Posted: April 13th, 2015

Prompts for Analytical Essay ;

Prompts for Analytical Essay ;

Format: Times New Roman 12 pt. Font, 1” Margins, Double-spaced, MLA Citation

Choose one of the prompts below and respond to it in a 3 page essay; relying on analyses of concrete textual details. Deeply discuss the questions that you need to answer.

1.    Analytical Prompt – Songs of Innocence and Experience
Compare and contrast Blake’s Songs of Innocence with Songs of Experience. How do these sets of poems depict child-like innocence and its loss, respectively? What themes, symbols, and literary devices does Blake use to convey a sense of innocence and a sense of experience? How do these two sets of poems work in relation to one another? How are they at odds? Are the sets entirely innocent or entirely experienced, respectively?
2.    Creative Prompt – Songs of Innocence and Experience
Compose your own set of poems treating the subject of innocence and experience but relying on imagery other than Blake’s (for instance, you cannot use the lamb as a symbol of innocence). The form and meter should reflect Blake’s, but the themes and symbols should be entirely your own. You must have two poems in each category (two of Innocence and two of experience) of approximately 8-12 lines each.
3.    Analytical Prompt – Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Compose an essay on the role of the natural world in the poem. Analyze how it is used by characters and forces, why it is significant, in what ways it is important to the advancement of the story. Is the Natural World hostile, benevolent, or indifferent? How does Coleridge characterize the natural world? Is it a passive or aggressive force?

4.    Analytical Prompt – Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Compose an essay on the role of the supernatural world in the poem. Analyze its interaction with the natural world, the poem’s characters, and the reasons it acts the way it does. Be certain to discuss the different attitudes of the different supernatural forces: are they hostile, benevolent, or indifferent?

5.    Analytical Prompt – Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Compose an essay in which you analyze the role of Christianity in the poem. Consider: Do Christian morals and values appear in the poem? If so, how are they used and what purpose do they serve? Are there elements in the poem that work against a Christian reading? Does the poem have a didactic message?

6.    Analytical Prompt – Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Compose an essay in which you analyze the elements of Romanticism present in the poem. Does the poem contain a confrontation with the sublime? If so, what is its significance? What other romantic elements are present and how to they contribute to the plot?

7.    Respond to the following question: How does Gulliver change as the novel progresses? For instance, at the end of the novel, when Gulliver is spending time in the barn with his horses, do we as readers identify with him, or are we repulsed? How is our reaction different from the beginning of the text?

8.    In his satire, Swift makes a correlation between size and morality. Explain how this works in the Travels, paying particular attention to Gulliver in Lilliput and in Brobdingnag.

9.    Some would argue that Swift was a misanthrope and that Gulliver’s Travels proves his hatred of mankind. Agree or disagree with this assessment and support your opinion with examples from the text.

10.    Analyze the allegorical significance of the floating island of Laputa in Gulliver’s Travels.

11.    Gulliver seems incapable of staying put at home for any extended period of time. Indeed, he is constantly running off on some new adventure, leaving his wife and children behind. Discuss the role of the family in Gulliver’s Travels. What is Swift suggesting, if anything, about the importance of family values?