Lone Star College ?Forgiving my father and Those Winter Sunday Essay

Literary Thematic Analysis Essay Assignments

Literary research is a task that involves a close examination beyond the surface of a

literary text in an effort to reveal underlying themes, aspects of symbolism and imagery,

compositional style, critical approaches and other scholarly dimensions of a given text.

This close examination ultimately leads to a greater understanding of the author’s

purpose for writing the particular text and its significance to the particular time period.

For this essay, you will choose a minimum of 2 works studied up to the current readings

and investigate a particular

“Theme”

that is present throughout the work(s). You will

illuminate how these works have presented a particular

“Theme

,” and how these works

share one or more themes. For example, the works you choose may present one or more

of the following themes:

naivety, lack of communication between characters, vanity,

control, loss, culture and heritage, the quest for identity, the quest for knowledge,

evil, deception, loneliness, revenge, loyalty, passion etc.

Using specific evidence from the primary texts and scholarly secondary sources, you will

illustrate your chosen theme by use of key quotations, which highlight the particular

theme most effectively. Include strong symbolism and imagery from the texts whenever

possible as this adds a very sophisticated touch to your writing.

Your secondary sources will include scholarly books, journal articles, and professional

websites, which will be used to support your thematic analysis that you conduct on your

texts.

1.

The paper must be a minimum of 4-5 double-spaced pages.

2.

You must use the primary text and a minimum of 3 contrasting secondary

sources, which include scholarly journal articles, books, and professional

websites to support your analysis

3.

You must use current MLA documentation throughout the paper. This

includes correct use of “in-text citation” and “parenthetical notes.”

4.

You must include a “works cited page” at the end of the paper

poems

Lucille Clifton’s “Forgiving my father” & Robert Hayden’s “Those Winter Sunday’s”