Winter 2015 EWRT1B- Essay 2- Comparison of drama
In this paper, you will explore the relationship between one of the plays, A Doll House or Death of a Salesman, and at least one other text in our class (the other play or one of the short stories). This will be a comparison; so you will be looking for similarities between the texts. Please focus on a specific element or elements of drama to base your comparison on. Look at plot, characterization, dialogue, staging, and/or theme. Use one of the prompts below to help guide you analysis.
- In both plays, we have characters who believe narratives about their own self importance. In other words, they are guilty of pride. As the saying goes, “pride goeth before a fall.” For the characters in the stories you wish to analyze, how does pride contribute to the conflicts in their lives? Try to find a similar pattern in the characters you discuss.
- As we have discussed, almost all our stories show us characters who believe a narrative about another character and who are unwilling to let go of that narrative. Why are these characters so unwilling to let go of their stories about the other character? Look for common reasons in all the characters you analyze.
- In both plays, characters come to new insights about themselves. They realize that their old narratives are wrong and that they will need new ones to correspond to their growing understanding of who they are. What causes this reassessment, this realization that their old narratives are wrong? Try to find a common type of cause (or causes) in the works you analyze.
- Both plays concern characters who lie, so dishonesty is a theme in both works. What causes the characters to lie? What makes lying seem necessary, or even beneficial, to them? Find similar reasons for the characters you discuss.
Advice about your thesis statement. Watch out for a thesis statement that is too simplistic and vague: “the plots of both plays are very similar.” A thesis statement like this not only doesn’t say much, but it will be boring for you to write. Use the elements of drama to make a specific statement.
The only evidence that is required is from the pieces of literature themselves. However, if you would like to use some of the commentary in the book, such as the George Bernard Shaw’s analysis of A Doll House (1403) or Arthur Miller’s discussion of his play (1499), that is fine. Just be sure to cite the commentary correctly.
See more about how to write a comparison and contrast literature paper on page 1647 of Literature and Its Writers. And be sure to look at the common problems and guidelines listed on pages 1637-1641, as well as the questions about drama listed on pages 1104-1105.
Requirements: The paper should be 3-5 pages in length, typed, double-spaced, and in MLA format. Don’t forget a works cited page. See pages 1669-1674 in Literature and Its Writers. You also must submit your paper to Turnitin and have an originality score below 20%. Failure to meet the requirements means failure to receive credit for the assignment.
Due Thursday, February 12
2 comments:
can we compare two plays and no short story?
Yes. You have to compare one play to at least one other text. That other text can be another play. So you can compare Doll's House with Death of a Salesman.
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