English 2400: Essay 3
Contents
Instructions
Write an essay on one or two of the works we are covering in the third unit of the course (Renaissance and post Renaissance). You may compare works from this section with works from either or both of the previous sections.
You should work on developing your own topic. To get you thinking, however, here are some possible starting points:
- The individual and the type. Pick one or more works from this third part of the course and discuss how the author(s) adapt earlier conventions, models, and genres to focus on the individual. You can write this essay as a comparison between a medieval and later work, or by investigating the origins of a genre in which a modern author is writing.
- New words and worlds. Renaissance authors had immense vocabularies by modern standards: in addition to English and French sources for new words, they also drew on a living knowledge of Latin and Greek, as well as many continental languages and words and terms imported from their colonial explorations. Meanwhile, the development of print offered unparalleled access to information. Discuss how this breadth of access to information and experience manifests itself in the work of one or more authors from this period.
- Technology and Art. The development of the printing press changed the way information was accessed by Renaissance authors and offered new possibilities for publication. Compare the impact of the printing press on literature of the 15th-17th centuries with the impact of the internet on culture in our day. What similarities are there? What differences? Are there lessons to be learned from the development of the press?
- The early modern period saw the development of new genres and experimentation with old genres. Discuss this sense of experimentation in the work of two or more authors from this period. You may write about works from the period not covered in class.
- Masculinity and femininity. Compare the treatment of masculinity and/or femininity in one or more works from this part of the course against works read in earlier sections.
Purpose
The goal of this assignment is to give you practice in developing and writing University-level research ideas in literature and to let you enrich your reading of early modern literature by writing about it. As mentioned in class, essay writing is a pedagogical exercise as well as a form of assessment: this is where you get real experience in dealing with the details of texts at a level impossible to cover in lecture.
Rubric
For this essay, I will be following my standard rubric.
Dues dates, length, etc.
- Due: Sunday 13 November by 23:59. Essays are to be submitted electronically via Turnitin.
- Format: Please follow my standard style guide.
- Length: Your essay should be between 1500 and 2000 words (± 10%). This is roughly equivalent to approx 4-5 full pages of 12pt, double spaced text with 3 cm margins.
