First, you’ll need to choose a topic for your final essay, which will be at least 1,000 words in length. This is the topic you will use to create your outline in Week 2 and final essay in Week 3. Choose ONE of the topics below.

Option 1:

The American Dream lecture in Week 1 points out that Poor Richards Almanac was an annual publication that included calendar lists, home recipes, weather forecasts etc. What made Franklins almanac unlike other almanacs was the inclusion of Franklins witty parables and humorous writings.  Franklin proposes in The Way to Wealth that anyone who works hard, avoids debt, and works toward attaining a virtuous character can be successful and ultimately wealthythat the American Dream is accessible to all.

Watch either The Color Purple or The Great Gatsby (locate the films using Netflix, Amazon, or your local library) and argue why or why not Franklins assertions are correct. Provide examples from the film and your own explanations to support your assertions.

Your will have two choices for your thesis statement:

As is evident in the film The Color Purple (or The Great Gatsby), Franklins assertion that the American Dream is available to all people is incorrect because _________, ___________, and _________ (you will determine three points in support of your thesis, and those will become the topics of your three body paragraphs).

As is evident in the film The Color Purple (or The Great Gatsby), Franklins assertion that the American Dream is available to all people is correct because _________, ___________, and _________ (you will determine three points in support of your thesis, and those will become the topics of your three body paragraphs).

Option 2: 

Write a comparison or contrast essay about two of the corresponding characters in the table below. You will choose three of the points of comparison from the pool below as your points of comparison or contrast. Keep in mind that the purpose of a comparison or contrast essay is to reveal something meaningful about the characters and their relationships to the text. 

You will be using a point-by-point style of comparison, and you will have two choices for your thesis statement: 

While some differences between __________ and __________ (names of characters in the pairing you chose) are evident, they are similar in the aspects of __________, __________, and __________ (you will determine three points of comparison from the pool, and those will become the topics of your three body paragraphs). 

While some similarities between  __________ and __________ (names of characters in the pairing you chose) are evident, they are different in the aspects of __________, __________, and __________ (you will determine three points of comparison from the pool, and those will become the topics of your three body paragraphs).

Choose one of the following pairings:    Choose three of the following points of comparison:
1. Rip Van Winkle and Anton Rosicky    A. Motivation
2. Dame Van Winkle and Mrs. Peters    B. Religion
3. Desiree Aubigny and Faith Brown    C. Generosity
4. Young Goodman Brown and Armand Aubigny    D Trustworthiness
5. Dame Van Winkle and Mrs. Hale    E. Independence/Dependence
    F. Communication skills
    G. Level of intelligence
    H. Sense of adventure
    I. Relationships with others
    J. Conflicts/trials faced
    K. Journeys, either physical or symbolic

Week 2 Creative Writing Assignment:

This week’s creative assignment is “Who is the speaker?” Pick  one of the three poems (“homage to my hips,” “The Woman Thing,” or “Wild nights – Wild nights!”) and create a 400-word description of the poem’s speaker.  This will require you to use your imagination and develop the character outside of the poem.

Assignment Requirements:

Your submission must:
include a minimum of 400 words, written in paragraph form.
use Times New Roman 12-point font and be double spaced. A title page, running head, and abstract are not required.
be submitted as a Microsoft Word attachment on the submission page (click title above). Assignments not submitted in this way may be returned to you ungraded.
No Research
There is a no-research policy in place for this class. Using any material other than the assigned readings and lectures, even if it is correctly quoted and cited, will result in a failing grade for this assignment. Contact your instructor if you have questions about this policy.

Post 1: Identify a character from both a fiction (Chopin or Glaspell) and a nonfiction piece (Sedaris or Bornstein) that we have read this week. First, show how the character is limited in his or her role in society (excluded from the American Dream), an then explain specifically how that character pushes against boundaries imposed by society. Use paraphrased quotes to support your claims, and cite them in APA style using in-text and reference citations that you reviewed last week.

Criteria:

300 words minimum (excluding quotations and citations)
Include two properly integrated and cited paraphrased quotations (one from each work) to support your claims. See the Literary Analysis Tools Module from this week’s activities for information about integrating and citing quotes.