English 4140: American Romanticism
Dr. Patrick Erben
Research Project--Assignment Description
Due dates:
Oral Presentation—Tue 7/24 or Wed 7/25 (10% of course grade)
Research Essay—Fri 7/27 in class (20% of course grade)
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The final assignment of the semester has two components, both
covering the same topic—1) an oral presentation, and 2) a 5-page
(minimum) research essay based on the topic of your oral presentation.
Goal of the Assignment: For this assignment, I want you think about ways in which present-day culture (from
film to music to art to politics and beyond) still embraces, responds to, re-shapes, or recycles the ideas and
ideals of American Romanticism. You could begin by thinking about a theme—such as individualism, race,
nature, women’s rights, etc.—and look around for specific examples of “texts” (widely conceived) that you
could read/analyze intertextually with our readings in American Romanticism. For example, if you were
intrigued by the language of women’s rights in Margaret Fuller and Fanny Fern, you could look for examples in
present-day culture that use or respond to or link these precedents. E.g., how does Pink’s song “Stupid Girls”
reflect on the Fuller/Fern’s theme of empowering women through education and self-confidence? Or, you
could pick a text, such as Fight Club (book or movie), that directly cites or echoes texts/authors from American
Romanticism (say, Thoreau’s Walden). Then, you would analyze what kind of a position or “message” this
intertextual constellation produces. For example, how does Fight Club respond to Thoreau’s warning against
unimpeded consumerism in his chapter “Economy”? Or, pick any specific activist movement of the present
age—from environmentalism to gay rights to the “Occupy Wall Street” movement—and think about
intersections with Romanticism. At the risk of being too obvious: for example, think about the participants in
the “Occupy” movement preferring not to be moved from their site of protest on Wall Street…you see where I
am going with this.
Either way, you should produce your own argument and analysis about the “cultural work” that Romantic
concepts do in present-day American culture. At the center of your analysis have to stand at least one text from
American Romanticism and one text (broadly conceived—from songs, to art, to advertisements, to films and so
forth) from the present day (or recent past).
The main criterium for grading
this assignment will be your
CREATIVITY and
INTELLIGENCE in linking a
present-day phenomenon
(political, cultural, pop-cultural,
social, etc.) to Romantic-era ideals
and specific TEXTS exemplifying
those ideals. Be provocative, be
surprising, be original, but most
of all—be “WoMan Thinking”!
Components:
Your Oral Presentation should briefly (5-10 minutes) present the connection between both periods, their
ideas, and the texts you used to the rest of the class. The presentation has to provide some textual examples and
explain your analysis. It should be anchored/supported by visual aids, music, textual quotations, etc. to make
your comparison accessible to the rest of class. Each presentation will be followed by a brief question and
answer period. Your presentation style should be similar to teaching the material, ideas, etc. rather than
lecturing on it. In other words, demonstrate the relevance of the connection you have found/established and
make it visible in an interesting way. I will circulate a schedule for you to sign up for one of the two
presentation dates, Tue 7/24 or Wed 7/25.
Your Research Essay will present your argument, analysis, and textual (visual) evidence in a coherent essay.
Rather than a static, traditional formal research essay, however, I would like you to write something more akin
to essays in The New Yorker (Life and Letters section). In other words, I want you to write creatively on a
theme of cultural, artistic, political, social, or literary relevance, drawing from your study of American
Romanticism, knowledge of present-day culture, and specific study of two or more primary texts. I will provide
some examples for preparation and inspiration (but not necessarily emulation).
Specific Essay Parameters/Requirements:
- Minimum 5 pages
- Following MLA style in all regards
- Analyzing at least one specific text from American Romanticism and one “text” from the present (or at least
the 20th century). “Text,” for this assignment, could also mean a song, image, speech, film, etc.
- There is no specified number of secondary sources. You may, in fact, write the entire paper without secondary
sources. However, your specific topic may require you to do some background research (historical,
sociological, etc.). Anything you consulted or used for your paper, of course, needs to be cited. Primarily,
however, I am looking for your keen analysis of a current cultural phenomenon and its connections to
Romanticism.
- Bringing the texts into conversation with each other, while establishing through the texts as lens, the interplay
between two cultural/historical moments.
- Writing in a more general intellectual style, rather than strictly academic style. What I mean is that you should
strive for a more fluid and engaging essay structure, such as shown in the New Yorker examples I gave you.
(Nevertheless, unlike those articles, I do still need you to follow MLA style documentation rules…sorry!)
Turning it in:
On Friday, July 27, bring a
completed draft of your paper to class. You need to
bring two printed copies (stapled, please!) as well
as an electronic copy (I recommend one emailed
to yourself and one on a flashdrive).
On Friday, July 27, we will
work in class on revising and editing. You MUST
turn in your paper electronically to me at the end of
class (by emailing it to me as a WORD attachment).
Thus, it is extremely important that you do not rely
on this time to finish your paper but use the time for
revisions and proof-reading.