College English- Mrs. Curley
Love & Relationships Paper
Please note below the suggested topics for your upcoming paper on recently assigned literary works:
The Tempest
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Explore the nature of love within the play.
Delineate the dynamic of family within the play.
Selected short stories- “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter, The Dill Pickle, The Ring”
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“The Horse Dealer’s Daughter”- the nature of sibling dynamic, the effect of parental loss, the
development of romantic love, the presence of animal imagery
“The Dill Pickle”- the nature of perception, the dynamics of love and gender, the role of memory
“The Ring”- the presentation of marriage, the dynamics of gender, social class and love
The Importance of Being Earnest
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Explore the presentation of gender and social class.
Explain the effect of gender and social class.
Explore the attitudes toward ‘reputation’ and conventionality’ in Victorian society.
Choose one of the following motifs in the play and analyze its implications/presentation:
absurdity and foolishness, dishonesty, marriage, reputation, social convention, or social mobility.
Analyze the implications of character dialogue.
You may craft your own thesis on a topic that interests you.
Regardless of which topic you choose, your final thesis statement must receive my approval. Please bring
a typed introduction and working thesis statement to class on Monday, January 5. It will be returned to
you the following day. The final draft will be due electronically and in class on Tuesday, January 13.
Remember, a ‘thesis with style’ allows for rich analysis and argues something wholly original. Chances
are- a colloquialism! - if a writer choose to focus on some smaller, isolated or strange moment within a
text, then an original, engaging thesis statement is made that much more likely.
You must use a minimum of two reputable secondary sources and provide a properly formatted Works
Cited page. As done previously, be sure to engage analytically with textual evidence, or direct quotations,
as well as paraphrased ideas from secondary sources to support your thesis statement in a sustained and
controlled manner. Review previous handouts on rough drafts and grammar and my rules and
requirements for out-of-class essays as outlined in your course syllabus.
Pay especially close attention to grammatical issues. As per the grading rubric, an A paper should have
less than 5 grammatical errors! Should you need additional copies of this previously-distributed rubric,
let me know.
As always, I very much look forward to reading your work! 