Assignment: The purpose of this proposal is to present your formal plans for the literary research paper. Your proposal will need to cover each of the headings/sections described below. Craft a good paragraph (6-8 sentences minimum) for each section. Please use the following four headings for your proposal: Need Assignment Help?
Research Agenda:
- What is the name of the author and literary text you are going to research?
- What is interesting/noteworthy/confusing about this literary text in and its context(s)? What makes it worthy of further study?
- What do you hope to learn? How will your selected literary text help you understand the broader contexts -- and/or vice versa?
Summary of Literary Text:
- As with all of summaries of literary works, you'll need to cover the basic plot points, setting, characters, conflict, and resolution of the story.
- Imagine that your audience has either not read this text and/or is not familiar with it. Your goal is to give them enough information to understand your analysis.
Contextual Considerations/Critical Approach:
- This is where you will discuss the kinds of secondary research you have done/will do.
- What arguments have other literary scholars made about this literary text, about this author, or about similar literary works?
- How does or how might biographical research about the author, historical research about the setting or time of publication, and/or other contextual research contribute to a deeper understanding of the literary text? What is the critical approach or strategy you will be researching and potentially taking in the essay? For example, will you be taking a biographical, psychological, historical, or sociological angle?
Research Question/Working Thesis:
- What do you believe are the most significant literary elements and themes of the primary text?
- What is your current hypothesis or assumption about how the literary text reflects and/or represents the critical approach/strategy/angle taken?
- How does your developing argument contribute to the broader conversations you've been researching?
This assignment will be about "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson.