HS 111/119-04 Integrated Studies
Global Dialogues: Self & Other in International Literature & Film
Dr Cori Adler, Fall 2010
Paper 2:
Myself and Another Essay
Due Dates:
Fri 10/8 Draft 1 and writer reflection
Fri 10/15 Revised M&A essay in 2 pocket folder with:
Pocket 1 - M&A essay draft, writer reflection and revised essay
Pocket 2 - Paper 1 with its drafts
Length:
about 1000 words/ 3 pages, typed and double-spaced (minimum)
Format:
see Paper 1 assignment handout
Helpful:
Norton chapters 18, 39 and 27
The Kernel Assignment
Write a personal essay about an encounter with another person, different from you in some
way, that resulted in your learning something about yourself. This should be a true story. It could
be an encounter that immediately resulted in self-awareness, or one that you learned something
from retrospectively. Describe both the other person and yourself at the time that you met – or the
time that the encounter occurred. Tell the story of what happened between you and the other
person, and explain what you learned about yourself from it.
Your task is to tell a story and interpret it. This task does not require a thesis or an
expository introduction, though they are sometimes used and you can use one if you want to. There
are several ways to go about the task. The most common strategies essayists use are to
 first tell the story, then interpret it, or
 tell the story interpreting it as they go.
Just telling the story, but infusing it with suggestive details and imagery so that its meaning shines
out on its own – though more difficult -- is another fine way to accomplish the task.
Understanding the Assignment
A narrative essay is an essay that tells a story, usually a true story. This assignment asks
you to write a particular type of narrative essay, the “personal essay.” The personal essay is a
common form; you have probably read them in magazines, on the editorial, arts or “living” pages of
newspapers, and in English or writing classes. The introductions to books, fiction and non-fiction,
are often written in the form of a personal essay. In this genre, the writer tells a story about his or her
life in order to illustrate a larger point. Often, the essay tells of a moment of discovery in which the
writer learned something about himself or herself. Often, that personal discovery has larger social
implications which the essay goes on to explore. For example, a friend of mine recently published a
personal essay called “The Mini-van.” It begins by describing her cluttered and juice-stained minivan, then goes on to describe her stop-and-go progress toward a destination that is never named. At
one red light, she grabs a snack to toss back to her toddler, who is crying in the back seat. At
another, she grabs her notebook from the next seat over to scribble down a few lines of a story she’s
working on. It goes on to explore a larger topic, how writers juggle their work and motherhood, and
to comment on the value of this one possession, her mini-van, to that struggle.
Page 1 of 2
Writing a Narrative Essay
Personal essays are told in “first person” form (“I … me …etc.). Narrative essays tell a
story. Your “Myself & Another” essay should be written in the first person and tell a story about
your encounter with, or relationship with, another.
Personal Narratives are most commonly written in “chronological order,” which means
events are told in the order that they happened. Because narrative essays are usually about events
that have occurred in the past, they are most commonly told in the past tense (I drove up the street…
As I was driving up the street…). These are not, however, strict rules. Some narrative essays are
written in the present tense (I am driving up the street…) to create an effect of immediacy.
Flashbacks, speculations about the future and other devices that bend the chronological order are
also common.
For this assignment, I would like you to start from a base of chronological order, bending it
as you see fit. You may write in either past or present tense, but keep your tense consistent through
the essay.
Page 2 of 2