English 102-B
Instructor Name
Fall 2008
Essay #1 “Fiction” – Assignment Sheet
Overview
Characters are a central part of any work of fiction. Understanding the characters, to a large extent, lends insight
into many other areas of a fictional work. To understand this relationship, the following assignment asks you to
work closely with several characters and the literary devices that make them successful (or unsuccessful) in your
reading.
The Assignment
Select at least three characters from the list of works below and compare and contrast them in terms of how the
author “brings them to life.” Be sure to provide textual evidence (citation and paraphrase) to support your
statements. Toward the end of the essay, you should argue which character had the most literal and figurative
meaning to you, and why.
You may choose any primary characters from the following list of short stories from our class text:
“The Cask of Amontillado” pg. 539
“Love in L.A.” pg. 256
“Soldiers Home” pg. 154
“A&P” pg. 553
“A Rose for Emily” pg. 74
“Girl” pg. 517
“Sorrowful Woman” pg. 38
Composing Strategies
In describing and comparing/contrasting the primary characters you will need to use some of the literary terms we
discussed in class. Such literary terms as irony, foreshadow and metaphor will help you describe the character as
well as offer value judgments about her place in the work. Also consider the character’s role in the plot as well as
her motives and mannerisms to liven your description to the reader.
Assume your reader is not familiar with any of these characters and explain them accordingly. Spend no more than
one page per character and be sure to make a conclusive statement about which character was the best done and
why.
Nuts and Bolts:
Typed, double-space, 1" margins. Please use Standard Written English!
Keep all prewriting and drafts you accumulate and hand in with your final draft.
Between 3-4 pages in length. Final draft due Monday, Sept. 22nd.
Use MLA style in citing a text. Include a Works Cited page for this assignment.
Essay #1 is worth 15pts. maximum.
Academic Resources
Suffolk University offers its students several valuable sources of academic support. The Writing Center offers
individual tutorials to help students draft and edit written work. It is located in Fenton 203; call (617) 573-8270 for
more information. The Ballotti Learning Center offers a range of academic support services, including study
groups and peer tutoring. The Ballotti Center is located in Donahue 208. Call (617) 573-8235 for more information.
The Second Language Services Office offers individual tutorials to international students seeking help with their
English language skills. The Second Language Services Office is located at 20 Ashburton Place. Call (617) 5738677 for more information.
If you have any questions, feel free to call me at my office (#) or e-mail: @suffolk.edu
Good Luck!