Composition II

Context

Recently, we have been focusing on literature from the region of Nigeria. Two of our readings, in particular, raise issues that are specific to womanhood. The narrator of "Kelemo's Woman," for instance, must make difficult decisions regarding her body and her morality. In "Growing My Hair Again," the narrator faces complex circumstances with regard to her husband, and she too makes some difficult choices, both in the way she interacts with other women and with regard to her body.

Assignment

For your first formal paper, reexamine the stories "Kelemo's Woman" by Molara Wood and "Growing My Hair Again" by Chika Unigwe. Consider the complicated experiences of the women narrators, their customs, their relationships with men and with other women. Are these moral women? What makes their decisions morally acceptable or morally unjustifiable?

· Please write in the position that both of them are morally acceptable.

You will need to construct a strong and debatable thesis statement that takes a stand on this issue. Then, you will need to support your position using evidence from the texts. This will require close reading and analysis. You will need to quote small portions of the text, so be sure to properly integrate and cite quotations. Remember, you are not just summarizing here; you are making an original argument that you must support.

Details

This essay should be a minimum of three full double-spaced pages. It must have an introduction with a strong, debatable thesis statement, supporting body paragraphs begin with strong topic sentence and provide evidence from the texts, and a conclusion paragraph.

Use specific examples. Do not generalize. Avoid cliché. And watch your grammar. Turn in something polished and professional. This means using an appropriate font. I prefer Times New Roman or Garamond 12pt. Please give your essay a unique title.