RESEARCHING LITERATUREAnd How to Read an Article of Literary Criticism

What are the goals of a research paper about literature?

• Goal 1: Offer an interesting, defensible interpretation of the piece of literature.• Goal 2: Successfully use a critical theory to inform and guide your approach. • Goal 3: Successfully use quotations and evidence from the work of literature to support your interpretation. • Goal 4: Thoughtfully integrate articles that use your chosen critical theory into your research paper.

PASS OUT RESEARCH PAPER PROMPT

The Literary Criticism Research Paper

• Using one of the critical literary theories we have discussed or will discuss in class, write an analysis of one of the works of literature that is included in our textbook or on our class syllabus (you may, in some cases, write about more than one work). • First, you should formulate a research question about your

work/works of literature that incorporates the theory you have chosen.

• Then, do research to explore what other critics who use the theory you have chosen have said about your work of literature, theory, or question, and use what you discover as you research to support your own interpretation of the text, or to propose a new interpretation.

Minimum Requirements: • Length: 6 – 8 pages. This means the body of you paper (not the

works cited page) must be down to the bottom of the sixth page at least when the paper is formatted correctly. • This is approximately 1600-2000 words. Your essay can be longer than

this—but 1600 words is the absolute minimum. Any essay that is less than 6 pages when correctly formatted will not be accepted and will receive a failing grade.

• Sources: In your essay, you must cite least four outside critical sources, either by quoting them directly or by paraphrase. Quotes and sources should be directly relevant to the topic you are discussing. • General encyclopedias, whether they are online or in print, are not

appropriate sources for this assignment, and I strongly caution you against using Google or other general search engines as your primary or only method of finding resources.

• Use the specialized library databases instead Gale Literature Resource Center and EBESCOhost can both be accessed through our library website, as well as our library’s database and Ebooks by EBESCOhost)

Other Requirements:• Quotations: I am expecting you to have at least one quotation

from the work(s) of literature you are discussing in each body paragraph of your essay. (Though you may, of course, have more than one quotation per paragraph.) • Also, remember that you need to use each of your 4 outside critical

sources at least once in your paper. • All quotations/citations must be in MLA format, and you will need to include a

complete works cited page that lists both the works of literature and the critical articles you have cited on a separate page at the end of your essay. If you have questions about how to format your quotations or do your works cited page, please refer to your text book (Chapter 3: Documenting Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism), talk to me, or visit the library and speak with a librarian.

• Formatting: Your essay should be written in 12 Point Times New Roman font, have one-inch margins, and include your name, date, class, assignment, and word count in the upper left-hand corner of the first page. • Look at the example essays in your textbook. There are example essays,

plus LOTS of great information about how to write an literary analysis in Chapters 1, 2, and 3 of your textbook.

Summary vs. Analysis:• I am expecting the bulk of your paper to be analysis, not summary. • Do NOT make the focus of your paper telling us what

happens. If I wanted to know that, I’d just read the poem/story/play.

• Assume that your audience is familiar with the literature you are discussing and keep summary to a minimum, only using it when it is necessary as a specific example or to place your arguments within the context of the story.

• Please also refer to the excellent advice in your textbook in the sections “Drafting an Essay” pg. 13-21, and “Using Evidence Effectively” pg. 39-41.

Due Dates:• Thursday, May 8: • Bring rough draft of introduction/thesis and at least 2 sources.

• Tuesday, May 26: • Bring a copy of your Research Paper to edit and work on in class.

• Thursday, May 28: • Final Draft Due, digital copy due on turnitin.com

Some tips on coming up with a research question: • Start with a broad question.

• For instance, you might start with a question like, "How do psychoanalytic critics interpret Hamlet?"

• Narrow your focus to a specific character or theme. • For Example: as you do your research on Hamlet, you may become fascinated

by readings of the character of Ophelia, and you may revise your question to, "How can a psychoanalytic approach help us to understand Ophelia's actions in Hamlet?" Now that you have narrowed your focus to a specific character, the assignment should be much more manageable.

• Remember, it is not your job to come up with the one and only interpretation of a work of literature using the theory you choose. Instead, it is your job to propose possible interpretations, to prove to your audience that those interpretations work, (make sense), and to explain to your audience what your interpretation reveals about the work of literature.

What Literary Theories Can I Use? (All of these are discussed in your Textbook, p.1213-1238.) • Formalism/New Criticism• Reader-Response Theory• Historical/ New Historicist Criticism• Marxist Theory• *Psychoanalytic Criticism – (we are not discussing this one in class, BUT you may still use it if you choose.)• Structuralism/Deconstruction• Gender Studies/Feminism• Queer Theory• Post-colonial Theory• Cultural Studies/American Multiculturalism

What work of literature can I write about?

• Any work of literature from our syllabus/class that you have not already written about in your first two essays. • You may, if you would like, write about more than one work from the same author, or two works with similar themes/issues, especially in the case of poems. • Many students choose to write about the two novels we are reading. However, this is not required. You must, however, write about different work(s) of literature than the ones you used for your second essay.

Where do I find articles of literary criticism? • Mission College has some excellent databases. The most useful for your purposes will probably be: – The Gale Literature Resource Center– EBESCOhost– But check the others too!

• I would also suggest searching the library’s physical collection. Once you have a specific idea of what you will be researching, ask the Reference Librarians to help you!

How do I formulate a research question?

• Ask yourself what confuses you about the work? Or alternately, what do you think is particularly well-done or interesting? • Where do you see room for differing interpretations? • Where do you find yourself asking why a character took a

certain action, or what symbolic meaning an object or event has?

• What theories from your handout seem to be well-suited to the work you have chosen? • Narrow your interest to a specific character or event. • Even after you have formed a question, it may change as you begin to do your research. • Be flexible.

How do I read an article of literary criticism? • Most works of literary criticism are published in

journals, and can range from brief, four or five page articles to fifty or sixty page essays. Before you begin to read, identify: – Who is the author of the article? – Can you tell which critical theory the author is using? – Read the abstract (if there is one). This should give you a

summary of the article.

• Identify the thesis (provoking or arguable claim) of the article.

• How does the author support his or her thesis? • If the author quotes the work of literature, look at those

quotes in context. Do you agree with the author’s interpretation?

• How does the author incorporate the ideas from the critical theory into his or her analysis?

How do I use an article of criticism in my essay?

• Agree with the author’s interpretation, and add something to it.

• “They say [THIS] and also…” or • “[THIS] helps us realize that [your point]”– Use the author’s ideas about your chosen critical theory

as a springboard for your own.– Analyze a passage the author didn’t discuss and show

how it fits with his or her ideas.

• Disagree with the author’s interpretation. • “So-and-so has not taken THIS into account”– What has the author overlooked? – Where do you see evidence for a different, contradictory

interpretation?

Research Paper: Suggestion #1• Become very familiar with the theory that you are using. Re-read the section on your chosen theory in your textbook.• Don’t wait for the day we discuss it in class! If a particular

theory looks interesting to you, read the intro on it in our textbook and research it on your own!

• Do additional research on your theory in the library and on the internet. Learn the terms and assumptions that are unique to that theory. • Read several works of criticism that use that theory, even if they are not related to the work of literature that you are writing about.

Suggestion #2•Become very familiar with the literary work(s) you will be analyzing. •Reread them carefully, mark them, highlight them, look over the reading journals you did for them. •What new insights do you have on this second reading? What themes/patterns/literary techniques do you notice? •Have your textbook open to the work as you read literary criticism so you can refer to the original story/poem/play.

Suggestion #3• Keep good records of where you find ideas. • If you wish to use an idea that you found in your research, that is perfectly acceptable, but you must tell me where that idea came from, which means that you need to keep records.• That way, you can always find the information you need when it comes time to make your works cited page. • YOU MUST USE MLA FORMAT. (see textbook for examples)

Suggestion #4• Don’t wait until the last week to begin this project. • I have given you 4 weeks to work on this paper, and the amount of work that is required of you will take up all of that time. Don’t put it off. • Set goals for yourself each week when it comes to this project.