English 213—Junior English Name:
Toni Morrison’s Song of Solomon FINAL ESSAY
Choose one of the topics below as a guiding idea to address in an essay of 1200-1500 words (4-6 pages) that is meaningful and interesting to you, which explores an area of the novel that gives rise to new thinking or even new questions. Include at least one reference to a published critical essay on the novel.
· Free Choice. It always starts with this. Choose a question or topic about the novel that you want to explore further: a character or a scene that puzzles or fascinates you; a scene or section of the novel that seems out of place and invites deeper thinking (the skinning of the bobcat, for instance, or the discussion of the murder of Emmit Till); a conventional reading of the novel that you want to oppose or challenge. Any topic or idea about the novel is fair game, as long as you are using textual evidence to support your claim.
· Expanded In-class Essay. Expand on the topic you explored in your in-class essay written at the end of Part 1.
· Passage of Interest: A Line, a Scene. There was reason you chose the line you did when you completed your homework. See where it takes you. Take any line or any scene and build toward a satisfying understanding of the novel.
Some Ideas for Getting Started
· Characters
· Main Characters
o Milkman, Pilate, Guitar, Hagar, Macon Jr., Ruth, Solomon
· Lesser Characters: Leda, Corinthians, Porter, Reba, Sweet, Robert Smith, Susan Byrd, Circe, Sing
· Even Lesser. Freddie, the Tommies, Mr. Solomon and the other Shalimar hunters, Michael-Mary Graham
· Themes
· Flight. Explore this significant theme in the story, which may include examining the ambiguity of the final scene
· Self-identity
o Name—Explore Milkman’s specific journey or the significance of names in general by looking ata variety of characters whose names suggest meaning beyond the superficial.
o Place—How does the place from which a person comes play a role in defining them?
· Race. Take up the discussion that appears in the novel and present your understanding of Morrison’s ideas for her readers
· Song. The significance of song in the novel appears early on as well as at the end and in the title. Explore its role in the novel.
· Love. There are three kinds of love represented in the novel, any one of which (or all) is worthy of investigation
o Filial (family)
o Platonic
o Romantic
· Compare or Contrast Song of Solomon with other novels
· From Huck
o Father Figures. Explore the absence of and Huck’s need for a father-figure in Huck’s life. There’s Pap and Jim, of course, but also Judge Thatcher early in the novel and even Colonel Grangerford.
o Aliases. What is important about Huck’s many changing identities in the novel? Is there a pattern that emerges?
· From Gatsby
o Reinvention of the Self. Explore as much as you can about Gatsby’s hunger to change (improve?) himself. (Be sure to include a discussion of his self-help notes from the book that his father reveals in the novel’s final chapter.)
o Moral Corruption. Examine this as a novel of moral decisions and consequences. Include Nick’s understanding of the Midwest and the East Coast as symbols of moral and immoral decision-making and lifestyles.
o Materialism. Explore Fitzgerald’s presentation of the hunger for material wealth and in the novel.
· Other. Think of works from sophomore or freshman year, or consider any outside reading from this year that might be considered serious literature to place alongside Song of Solomon for an exploration Morrison’s thinking.
· The Hunger Games. Why not? See what you can do with this. Is there an important idea that binds Morrison’s novel with this immensely popular work of young-adult fiction.
TOPIC DEVELOPMENT (CLOUT—Say something meaningful; give it clout, significance.)
Content
1. sophistication, consequence—reveals a fresh, unique look; subtle organization and expression
2. fullness—fully and thoughtfully explained, not rushed or skimpy
3. details—clearly support the thesis
4. quotations—appropriately and effectively used for support
ORGANIZATION (CLARITY—Say it clearly.)
Title
title--interesting and/or descriptive; provocative; includes the work’s title in addition to an indication of the thesis
Introductory and Concluding Paragraphs
1. hook/lead—interesting, provocative, stylish phrasing
2. thesis—a clear thesis is presented
3. [roadmap—contains clear references (a roadmap) to the points covered in order to defend the thesis]
Body Paragraphs
1. topic sentence—the topic sentence clearly identifies the important point or points to be made
2. supportive details—clear and relevant support is presented
3. transition words--the writer guides the reader with transition words (first, next, then, also, etc...); the paragraph progresses logically
4. concluding sentence ("clincher")--wraps up the paragraph in a satisfying way; may serve as a transition to the following paragraph
5. UNITY--maintains a singular focus throughout. Every supporting sentence serves (advances) the topic sentence.
STYLE (CLASS—Say it with flair.)
1. word choice / vocabulary—clear, exact, rich language; powerful verbs, strong adjectives
2. sentence variety--a rich, sophisticated balance of sentence types (simple, compound, complex) and sentence lengths; unique phrasing; appositive phrases, participial phrases
· ONE PARTICIPIAL PHRASE, underlined and labeled in the margin
· ONE APPOSITIVE PHRASE, underlined and labeled in the margin
· ONE ABSOLUTE PHRASE, underlined and labeled in the margin
3. voice—a unique tone of the writer; enthusiastic, expressive, sincere
WRITING CONVENTIONS (CLEANLINESS—Be clean; follow the rules.)
Mechanics
1. quotations—correctly cited
2. spelling--words are properly spelled
3. capitalization--words in need of capitalization are capitalized
4. punctuation--sentences are properly punctuated
5. usage--words are used properly, e.g., subject/verb agreement, pronoun reference
6. sentence completeness--sentences are complete--no run-ons or fragments
Format
course guidelines are followed--double spacing; readable, 12-pt. conventional font; 1-1.25 in. margins; proper heading; contains writing process components (pre-writing, first draft, final draft)