare the poems to other poems on our course; you may discuss the poems in the context of a critical essay or a theory of the genre; or you may choose another viable approach.

The paper cannot treat a poem that is scheduled for discussion the same day as your in-class presentation, nor the same day that you are the designated seminar leader. It may treat a poem scheduled for the same day you are the designated respondent to a presentation.

As with any essay, value will be awarded based on the depth of the analysis, the complexity of the discussion, the solidity of the writing, and the thoroughness of the support to the thesis.