The LITERARY PROJECT

 ou have this week to work on your literary project.  Most of you have three essays to write - the ANALYSIS (the one worth the most points); the CONNECTION (or comparison essay), and finally the BOOK REVIEW/PERSONAL connection  Try and get one of these written before Wednesday.  Share it with me if you want feedback. 

The Literature Project  

Rationale: The purpose of this project is to assess your ability to read, summarize, analyze, and connect pieces of literature as well as assess your writing skills.  This is your chance to show me everything you know and have learned.  This is your chance to dazzle, shine, dance, sing, shout (during your presentation).

 

Assignment: You will read A Brave New World.  This final project will consist of five parts. 

 

1) A reading log revealing your engagement with the literature.  This part should be very thorough and should contain all the things listed below.

2) A creative connection

3) A book summary/personal response paper

4) An analysis focusing primarily on the development of one striking element in the novel: symbolism, characterization, figurative language, theme, plot and how that element contributes to the development of the novel’s overall meaning.

5) A connection—a one page paper connecting the book to a short story or novel read last year by either symbolism or theme. 

6) A presentation (this could be creative—and has to be 3 minutes with visual aids): this is an overview of your project and your understanding of the novel.

 

POINT VALUES: The analysis is worth 100 points each.  The log, creative connection, personal response, presentation, and connections are worth 50 points each.  Therefore, the total point value is 350 points.  This is nearly your entire project grade for the semester.

EXPECTATIONS:

THE READING LOG:  The reading log reveals your engagement with literature.  Furthermore, a detailed reading log will significantly aid you in the development of the rest of the project.  After reading each chapter, you should write in your log:

n  A short synopsis of the action and character development

n  Your interpretation of the significant events occurring in the chapter

n  Noteworthy figurative language and other literary elements

n  Vocabulary—unfamiliar words

 

Please note that the copying of Cliff Notes or Internet Sites is plagiarism.  I want only your thoughts, don’t steal.  Cheating will equal a ZERO. 

 

THE CREATIVE PART:  Choose one of the three options below:

Take a minor character and write a 1-2 page monologue / journal entry about what they think of the situation / action / motivations in the book so far. 

Make a newspaper story about one of the major events of the novel. How would a journalist take on those events and how would that story be different than John or Bernard's perspective.

Draw a picture (or some sort of visual representation) drawing from the reading. Be sure to include a written component explaining why you chose to create your visual representation.

 

Book Review/ Personal Response:  Give a detailed summary of the book.  What did you like?  What did you not like?  Would you recommend this book to a friend?  Why or why not?

 

THE LITERARY ANALYSIS: Choose one literary element of the book and develop a thesis around it.  Back up your thesis statements with proof from the text.  This paper should be at least 3 pages.

 

THE CONNECTION: 1-2 pages connecting the novel to a short story read in class.  You may focus on theme, characterization (think dynamic), or figurative language.

 

THE PRESENTATION:  3 minutes—this should be an overview of your project and what you learned.  It should include a visual aid.  

 

Also, begin thinking about what your analytical essay
Possible things to write about:

-Meaning of the title (as a symbol)
- How people and why people are controlled
- World Stat's motto: Community, Identity, Stability (and how it works in the novel)
- The purposes of the numerous sayings such as "Ending is Better than Mending" (think consumerism)
- Setting as symbol
- The book is a cautionary tale against?
- Soma
- Shakespeare (how he is used/reference and what those references mean)?
- Caste system
- Meaning of John and Lenina's relationship
- FORD

Quotes about FORD
"in this year of stability, A.F. 632" (Ch. 1)
"the time of Our Ford"(Ch. 3)
"You all remember that beautiful saying of Our Ford's: History is bunk." (Ch. 3)
"Ford's in his flivver. All's well with the world." (Ch.3)
"Don't keep his Fordship waiting." (Ch. 3)
"The introduction of Our Ford's first T-model ... [was] chosen as the opening date of the new era." (Ch. 3)
ponder the quotes, and then ask them what on earth all this Ford business is about. You can use the questions below to help guide your discussion if you like.
What do all of these quotes have in common?
Who is Ford? When did he live? What did he do?
What's a flivver, and what do you think that expression means?
What seems to be Ford's significance in this society?
What do you make of phrases like "Our Ford" and "his Fordship"?

Here are a couple of questions you can ask if you need to probe a little further.
 

If Ford has more or less replaced God in this society, as suggested by the phrases "Our Ford" and "Ford be praised," what qualities, virtues, or morals must this society value most?
 

Did anyone find out if Ford really claimed that "History is bunk"? What's the story behind that quote? Why do you think Huxley referenced it?
Why couldn't Huxley have chosen someone like Edison, who was credited with numerous technological advances, to be the deity figure of Brave New World? 

 

GRADING SCALE for Book Review/Personal Response:

4 – Book Review reads like a “real book” review but with a personal twist.  Summary is detailed but condensed.  Personal insight into why someone should read this novel.  Insight includes analysis and textual evidence, very few grammar errors in the writing. 

3 – Summary is detailed and condensed.  Personal insight into why someone should read the novel included.  Review might contain some grammar errors but they do not inhibit readability.

2 – Summary included, but could be overtly long or extremely short.  Personal insight into why someone should read the novel might be missing.  Review could contain multiple grammar errors that distracts the reader and/or affects readability.

1 – Brief reference to task. 

3) THE LITERARY ANALYSIS: Choose one literary element of the book and develop a thesis around it.  Back up your thesis statements with proof from the text.  This paper should be at least 3 pages.

Analysis Rubric:

FOCUS (Claims, set-up)	Hook, Thesis Statement, Order of development connects to an n overarching idea of the novel.  Thesis is manageable..  Hook and thesis are connected by idea.   Hook is witty or insightful.	Hook, Thesis Statement is present in the first paragraph. Hook and thesis are connected by idea.  Order of development is present.	There is a thesis statement but either it is not clear, or the order of development and/or hook is missing.	No thesis statement
Examples and Analysis	At least five pieces of evidence from novel.  Evidence is either direct quotation or paraphrases with page # citation.  Commentary explains relationship between evidence and thesis.	4-5 pieces of evidence.  Evidence is either direct quotations or paraphrases with page # citation.  Provides commentary on evidence; however commentary.  Relationship between evidence and thesis may not be thoroughly developed.	3-4 pieces of evidence.  Evidence maybe mere summary w/o connection to the thesis.  Or there are vague references to the text.  References could be vaguely relevant to thesis.  Little or no commentary (analysis).	No Analysis or examples or examples are unclear.  Repeats information already provide or simply restates the thesis as evidence.
Sophistication of Writing	Point of view is evident.  Clear sense of audience.  Ideas are original.  Work is engaging.  Precise, fresh and original words. Sentence variety.  Effective use of rhetorical devices such as parallelism or figurative language.	A sense of audience.  Conveys ideas to reader.  Use of rhetorical devices.  Engaging vocabulary.	Paper lacks energy.  Essay lacks focus and/or doesn’t persuade.  Language relies on repetition of the same words or there is an overuse of “to be” verbs.	Voice is not apparent, or doesn’t necessary seem that of the author.
Mechanics	One to three small mistakes	Three to five small mistakes that do not affect the reading of the essay	Five to ten mistakes	Numerous mistakes that impair reading

4) THE CONNECTION: 1-2 pages connecting the novel to a short story read in class.  You may focus on theme, characterization (think dynamic), or figurative language.

RUBRIC For Connection/Comparison Essay

	4	3	2	1
Thesis Statement	Clear and defendable thesis, hook and order of development connect with thesis	Defendable thesis, hook present	Thesis statement attempted, but might be clunky, wordy, or unclear	No thesis
Evidence	2 pieces of evidence for each point; evidence is analyzed and makes connections between the evidence and the thesis	Two pieces of evidence for each point; some analysis is made between the evidence and thesis but it might be taken out of context, misinterpreted or oversimplified	Evidence form at least two sources.  No analysis is made between the evidence and the thesis.	Body paragraphs either simply restate the thesis or the evidence is unclear or unrelated to the prompt, or less than two sources are provided.
Sophistication of Writing	Effective paragraph structures, high level vocabulary, vivid writing, varied sentence structures and effective rhetorical choices	Some high level vocabulary and some variety of sentence structures.  Some effective rhetorical strategies.	Essay use same words over and over again.  Sentences are wordy and/or clunky.	Student makes sweeping generalizations or comparisons that are oversimplified.  Very little variety in word choice and sentence structure.