English 1:

Assignment: Choose three of the authors we have read since the middle of the term:

Freneau, Wheatley, Irving, Cooper, Emerson, Thoreau, Whitman, Douglass, Jacobs, Stowe, Hawthorne, Poe, Whitman, Dickinson

Examine & discuss one of the 3 topics below as it relates to the works of those 3 authors:

Nature as a source of instruction, delight, and nourishment for the soul; return to nature as a source of inspiration and wisdom; life in nature often contrasted with the unnatural constraints of society.

Values of democracy and the freedom of the individual (civic, political, ideological)

Romantic aspiration after Beauty and Truth, that which transcends mundane limits, OR the Romantic imagination's fascination with all that is "dark, uncertain and confused'; the awe inspired by horror

Approx. 450-500 words (2 pages, double-spaced, Times Roman font 12 pt.)

English 2:

Assignment: Choose one of the authors we have read this term and any other text/film you already know which has a logical point of comparison and write a short compare/contrast essay. You must state clearly what you are comparing (i.e., time frame, genre, theme, etc.).

For example: Michel de Montaigne was a contemporary of Shakespeare (common point: time). Compare MdM with the Bard: style, character, a theme in one of the plays. OR

Abelard & Heloise's tragic love story, compared to Jack and Ennis in the film Brokeback Mountain (common point: lovers kept apart by social rules who keep in periodic contact for years after their separation). OR

Molière's play is a comedy which lampoons a particular aspect of moral hypocrisy, as do Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Ernest, Lady Windemere's Fan, An Ideal Husband (common point: satire on social pretenses, ethical dishonesty). OR

Hugo, Balzac, Maupassant, Zola: all 19th century short-story writers. Compare one of these authors' works with another short story (common point: short story genre). OR

Duras's The Lover and ChimamandaNgoziAdichi's Purple Hibiscus, both post-colonial coming-of-age stories (common points: genre, time, AND theme).

These are only suggestions; feel free to choose your own.

If you are unsure of your selection or comparison point, feel free to email me.

Length: 1-2 pages (Times Roman font, 12 pt.)