The requirements for the second essay are:
A. As in the first essay, that you include a strong, bold, and arguable thesis (ie. stretch your
imagination to tell me something I dont know, something we havent discussed in class,
and something that isnt on Wikipedia);
B. That you prioritize analysis or close reading of the text. This means that you should
include frequent quotations accompanied by substantial analysis of them in service of
proving your thesis. Remember that analysis is where you really put your text (whether it
be a poem, scene from a film, song, or paragraph in a novel) under the microscope,
showing how exactly it provides evidence for your thesis, and drawing out all of its
interesting nuances (ie. does the author use literary devices like alliteration or chiasmus?
Does she write in short or long sentences?, etc);
2
C. That your essay include an interesting title that gives your reader a sense of what the
subject will be and that also has some style.
D. That your essay include a dynamic conclusion that pushes your study off in a new
direction and does not repeat previous points;
E. That your essay has page numbers and a Works Cited (using MLA, APA, Chicago Style,
or a citation style of your choice).
F. That you send me an e-mail running your topic and/or thesis statement by me sometime
before classes end (and preferably sooner).
TOPICS
1. Develop an argument about a subject of your choice relating to the Gothic genre or
vampire literature (using Bram Stokers Dracula, Sheridan Le Fanus Carmilla, and any
other gothic or vampire narratives that interest you).
2. Develop an argument about any film adaptation of Dracula or Carmilla and the way it
handles and adapts any element of the novel (ie. the physical qualities of Dracula or
Carmilla, the relationship between particular characters, the political or allegorical
meanings of vampirism, etc).
3. Develop an argument about interesting interconnections between the works of any two or
three of the following authors: Samuel Beckett, Oscar Wilde, Bram Stoker, and/or
Sheridan LeFanu (for example, you might want to look at how Oscar Wilde incorporates
material from the Bible as opposed to how Samuel Beckett does, or how Sheridan Le
Fanu writes about houses/castles compared to how Bram Stoker does).
4. Develop an arguable thesis about the relationship between Wildes The Importance of
Being Earnest and De Profundis.
5. Develop an argument about how any work that interests you (Irish or not) challenges,
transforms, criticizes, inadvertently or purposely perpetuates, or otherwise imaginatively
or controversially engages with ethnic stereotypes. This might be a paper in which you
compare Greenidges The Luck of the Irish to another work (for instance, you might
decide to focus by comparing it to other Boston-based work like the films The Town, The
Heat, or Spotlight) but it also might be a paper about how ethnic stereotypes are
challenged, and how harmonies and rivalries between groups are depicted. in any work
that interests you– Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, August Wilson’s Fences,
Viet Thanh Nguyens The Refugees, Martin Scorseses Gangs of New York, Spike Lees
Do The Right Thing, Aziz Ansaris Master of None, Robert Wises West Side Story, Alan
Croslands The Jazz Singer, Kumail Nanjianis The Big Sick, Victor Flemings Gone with
the Wind, Stephen Knights Peaky Blinders, Justin Simien’s Dear White People and Ana
3
DuVernay’s Selma are just a few examples of works that might be rewarding to study
from this perspective.6. Develop an arguable thesis about anything you want. It doesnt have to be an Irish topic,
but it should build on the expertise youve gained here in some wayfor instance, you
might want to do a comparative study between one of the writers weve read in this
course and one from somewhere else; an essay on Gothic motifs in another context; or a
study of some topic weve broached, like sectarianism, feminism, or civil rights in a
different national context or period. You might choose to write about a related work of
literature that we havent gotten a chance to read in this class (such as Wildes The
Picture of Dorian Gray or Joyces Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man). You might
decide to write an essay about an Irish film such as Once or Black 47. This is a good
opportunity to put Irish literature in conversation with your own interests, or with a wider
range of cultures, intellectual traditions, and themes than we have covered so far. Or, you
might decide that this is the time to write about music, if you didnt get a chance to in
your first essay.
And finally, just a quick reminder of a point from above: no matter what your topic (ie. whether
its one of the ones listed here or one you develop independently) you must send me an e-mail
before classes end (and preferably sooner) telling me what you intend to write about and what
your thesis statement is.
