Charles Brockden Brown’s Edgar Huntly or Memoirs of a Sleep-Walker

Research Paper Guidelines – nnI need this paper done in 3 parts. nn1. Proposal and Annotated Works Cited List (1 page) n2. A short essay that will be incorporated into the final paper (2 pages) n3. The research paper (7 full pages/ this will include the short essay) and a works cited page. nnA total of a 8pages and a works cited. 3 secondary sources, 1 primary source. nn3 Secondary sources, the guidelines for the sources follow below. nnFree range to develop a thesis for this paper on the following topic nn-Charles Brockden Brown’s Edgar Huntly: Memories of a sleepwalker (Primary Source) nnHackett Publishing Company, Inc. 2006. Print. nnThe focus of the course in which this paper is being written for is Early American Literature; the tensions and beliefs that shaped it. nnDeveloping a complex argument in literary analysisnAsk what, how, and why questions. This leads you from observation, to exploration, to an argument. nWhat: What aspect of the text jumps out at you? What questions did you ask as you read? For example, you might wonder about the sometimes contradictory attitude Rowlandson seems to display toward the Indians. Sometimes she seems almost fond of them; at other times, full of loathing and fear. You might then wonder what impact those moments of have on the reader or on our understanding of Rowlandson’s relationship to her Wampanoag captors. nHow: How does the text do what it’s doing? The answer to this question might come through exploration of technical, stylistic, or thematic aspects of the text. Answering this is the first step in developing an argument. For example, asking about the particular way that Rowlandson describes her captors will push you into more complex thinking about how the text works. You could notice that she moves from calling all Indians “black savages” to making subtle class observations about them – such as her comment that her master’s wife is a “proud and haughty dame.” Or you could think about how the text, rather than making a simple linear movement from loathing to acceptance, moves back and forth between the two attitudes. nWhy: It’s essential that you consider to what end or for what purpose the text functions as it does. What are the ultimate implications of this feature of the text? Consider these lines of inquiry:n1. It advances or complicates a major theme of the text.n2. It engages in commentary about larger political, social, philosophical, or literary issues of the author’s day.n3. It reflects the influence of another writer or text.n4. It advances the plot or adds depth to a character.n5. It’s attempting to be technically innovative. It highlights a capability or limitation in the author’s choice of theme, genre, structure, stylistic choices, or narrative technique. (303)nIn answering the “why” of Rowlandson’s description of her captors, I might argue that Rowlandson is struggling with an internal conflict – both seeing these people as individuals with desires and motivations of their own and simultaneously demonizing them and simplifying them in order to justify the English settlers’ genocidal tactics or to manage her own emotions toward the people who murdered her child. Thus, Rowlandson’s text mirrors the complex relationships between settlers and Indians in 17th century New England. nRemember, a good thesis answers the “so what” question. It’s not enough to point out that something happens in a text. You must help your reader to understand how this “something” enriches, complicates or otherwise deepens our understanding of the entire text, the author’s work, and/or the period from which it comes. nnnThe term paper has three parts: (a) the proposal and preliminary bibliography; (b) Short Essay 3; and (c) the final essay with annotated list of works cited. n(a) Requirements of the Proposal and Annotated Works Cited ListnThe proposal is just that: a statement of what you think you want to write about. During the writing and research process you may find your ideas going in new directions, and that’s fine. The proposal is an early blueprint from which you might diverge. If you wish to make a radical change in topic, talk to me. nLength: About two paragraphs; not more than one page, double-spaced. Describe and discuss the subject you propose to research and – important – construct a tentative thesis, which is the question you seek to answer about this text, author, genre, etc. You may choose from any of the works on the syllabus. nWhen you hand in your proposal, you will also hand in a preliminary annotated list of works cited with a minimum of four secondary sources and one primary source. An annotation summarizes what the source is about, and it tells how you think you’ll use that source in your essay. This is a sample entry (in MLA, 8th edition, format) from a student paper:nO’Connell, Catharine. “‘We Must Sorrow’: Silence, Suffering, and Sentimentality in SusannWarner’s The Wide, Wide World.” Studies in American Fiction, vol. 25, no. 1, 1997, pp.n21-39. Project Muse, https://muse-jhu-edu.libserv-prd.bridgew.edu/article/440438/pdf.nAccessed 12 Apr. 2018. nIn O’Connell’s article, she argues Ellen Montgomery is completely denied power or a voice and therefore rebels in the only form she can: crying. Through her incessant crying and the narrative’s continuous attention to it, Ellen develops a sense of agency against the authoritative figures in the novel. O’Connell’s article is arguably the most important piece in my research. Her article not only helped me examine Ellen and her self-agency, but made me think more critically about the other female characters I examine in my essay and the forms of self-expression which are accessible to them.n Your final essay will include a final, annotated bibliography.n(b) Requirements of the Term Paper:nLength, format and sources: 7-9 pages. Consult a minimum of 3 secondary sources (in addition to one primary source) in the final essay. One of the secondary sources may be from the course’s assigned secondary readings. Follow MLA 8th edition format.nTopic: Your essay may be on any of the authors and texts we study together this semester. You may also choose to write on a text by one of our authors that isn’t on our syllabus. I’ll provide materials to help you research, draft, organize, and revise your essays, and will give you as much support as you need along the way.nPart of your task, as an upper-division literature major, is to craft an engaging, interesting, provocative research question. This is challenging, but it means that you get to write on what interests you rather than getting a canned topic from me. I’ll review your proposals and provide feedback, and put you in a group with writers who are working on similar topics so that you can share ideas and sources. The best advice I can give you about choosing a topic: focus on works and authors that interest you most. Nothing dooms a paper more surely than writing on a topic or writer you dislike or don’t care about. nUse of sources: You are part of a scholarly community—this is why we engage with other scholars in our own writing. You do not write in a vacuum, but for an audience that includes me, your peers, and (at least in theory) other scholars in the field. We use secondary literature in our essays to broaden, complicate, add authority to or clarify our ideas. We are engaging in conversation, in effect, with other scholars in the field through our use of their ideas. Therefore, when you quote another scholar, it should serve a rhetorical, theoretical, or evidentiary purpose, not simply act as “filler.” They help you make your argument.nRecommended secondary sources: In addition to the secondary sources in the syllabus, use the university’s electronic databases available through the Maxwell Library website (more on this below). All peer-reviewed, scholarly journals are acceptable, as well as book-length studies from university (and some trade) presses. During a regular semester (but not in the midst of a global pandemic) books not owned by our library and journals not available through our databases may be ordered through Document Delivery Services, which is fast and reliable. Delivery has been suspended during this current crisis, however, so I am not requiring that you use a book in your research and you will need to use sources that are available electronically. You can still use all online library resources, and though I discourage you from doing so, you can go to Maxwell, which is open from 8 – 4 M-F. nLocating sources:n1) In a normal semester, I would encourage you to use the Maxwell Library online catalog to locate books owned by our library. But I don’t want you coming to campus, so no books are required.n2) Scholarly, peer-reviewed journals can be located and searched through use of electronic databases (available via the Maxwell Library database home page):n• Academic Search Premier (automatically searches The MLA International Bibliography and other indices which will direct you to books and articles)n• JSTOR On-line Journals n• Journals/Newspapers A-Z (tells you all about Maxwell’s journal and newspaper holdings – very handy). nWhen you conduct your database searches, choose “peer reviewed” as one of your criteria. This will insure that you are spending your time with recognized scholarship in the field.n3) Websites. There are very few websites that are legitimate sources for scholarly study. The web is a great place to start and get ideas, however. Visit Wikipedia or “Author Society” webpages (such as the “Charles Brockden Brown Society”) or scholarly society pages (such as “The Society of Early Americanists”) which often have valuable links and information. Prof. Paul Ruben’s “Perspectives in American Literature (PAL)” (https://www.paulreuben.website/) and Dr. Donna Campbell’s “American Literature” (http://public.wsu.edu/~campbelld/amlit/aufram.html) sites are starting places, better than Wikipedia (but similar in some ways). Your research will rely on periodicals and books. nWhen in doubt about the validity of a source, ask me or one of Maxwell Library’s reference librarians. nREMEMBER: List all sources that you quote, refer to, paraphrase or otherwise rely on in developing your ideas in the final annotated list of works cited.nns you move forward with your research essays, you are reading a variety of scholarly critical, biographical, and historical texts. For this assignment, choose one of the secondary texts you are currently working with and summarize and critique it in 2-3 pages. nStructurally, this assignment is less formally an “essay” than your two previous writing assignments: it has two distinct parts; does not require a thesis statement; and does not make a single literary argument as we customarily do in our field. In that regard, this is a less demanding task than your earlier assignments. However, many students struggle to understanding literary criticism. This assignment is designed to give you some time and practice making sense of critical, scholarly work. nYour assignment should do the following:nPart I: Identification and Summaryn1. Identify your source by title (if it’s a scholarly article, be sure to include both the journal title and the title of the article) and author. Punctuate titles properly!n2. Identify (where is it located?) and paraphrase the thesis.n3. Summarize the main argument of the essay. This is the most challenging aspect of the assignment, especially if the argument is very complex or multi-faceted. nPart II: Critiquen1. Does the writer make an effective argument? Is it clearly presented, and well supported with evidence? Is it stylistically accessible (i.e., easy to understand)? Be specific about what works and what doesn’t work, and why it works or doesn’t. n2. Is this a useful text for you, either in your research or for your general knowledge on the subject? How might you use the text in making your own argument? nHow to Find Sourcesn• Check the “Selected Bibliographies” in the back of your Norton Anthology; this is a very useful place to start. n1. These databases (and others) are all good for our work:n• MLAn• JSTORn• Project MUSEnGiven our current movement restrictions you will only be able to write about a critical essay published in an academic journal. You may not write a critique a webpage.nFormat:nTyped (12 pt. font)nDouble-spacedn1” marginsnIn the upper left-hand corner include:nYour namenENGL309-01nProf. nShort Essay 3nDatenRemember to include a complete and properly formatted Works Cited page. nn