You are to select ONE theme (love, religious sense, artistic sense, freedom, egotism, existentialism, friendship, alienation, reconciliation, character psychology, aesthetics, politics, escapism, modernism, nationalism, longing, ambition, etc,.) that recurs throughout Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist and analyze the text through the lens of that theme. You must select one or two passages where the theme is most predominant and perform a close reading. That is, carefully examine either one or more of the following: tone, diction, rhetoric, logic, meaning, and significance of the words in the passage(s) that you select to be most revealing about that recurrent theme. Attempt to interpret and evaluate the story to show the reader the connection between the theme you selected and the story itself (plot, character, setting, climax, conclusion, social conditions—any of these can be touched upon). The point is to prove/argue something about the theme and not only show that the theme occurs throughout the story. Your paper must have a thesis statement about what you want to prove or argue about the theme you have selected.
In this case I want to the theme of personal discovery. The thesis I have selected is: In James Joyce’s “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man,” the theme of identity and self-discovery is central to the protagonist, Stephen Dedalus, as he navigates the conflicts between societal expectations and his own individuality, ultimately leading to his artistic awakening. (Reword if you feel needed)
You should NOT summarize the story and retell it in your own words. You should assume that the reader has already read the novel and expects further elucidation from you through your critique, analysis, and evaluation.
Your critical analysis essay should have an original title of your own that reflects your own writing.
You can use only the text of A Portrait of the Artist a source. No outside sources are necessary! Make sure you quote appropriately in MLA format, that is include the page number in parenthesis at the end of the quote.
GRADING CRITERIA
A strong essay will…
- Contain an interesting title that reflects your own writing in a critical literary analysis essay.
- Contain a critical analysis of the text while establishing a clear connection between the theme and the story.
- Contain a clear thesis or claim that you are to make about the theme and the story.
- Contain clear, well-supported arguments that use textual evidence for the claims that you make throughout your essay.
- Include an engaging and thoughtful introduction and conclusion.
- Progress logically and smoothly with appropriate transitions indicating connections between ideas.
- Make appropriate use of sentence structure, word choice, grammar, spelling, and punctuation that enables rather than hinders clear and effective communication.
- Document and integrate source material correctly and effectively. (MLA Format!)
- Meet the minimum page requirement of 5 double-spaced
ESSAY FORMAT: double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman font, standard 1-inch margins; your name, instructor’s name, the class (English 1100C), and the date should appear in the upper left corner of the first page; pages should be numbered. Example below:
LastName 1
Student Name
Professor Agolli
ENG 1100C
May 6th, 2024
Informative and Engaging Title
Start first paragraph here…….