Chapter 7 addresses the various elements of drama used to write plays; these are similar to the elements of fiction but with a few different nuances because plays are written with a performance in mind.
Writing a research paper for literature is different than writing a research paper for a controversial issue in society. Chapter 8 explains how to approach a research paper for literature and offers guidance and helpful suggestions on how to start and what to include. As a student, extra guidance or refreshers in writing a paper often proves very helpful.
Read chapter 8 in preparation for writing the research paper. Please note the key points of writing a research paper for literature.
Instructions:
1. Read chapters 7 and 8
2. Write 1 page summary (2-3 paragraphs) of each chapter for 2 pages total (please do not include any additional information- just information from the chapters); be sure to include the key points from the chapter.
CHAPTER 7 -Writing about Plays
Perhaps the earliest literary critic in the Western tradition was Aristotle, who, in the fifth century b.c.e., set about explaining the power of the genre of tragedy by identifying the six elements of drama and analyzing the contribution each of these elements makes to the functioning of a play as a whole. The elements that Aristotle identified as common to all dramas were plot, characterization, theme, diction, melody, and spectacle. Some of these are the same as or very similar to the basic components of prose fiction and poetry, but others are either unique to drama or expressed differently in dramatic texts. (See Questions for Active Reading: Drama, p. 16.)
CHAPTER 8 -Writing a Literary Research Paper
Writing a literary research paper draws on the same set of skills as writing any other paper — choosing a topic, developing a thesis, gathering and organizing support, and so on. The main difference between research writing and other sorts of writing lies in the number and types of sources from which one’s support comes. All writing about literature begins with a primary source — the poem, story, or play on which the writing is based. Research papers also incorporate secondary sources, such as biographical, historical, and critical essays.
As you begin the process of research writing, the most important thing to remember is that you are writing a critical argument. Your paper should not end up reading like a summary of what others have said about the literature. Rather, it should begin and end by making a claim based on your own ideas, and it needs a clear, sharply focused thesis. The sources, both primary and secondary, are there to support your thesis, not to take over the paper.