What does isolation mean for the characters in the text who experience it? What changes in isolation?

Choose one of the texts we have read through the end of Week 8, except for the text you focused on in the previous question. In an answer of about 600-900 words, respond to one of the prompts below, which ask you think about major issues we have encountered in our readings. You may choose any prompt and any text from the syllabus so far; part of your job, of course, is to pick a question that’s productive for the text you want to focus on, or vice versa.
Your response should make an argument: offer one clear, interpretative claim about the text and support that claim by drawing on details from the text. Don’t view the questions posed by the prompt as a checklist; rather, your goal is to find something specific to say about the text you’ve chosen and the way it thinks. The questions are there to give you some direction in developing your ideas.
So: make sure you have something to say about the passage, and that you can point to particular elements from within the text that support that. Use quotations judiciously—quote particular words or phrases that provide support for your points, but you don’t need to quote long stretches of text where you aren’t making a point about the specific wording. You can (and should!) include parenthetical citations when you’re paraphrasing as well, so you can show where in the text something is coming from even without quoting it. This isn’t a long answer, so you’ll need to be focused and efficient in making and supporting your own original point.
Some of the issues raised in these questions are connected with ways we discussed particular texts in class. Your goal here is to show me how you are thinking, and you should not just retread what we discussed in class. If you find that most of what you have to say just echoes the discussion we already had, you should pick another combination of question and text. If you’re concerned, one good way to manage this is to open with a first couple of sentences summing up our class discussion, then show what’s going to set your answer apart: “In our class discussion, we concluded that… [A sentence or two on our reasoning/support.] However, the text also repeatedly uses words relating to… which suggests… [And from here, build into your claim.]” (That’s a great trick for introductions in general, as it lets you both show what you know and make it clear that you’re saying something original.)

Prompts (Choose ONE)
Remember: You are explaining how the text you chose reflects on the answer to the question. (You’re welcome to frame this in terms of how these texts might speak to us but your job here is to make an argument interpreting the text.) Each question can apply to a number of texts, so consider what choice interests you and will allow you to say something beyond our class discussion.
What does it mean to face death? What makes a good death? How should a person’s death be related to their life?
What’s the relationship between love and other social, cultural, or ethical commitments? If they come into conflict, how might such conflicts be resolved?
What role does the narrator play, what is their relationship to the audience, and how do they shape the meaning or experience of the text?
How does the text understand God’s relationship to the world, and/or to human beings? Or, how does the text negotiate differences or conflicts between religious and secular values?
What does isolation mean for the characters in the text who experience it? What changes in isolation? What does it reveal about people?
Citation and Sources
When referencing specific details from texts we’ve read (and especially when quoting), you need to include parenthetical citations referencing where in the text they came from. For works written in verse, cite the line numbers you’re referencing or quoting. For works in prose, cite the page number in the assigned text.
You’re welcome to reference things discussed in Moodle lessons without citing them. In the event that you need to reference a point made in class or in an online discussion, simply signal in your writing where that point came from; mention your classmate by name if you have that information available. In general, you shouldn’t need to spend much time on ideas raised elsewhere, as the goal of the assignment is to highlight your thoughts.
Outside Resources: A Warning
I strongly urge you not to look at online study guides, such as SparkNotes, Course Hero, or Wikipedia entries for texts we’ve read. The purpose of the assignment is for you to show your own understanding and interpretations, not the interpretations of others.

If you do look at any online resources that influence your answer, you are required to cite those resources, just as you would for any academic work. So, if you look at SparkNotes and it offers an interpretation of a passage, and you then use that understanding in your answer, you MUST both include a parenthetical citation whenever you use that idea in your answer and include a Works Cited section, with a complete citation for any resource you used, at the end of your answer.

It is essential that you clearly identify both any outside resources you used and everything that each resource contributed to your answer. If you fail to do that, you have plagiarized—a form of serious academic misconduct that can carry penalties up to expulsion from the university. (You can always consult with me if you have any doubts, but you need to do so before turning in the assignment.)

The single best way to make sure you aren’t tempted to plagiarize is by not referencing any study guides or other materials beyond the book and our class resources. Just don’t look at them! Using study guides won’t help you anyway, because they only tell you what others took away from a passage or play; they do not show the conclusions you yourself draw, which is what the assignment is asking for.