Monday 28 February 2011

Plan for Stranger essay

Plan:

Step 1: Read through the novel, finding major themes and motifs

Step 2: Figure out what theme is most similar/different to Metamorphosis

Step 3: Read Metamorphosis and the Stranger again twice, checking for all similarities between the two novels. Check for structure, theme and motif similarities. Also check for biblical allegories in both. Compare these.

Step 4: Read the secondary sources on Metamorphosis, and find one on The Stranger. Investigate the lives of Kafka and Camus.

Step 5: Organise these similarities by importance, starting with theme-related ones, and then talking about structure similarities, then motifs and finally biblical allegories. Compare throughout. Then do the same with differences, writing them in the same order.

Step 6: Talk about how the lives of the authors may have affected the author’s portrayal of their main character, and how it would have affected the theme of the books.

9 comments:

  1. The James Method
    Pros
    Comparisons to metamorphosis
    Use backgrounds of the authors to answer questions
    Highligthing motifs and themes
    Cons
    Not a clear structure/organization method
    Not a clear idea on how the thesis should be written

    ReplyDelete
  2. Pros: simple, clear, easy to read, topic choosing method is good

    cons: need to talk about the further stages, such as the thesis, structure, editing, etc
    D

    ReplyDelete
  3. Pro- You make sure that all connections are made, and not only literary features are found
    - You also find more information that would probably improve the essay
    - Clear
    Con-A little brief
    -Doesn't really talk about how to approach the actual writing of the essay.

    ReplyDelete
  4. the process is good, but long, and there are some unnecessary steps. but otherwise the process is clear and will be good.

    ReplyDelete
  5. You mention finding connection but you do not mention how many times to read the book or how you would organize your thoughts before writing the essay.I think that this is not a long enough process because of this.

    ReplyDelete
  6. James, your processes touch upon the basic ideas and it is also strong in focusing on a specific idea. Although there are strengths I feel like you should have included specifics of your process such as how should you figure out the similarities and differences of the theme? Also I feel like your plan should be able to be adapted to all types of essays rather than just one.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Fine I take back that you do not mention ho many times to read the novel. However you do not mention any sort of editing process and how many drafts you would write.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I think your plan is good but you just need to elaborate on each step but other than that, the steps are clear and easy to follow

    ReplyDelete
  9. i think its partially a good thing that you look closely at the text, you will find good evidence, but at what point in the process to do let your own ideas really mature and take shape, you seem to rely on evidence a little to much

    ReplyDelete