Paper 2 Prompts--

Below are very general prompts to get you started with your analysis for paper 2. You may write about any of the stories we have read, so long as you do not repeat any stories or ideas from your first paper ( so, pick a different story/stories to focus on). Your Paper 2 should be similar in length to Paper 1 ( 1000-1200 words), typed, double spaced, and have a clear focus point. Be creative and thorough in your analysis. You may branch off of any one of these prompts

Rough draft for peer review: June 17th
Final Draft: June 23

1. “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been” (1966) is not a realist text and leave much to the reader’s imagination. How would you say that the popularity of postmodernism in the 1960s  impacts the text respectively? What other texts do you see as non- realist and how does that help or hinder the understanding as a reader? Explain your reasoning.

2. One of the most revealing types of conflict occurs when a character’s inner struggles are resolved at great personal price.  Often, the character learns a lesson, but too late to help himself or another character.  Explain how, in the work that you read, a character struggles but fails to learn a lesson in time, and thus, serves as an example for the reader.  In your essay, focus on the conflict within the character.  Be sure to include the price paid as part of the resolution and the lesson to be learned.

3. 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, in the work that you read, the author uses a symbol to convey an important meaning.  In your analysis, focus on the symbol and what it symbolizes.  Be sure to discuss how the author uses it to convey a message to readers.  You may choose three important symbols from the novel, or you may choose to elaborate on one symbol in all three body paragraphs.

What do you see as the central conflict in the story, Girl, by Jamaica Kincaid? Who is the conflict with?Is it possible to re-imagine the story as advice from father to son?

Discussion Questions for "Paul's Case"

What techniques does Cather use to establish the reader's sympathy for Paul? What limits that sympathy?

Why does Paul go away from New York to commit suicide? He seems to backtrack the steps he took when he arrived. Is this part of Paul’s plan? Or does he have a plan at all?

In "The Yellow Wallpaper," why must the woman in the wallpaper “creep” by daylight, and why must it be “humiliating” for her to do so?  What could the daylight symbolize in your opinion?

Question on "A White Heron."

This is a bit broad, but comment or point out the relationships between humans and nature in this story. Feel free to include any specific quotes or text to support your answer.