Group Presentations: Nella Larsen's Passing

At left is a photo of musical comedy legend Carol Channing, who, in her 2002 autobiography (Just Lucky, I Guess), acknowledged that she was racially mixed. This photograph was taken by Carl Van Vechten, who is satirized in Passing as the character "Hugh Wentworth. 

Final Project: Group Presentation (20 points)

You will be responsible for preparing and delivering a presentation focusing on an aspect of Nella Larsen’s Passing, and related to this semester’s theme: Aliens/Outcasts/Outsiders. The major theme should be considered as the central, controlling idea of your piece—again, if you find that other themes of significance are surfacing and converging with your major theme as you develop your project, please note them.

You may also interweave some of the other relevant thematic discussions from our semester (the focus on the alien/outcast/outsider in literature and popular culture) into this group presentation. Relate this text to other texts discussed in class, if you find them relevant.

Sample themes: aesthetics (beauty), alienation, childhood, class distinctions, colorism/color consciousness, community, corporeality, difference, equality, ethics/morality, family, femininity, hypocrisy, identity, individuality, innocence, intellectualism, interracialism, literacy, loneliness, masculinity, monstrousness, morality, poverty, race relations, racism, rebellion, religion, responsibility, segregation, separatism, sexism, sexual exploitation, sexuality, violence. Some of these themes overlap—your thesis should reflect your theme in a clear, well-articulated manner.

You are encouraged to use video, film, photographs, text (including quotes from the text), and other documents to create a PowerPoint presentation of your work (maximum 12 minutes in length).

You must include a slide listing the “Credits,” i.e., the specific contribution made by each group member. In addition, you must create a Works Cited Page as the final slide of your presentation, using MLA-style. Refer to the MLA Style Guide on the course blog for MLA-style compliance. At our final class meeting, the group members will present their projects. I encourage you to be as imaginative as possible with these presentations.

Below is a list of the criteria for your PowerPoint, adapted from a rubric adapted from a former colleague.

Final Project Rubric for PowerPoint Presentation Photo-documentaries and Essay

The following categories on the reverse side of this sheet provide a clear list of the elements that are expected in each group’s project, regardless of its form and purpose. Use these criteria as a tool that will enable you, as the designer, to produce persuasive communication by means of innovation, creativity, and polished reflection. Each of the categories is worth 4 points, for a total of 20 points of the final grade.

GROUP NAME_____________________________________

 Thesis and Purpose: Points___
How clear is your thesis? Is the topic compelling and relevant not only to your own interests but to an issue of larger significance? How well do the images (photos, film, or other visuals) illustrate both the thesis and its related ideas in a cogent manner?

Composition: Points___ Does the project follow a logical flow of thought? Do these ideas transition well and are they well-supported by both visual and interpretive qualities? Is the project free of grammatical errors? Can it be used as a model for other students in the future?

Technical Image and Quality/Audio Recording and Editing: Points___

How well do the images fit into the overall presentation? Are the images high-quality digital files? Do the photographs demonstrate a variety of images and perspectives? Do they seem to illustrate or create a pattern of thought?  How does the overall final project look, including captions, titles, transitions, and image?

Caption Information and Presentation: Points___
Is there a clear integration of the visual and written composition of the final project? How well have you complemented your images with written text? How does the written text (approximately 350 – 500 words total) act to amplify and enhance the quality of the project as a whole? Are original insights supported by relevant research in your written text or is it merely expository?

Individual Contribution: Points___
How well are your slides integrated into your oral delivery? Did you proofread your slides to ensure they are grammatically correct and are MLA-compliant? Have you included quotes from the primary text as well as any other texts? Are they MLA-compliant? Have you rehearsed your delivery (individually as well as with the group) to ensure a smooth presentation?

TOTAL___________

 Group 1                      Group 2                 Group 3                             Group 4
Guichelle                    Joy                         Erick                                 Jeremiah
Anna                           Malik                      Facundo                            Derrick
Cesar                          Mariana                  Bryan                                Demetrius
Nicole                         Terry                     Falonne                             Caiu
                                                                                                        Pablo

 

RESEARCH PAPER #2 - DUE Saturday, April 25

As we read, New Jersey native Stephen Crane's 1898 novella, "The Monster," (first published in Harper's New Monthly Magazine) relates the story of a black servant, Henry Johnson, who rescues the son of his employer, a white doctor, from a terrible fire. Henry is disfigured in the process and is, at first, regarded as a hero by the community. However, due to his disfigurement--he is literally without a face-- his persistent presence in the community is viewed as a disruptive element and he becomes a pariah. 

There are several ways of reading this story: 1) as a racial allegory and/or as a Christian allegory; 2) as an example of the "white man's burden"; 3) as a metaphor for modernity, and so on. The story is quintessentially Crane in its stylistic elements, and he also engages in illustrating some of the racial stereotypes characteristically used by white writers of the turn of the century.

I have posted a link to Adam Smith's "The Impartial Spectator" (from 1759's The Theory of Moral Sentiments) for you to consider alongside "The Monster" as you consider the story for your final papers. Dr. Trescott's insistence on caring for him despite the social ostracism from the white community asks the reader to consider the idea of "sympathy" and whether there are natural limitations on how one may proceed conscientiously and ethically in one's life. Indeed, as we discussed, the concluding scene in the novella offers no easy closure, as it is open-ended, suggesting that the answers to ethical questions such are arrived at with great difficulty and, at times, remain uncertain.


I have posted another link to the novella as well as to the Adam Smith text below for easy searching. 

The Monster, Stephen Crane

"The Impartial Spectator," Adam Smith, from Theory of Moral Sentiments

RESEARCH PAPER #2

For research paper #2 (a combined research/reflection paper), here is the revised due date: Saturday, 4/25
 
Again, this paper can be written as a comparison/contrast with Frankenstein, as a reflection on the status of the "outsider," or as a response to one or more of the articles we read in class. You are free to analyze it using whatever critical approach (Marxist, critical race theory, post-colonial, feminist, psychoanalytic, etc.) you want to. The only guidelines, really, are that you incorporate at least two critical essays in your paper, and that you discuss "The Monster" and one or more of the other pieces we have analyzed in class. 

We will start our discussion of Nella Larsen's Passing on Tuesday, 4/14, and you will begin working on ideas for your final group presentation on Passing. I will send you a couple of past PowerPoint presentations so that you may see what other students have done.

P.S. Here is a blog entry from 2010 with another perspective on "The Monster" and its cultural context: Era of Casual Fridays

Database Resources for Papers

Hi, class,

I am providing you with basic database searching instructions. This will be of great assistance to you when you begin work on the research paper in April.

DATABASE RESOURCES

Here are the instructions (the emphasis here is on the Literature Resource Center—LRC, as an example). To access The Literature Resource Center, and Contemporary Authors/Literary Criticism Select/Dictionary of Literary Biography, go to:

 http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itweb/essexcc

The password is: county

Click "Proceed"
 
Click on Literature Resource Center - LRC

1) When you get to the search box (FIND), just type in your search terms:

EXAMPLES:

• crane AND monster
• Frankenstein AND nature AND nurture
• AND two offers 
• harriet wilson AND our nig
• morrison AND bluest eye
• douglass AND heroic slave

2) under “publication century,” CLICK “21st century A.D.” 

3) under “by content type,” UNCHECK all the boxes EXCEPT “Literature Criticism”

4) Make sure “All electronic sources” is highlighted (it is the default).

5) Then CLICK “Search” (next to where your search terms were entered).

Several articles will come up--skim through to see if you find some suitable articles. If you cannot find articles that work, try using other search terms. Click on the ones you think might be suitable, and email them to yourself, or download them. If you cannot find suitable articles from "21st century A.D.," click "None selected" and do your search again.
 
TEXTS AVAILABLE IN LIBRARY 
In addition, there are many books on the authors we have studied accessible from the Essex County College Library. For books, you may use works (biographies, collected essays, etc.) published no earlier than the year 2000. Look for the book using the call letters. If you cannot find the books you want to use in the stacks, ask the reference librarian for assistance. You also have access to the Rutgers-Newark Library with your ID card, so feel free to access articles from their resources.

Comments on Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Hi, class, please feel free to respond to any (or all) of the questions posted below.

1) Throughout Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, everyone who encounters Hyde finds it difficult to describe his looks. Why do you think author Robert Louis Stevenson avoids having the characters provide a precise visual description of Hyde?

2) In the section, “Henry Jekyll’s Full Statement of the Case” in the Norton (49-62), Henry Jekyll writes of  the “…thorough and primitive duality of man,” which causes him to explore that duality through his scientific experiments: “Even at that time, I had not yet conquered my aversion to the dryness of a life of study I would still be merrily disposed at times; and as my pleasures were (to say the least) undignified, and I was not only well known and well considered, but growing towards the elderly man, the incoherency of my life was growing daily more unwelcome, It was on this side that y new power tempted me until I fell into slavery. I had to but drink the cup, to doff at once the body of the noted professor and to assume, like a thick cloak, that of Edward Hyde” (52). In an essay, find passages to compare the repressed and dry life of Dr. Jekyll with the exciting and unhallowed pleasures of Edward Hyde. Why, in the final analysis, do you think Edward Hyde triumphed of Jekyll?

3) Some critics view Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as exposing anxieties in the British Empire, with the main conflict as symbolic of threats regarding race, class, sexuality (including homosexuality), Darwinism, and immigration at the end of the 19th Century. Find and analyze one or more passages within the story and write an essay to support or refute such claims.

Electronic Edition of Frankenstein - and keyword searching!

On-line text of Frankenstein/searching using keywords/additional critical approaches and definitions/contexts

Hi, class,

The group exercise, in which you were to examine the various critical approaches to Frankenstein (Marxist, feminist, psychoanalytic, etc.) was so that you would gain an understanding of all of them more quickly.  Again, this was mainly for reasons of expediency--you need not stick to that approach for your research paper. 

Below is the University of Pennsylvania's Electronic Edition of the 1818 Frankenstein. Cut and paste it into your browser, and try doing a search, if you think it might help you move more quickly to the chapters/passages that you think will be most helpful to you when you begin to write. 

Try using the specific keywords that relate to the approach you are using. For example, try "dream" and "sleep" if you are using a psychoanalytic approach and writing about Victor's unconscious state--try using "glory" if you want to do a comparison/contrast of Walton and Victor, etc. 

Of particular value to you are the "Table of Chapters" and the "Contents." If you click on one of the chapters in "Table of Chapters," you will see that the text has links to clearer explanations of terms, along with more contexts. If you click on "Contents," you will see a variety of materials that are available to you. Some (like the "Critical Approaches" page) are unavailable, but in terms of providing some overall background and over 200 critical essays on the text, this is a great site.

University of Pennsylvania Electronic Edition of Frankenstein

  
I would caution you, however, that you should use this site primarily for help in understanding some of the contexts of Frankenstein, and to assist you in finding good research articles. You are to do your own writing--do not depend on this site for YOUR critical analysis--I want to know what YOU are thinking in relation to your chosen theme.

Click on this link to be taken to a host of critical essays on Frankenstein: 

 http://knarf.english.upenn.edu/Articles/index.html

BEFORE YOU FEEL OVERWHELMED, THOUGH, here is a trick for getting to what you may be searching for more expediently!

Go on Google. In the search bar, type what you want Google to search for. For example, for those of you using the psychoanalytic approach, you may want to try the word "psychoanalytic." Just enter the following into the search bar:

psychoanalytic site: http://www.english.upenn.edu/Projects/knarf/Articles/index.html

Or enter "freud," like this:

freud site: http://www.english.upenn.edu/Projects/knarf/Articles/index.html

Or enter "feminism," like this:

feminism site: http://www.english.upenn.edu/Projects/knarf/Articles/index.html

Or enter "race," like this:

race site: http://www.english.upenn.edu/Projects/knarf/Articles/index.html

Google will then search for that word in the Articles directory of the website--try it--it can save you time! 

A word about "plagiarism": Please note, especially in using on-line sources for critical support, that you must annotate your sources immediately if you are cutting and pasting them for use in your paper--it is easy to inadvertently paste a piece of documentation without attribution. You should cite your sources properly and make sure that you use quotes. Do not depend solely on your sources for analysis-write your own analysis and try to find a source that supports it. In addition, you may find an article that contradicts your own findings--argue with that source! Feel free to disagree, but find textual support in Frankenstein for your own ideas.

Finally, although this paper is a research project, you should be having fun! Frankenstein is a pleasure to read and analyze--I am enjoying the class's critical discourse, and I know that you will continue to provide rich and thoughtful commentary!

All best,

Prof. Williams

Guidelines for Frankenstein Research Paper - New Due Dates!

ASSIGNMENT: You will write a fully documented, multiple-sourced research/literary analysis paper (approximately 7-10 pages in length), which will follow MLA guidelines in matters of form (see MLA in-text citation style below—for complete MLA style, click at left on course blog), and it will contain a Works Cited Page, in-text citations to those sources, and a complete outline. For your first paper, you must use a total of eight (8) in-text citations from at least three (3) sources, in any combination. 


 Your first paper, on Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, will focus on a theme of interest to you. For this paper, you will be examining the novel utilizing a particular critical perspective—psychoanalytic, feminist, gender studies, Marxist, critical race theory, or cultural criticism. You may utilize some of the articles you read or some from the handouts I provided as part of your Works Cited sources, or you may find others. We will have a brief “brainstorming” session on Tuesday, 2/24 to assist you in developing your first paper. Please bring in a draft of your abstract on Tuesday as well.


  The 1st research paper (Frankenstein) will be due on Tuesday, 3/3, at MIDNIGHT via email. Late papers may be subjected to a loss of 3 points. You may submit your paper early. In the interest of fairness, please do not ask me to make an exception for you.


 NOTE: For research papers, YOU MAY NOT USE the following as sources, as they are NOT considered scholarly works: SparkNotes, CliffsNotes, ClassicNotes, Enotes, GradeSaver, or any other student guides.  


A Wikipedia entry may NOT be used as a source—however, if the “Source” section of a Wikipedia entry contains a scholarly work (a journal article or academic book) that you want to quote from in your paper, you are free to retrieve the work from the library (hard copy or from a database) and incorporate it into your paper.
  

 ANY INSTANCE OF PLAGIARISM IN THE RESEARCH PAPER WILL RESULT IN AN “F” ON THE ENTIRE PAPER WITH NO POSSIBILITY FOR REVISION.

 SUBMISSION DATES

ABSTRACT: Students must present a one paragraph abstract of approximately 75-100 words summarizing the paper--also, let me know what critical essays you intend to use to complete the assignment (to the bet of your ability). Due Thursday, 2/26


BIBLIOGRAPHY: You must present a Bibliography of sources (books, journal articles, newspaper articles, media sources, Internet sources) that you think you be using for your research paper. The page will consist of no fewer than three (3) critical sources.  At least two (2) of the sources must come from scholarly books or articles on the main topic. Internet sources can comprise no more than one (1) of the sources. Due Thursday, 2/26   

OUTLINE: An outline is required as part of the grade for the research paper. This outline must directly correspond to the research paper and may be handed in with the paper. Due Thursday, 3/3 (submit with your paper)

THIS PAPER IS DUE ON TUESDAY, 3/3, by midnight.
 

ANY PAPER SUBMITTED AFTER THIS DATE AND TIME MAY RESULT IN THE LOSS OF 3 POINTS.

Satire on Romantic Suicide

Hi, class--this was sent to me by Facundo--if you click on the link below, you can magnify the image to see more details!

“Here is a painting by a Spanish artist of the Romantic period named Leonardo Alenza y Nieto (1807-1845) called ‘Sátira del Suicidio Romántico’ or ‘Satire on Romantic Suicide’ (painted ca.1839). I thought it would be a nice thing to share in class.”

Thanks, Facundo!

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:LEONARDO_ALENZA_-_S%C3%A1tira_del_suicidio_rom%C3%A1ntico_(Museo_Rom%C3%A1ntico,_Madrid,_c._1839).jpg

 

Critical Approaches - Due Thursday, 2/19

Hi, Class,

By Tuesday, you should have read the assigned critical perspective through which you can examine Frankenstein (feminist, gender, Marxist, psychoanalytic, cultural criticism). The assignment is to provide a basic definition (bullet points are fine) of the critical approach I assigned to you, and extract 3-4 quotes from the essay which you think best explain that perspective.

  Below is the list of critical essays from the Norton Critical Edition for each group to read (for some, I will provide handouts--the handouts are in the pink envelope outside my office--try to retrieve over the weekend), and you should extract a couple of quotes from that as well. When you get together with your group on Tuesday, you will have time to work with them, compare and consolidate your notes into one cohesive sheet for Thursday.

  

(Feminist Criticism) Nicole, Falonne, Pablo

"Mary Shelley's Monstrous Eve" (328-344).
"Female Gothic: The Monster's Mother" (317-327).

(Gender Criticism) Guichelle, Anna, Cesar
"Mary Shelley, Frankenstein, and the Spectacle of Masculinity" (391-403).
"My Hideous Progeny": The Lady and the Monster" (344-355). 

 (Psychoanalytic Criticism) Joy, Malik, Mariana, Terry
"The Monster and the Maternal Thing: Mary Shelley’s Critique of Ideology." (handout)

(Marxist Criticism) Erick, Facundo, Bryam

"Frankenstein, the True Story; or, Rousseau Judges Jean-Jacques." (416-434).
"The Workshop of Filthy Creation”: A Marxist Reading of Frankenstein." (handout) 

(Cultural/Race/Film) Jeremiah, Derrick, Demetrius, Caiu
"Frankenstein, Racial Science, and the Yellow Peril" (482-489).
"Looking at the Monster: Frankenstein and Film" (444-467).
 

·         Each group will focus on the key aspects of one of these critical perspectives and report to the rest of the class. I am doing this mainly for reasons of expediency--you need not stick to that approach for your research paper. 

 

·         Each group will provide 4-5 BRIEF bullet points based upon the reading, and I will ask a representative from each group to briefly explain how its critical perspective can be/has been applied to Frankenstein.

·         Feel free to pull a sample from the critical essay in the edition, if you’d like. I would suggest that you read the opening portion of the critical essay (if you don’t have time to read the entire piece) to understand the author’s thesis. 

·         Don’t overthink the assignment—just think about it as a fellow student asking you, “What is feminist criticism, and how might one apply it to a reading of Frankenstein?” And then…you explain!

   

Frankenstein's Delusions of Grandeur; Response Paper #3 (Online)

Boris Karloff as The Creature

Thus far in your reading, who do you think is the real "monster" of this tale? Write an argument detailing whether you think Victor or the Creature deserves the title of "monster," citing specific passages to back up your argument. Post your brief response online by Sunday, February 8.

The Persistence of Frankenstein

Hi, class,

We will begin our discussion of Frankenstein tomorrow--your assignment was to read the "Preface," "Introduction," and "Letters" in the Norton Critical Edition. Frankenstein was written during the height of the literary movement known as Romanticism--click here and here for brief working definitions. 

Below are clips from several film adaptations of the novel--including the full-length version of the first one, made in 1910 at Edison Studios, the 1931 classic, the delightfully nutty 1935 sequel, the 1994 remake with Kenneth Branagh and Robert DeNiro, and Mel Brooks's hilarious version, made in 1974. I tried to get all the "birth/creation" scenes--enjoy! 

This is the first-ever adaptation!

Frankenstein, 1910. Watch the "special effect" at the end! (Full-length 12:41)

Frankenstein, 1931. "It's alive!" (RT 4:05)

Frankenstein, 1994. Frankenstein gives "birth." (RT 2:02)

Young Frankenstein, 1974. (RT 5:01)

Bride of Frankenstein, 1935. "She's alive!" (RT 2:20)