09 Nov short story
Part Two: Please choose only ONE of the following questions and write an essay about it (80 pts.). Include an introductory paragraph. Be as specific as possible by supporting your statements with examples from the text(s). Please write in clear, grammatical sentences. Proofread your essay. Your essay should be a minimum of 6 – 8 paragraphs in length.
1. Consider the following quotation from “A Woman’s Beauty: Put-Down or Power Source?” an essay from the influential late 20th - century American critic Susan Sontag: ‘To be called beautiful is thought to name something essential to women’s character and concerns (in contrast to men — whose essence is to be strong, effective, or competent). It does not take someone in the throes in advanced feminist awareness to perceive that the way women are taught to be involved with beauty encourages narcissism, reinforces dependence and immaturity. Everybody (women and men) knows that.” Explain what this quotation means and then agree or disagree with it in terms of Guy de Maupassant’s “The Necklace.”
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2. Language has its limitations, one could argue. We rarely see articulated the experience of Happiness — which seems much neglected in the language of narrative. Some exceptions include passages in Willa Cather’s “Neighbor Rosicky“ and parts of Louise Erdrich’s “The Red Convertible.” In your essay, address the notion of happiness in these two short stories. Show examples of the experience of happiness, explain your examples and their contexts, and contrast them in terms of what you think each author is suggesting about happiness.
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3. Is Theodore Dreiser a psychological realist? Based on “The Second Choice” argue for or against this view by explaining what a psychological realist is in early twentieth-century American fiction and how this story fits into that definition. Give examples to support your argument. Does Dreiser provide a level of candor not present in most American fiction up to that time? Is this story an example of psychological realism, that is, without romantic idealization? Is insight given into the female mind? Is Shirley an “operator”? Does she evaluate the prospect of Arthur versus Barton?
