Literature Circle Unit- Literary Analysis Essay
Assignment:
Write a literary analysis essay analyzing some aspect(s) of your novel in relation to your understanding of the meaning of the novel. You may use one of the general essay prompts below, or you may use one of the essay prompts specific to your novel. Make certain to use specific examples, including at least 3 quotations from the novel. Your essay should have a title related to the thesis.
General Essay Prompts:
1. Write an essay analyzing how 3 different techniques or devices work to create the meaning (theme) of the novel. Examples of these techniques or devices include humor, POV, symbolism, patterns of imagery, etc.
2. A bildungsroman, or coming-of-age novel, recounts the psychological or moral development of its protagonist from youth or naivete to maturity, when this character recognizes his/her place in the world or understands him- or herself better. Write an essay in which you demonstrate the protagonist’s youth/naivete and at least one pivotal moment in the novel when s/he is confronted with a chance to develop into maturity, and how the protagonist’s maturity is related to the meaning of the novel.
Novel:
“The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time”
1. Many scholars argue that this novel is a modernized version of the quest archetype. Write an essay in which you analyze various aspects of the novel demonstrating how they fulfill the definition of the quest archetype.
2. Write an essay in which you analyze the personal limitations of Christopher and each of his parents and discuss the ways these limitations affect their relationships with each other.
General Rubric:
B- or better: better than adequate or competent work in one or more of the C-level criteria