Formal
Analysis Paper Assignments
by Ken Urban, Spring 2004
During the course of the semester, you will write ten formal analyses
of the short stories and plays that we read. These papers should 1-2
pages , typed, with your standard margins and font sizes.
You must write 5 papers on short stories and 5
on plays . One of these papers is due every week
at the start of class (see the syllabus for details and
exceptions). You are excused from turning in a paper the week that
you are presenting a short story or play. But then you need to
turn in two papers during the following week or conversely, the
preceding week. Be sure and keep track of your papers. When I return
these papers, keep them in your portfolio.
What is formal analysis? Usually in an English
course, you write papers about the texts. You may, for instance,
trace an idea in two stories, or analyze a play's use of racial
imagery. In this course, however, you will write about how a story
or play is constructed. Instead of writing what the text is about ,
you will write about how a text is made .
Things to consider:
-
How does the writer use language? Does the story or play
convey external details? Or does it focus on the internal
thoughts of the characters?
-
In the case of short stories,
does the writer use a narrator? Is it first person?
Or third person? Is the narrator omniscient or all knowing?
Or is the story told through the perspective of a specific
character? Think about these questions in relation to
plays. Does the play emerge from the thoughts or mind of
one character? Do the stage directions function as narration
as found in a short story?
-
In the case of plays, how does the writer
use stage directions? Are they specific or do they
leave a lot of work up to the imagination?
-
Does the play create
realistic or Euclidean characters? Or are the characters
in the play more polyvocal and hybrid? See Castagno pgs.
7-13 for definitions of these playwriting terms. See also
Wellman's essay "The Theatre of Good Intentions."
-
How does
the opening of the story or play relate to the end?
Does the writer set up for a surprise at the end, or does
the play's opening prepare for the end? Or does the story
or play even necessarily move in a narrative (story-based)
way? If it doesn't, how does the writer maintain a sense
of momentum or forward movement?
-
How does the writer use
tone? How does the story of play create humor? Mystery?
Excitement? Desire? Sexual tension?
-
How does the writer manipulate
or move us toward feeling empathy or dislike for certain
characters? (We tend to think of manipulation as a
bad thing. But writers try hard to make readers feel certain
ways about characters or events. Strong writing is able
to disguise the ways it moves the reader toward feeling
in specific ways, and sometimes it even refuses to take
a stand either way toward events.)
You do not need to answer all or any of these questions in your
paper. But you must write a thoughtful consideration of how the
short story or play is made. Understanding form will make you a
better writer, no matter what your discipline or major.
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Short Story Assignment
by Ken Urban, Spring 2004
The big challenge for the first half of this course
is writing a short story. You will present this story to the class
once during the next five weeks. You will read the story to the
class, and each of us will read along with our own copy. You will
need to get me the story by Wednesday afternoon so I can get copies
made for the course. You can drop it off with my desk manager (Murray
304), or in my mailbox (Murray 101). As a last resort, you could
also email to me at: ken.urban@rutgers.edu.
But make sure it is a Microsoft Word document. If you cannot do
this, you will need to make 25 copies and bring it to the class.
Most of campus is deserted on Saturday morning so don't expect
to make copies right before class begins in Murray or Scott.
OK, now the fun stuff. As a writer, I often find it very productive
to set up challenges or parameters for myself. By doing so, it
forces me to write in new and unexpected ways. Formal constraints
can produce surprises that make for strong and compelling writing.
With that in mind, I challenge you to write a short story that
does the following things:
-
Has a third-person narrator
-
Has an inanimate object that plays a central role
-
Features a lie that is eventually revealed
-
Avoids the use of the verb "is" and all its forms as much
as possible
-
And is about something you don't necessarily have personal
experience with.
I look forward to seeing what you come up with.
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