Paper 1

    Write on one of the following topics or come up with your own topic. If you choose to develop your own topic, please run it by me by Friday, 2/4. Each topic is broad and will require you to come up with a particular argument that addresses its concerns. I will be happy to discuss your paper with you at any stage, from brain-storming to draft-reading.

    Papers should be 4-5 pages, double-spaced, in a standard font, with standard margins, etc. Title pages are not necessary. Secondary sources are not required, or even particularly recommended, for his paper, but if you do use them, please follow MLA style. Course texts may be cited simply by page number in the text (Bronte, 29). Other works should be cited in endnotes like this:

Dershovitz, David, Book Title (New York: Someold Press, 1991).
Kelly, Jennifer, "Essay Title," in Collection, ed. Andy Krauss (Chicago: Norton, 1998).
Smith, Sonya, "Recalling Poetics," Journal of Literary Analysis 25 (1994).

topic 1

Although Wide Sargasso Sea is the story of Bertha’s past, Rhys’s Antoinette is parallel to Bronte’s Jane in many ways. Discuss Antoinette as a rewriting of Jane. How does Rhys echo and/or critique Bronte’s novel—and perhaps Bronte’s conception of the novel as a form. Be specific, support your claims with passages from the text.

topic 2

Compare the two Rochesters. Does Rhys’s characterization follow Bronte’s? Do Rhys and Bronte use the same techniques to present and develop the character? Do the two Rochesters occupy similar positions in the works? Do they serve the same purpose? Be specific, support your claims with passages from the text.

topic 3

Both books, in distinct ways, revolve around a "mystery." Discuss the place of "mystery" in each book. Is each "mystery" the same kind of thing? Does each "mystery" serve the same function in its novel? Be specific, support your claims with passages from the text.

topic 4

Develop your own topic involving some kind of comparison between Jane Eyre and Wide Sargasso Sea. If you choose this, the topic must be approved by Friday 2/4. Be specific, support your claims with passages from the text.

    On Wednesday (2/9) bring your rough draft to class. These will collected and redistributed to classmates for revision in our workshop. This will allow each of you to practice revision on someone else’s paper and have the benefit of someone else’s comments on your own. (You may of course keep your paper anonymous.)

    Revised, final drafts are due in class on Friday (2/11)—please hand in your draft along with your final paper.