English 5000

Fall 2011

Essay Due Dates/Schedule:

Group 1 (due dates W Oct 5 & W Nov 9): Blasi, Cole, Diehl, Hartupee, Hester, Herrmann, Palmerini

Group A (due dates W Oct 12 & W Nov 16): Becker, Gill, Gruenloh, Kiser, Moeller, Pioter, Smith, Yane

[feel free to arrange trades of due dates among yourselves, especially for the second essay]

Essay Topics: The topic is open, but it should be metacritical and (if possible) comparative. You may pursue in greater depth one of the weekly discussion questions from previous classes, especially if there is one that you found particularly difficult or challenging; good candidates would include, to my mind, questions related to institutional issues or the question about Stanley Fish, whose essay a number of you found provocative (or provoking!). Below I’ve provided links to essay topics I’ve used in the undergraduate theory class; feel free to use them as starting points for your own work.

Five to six pages should be sufficient. Please supply a one-paragraph description of your topic by the Friday before your essay is due, in which you make a clear statement of your aims (insofar as you understand them at that point). Feel free to discuss possibilities with me any time; email in particular would guarantee a prompt reply. Discussing topics with one another is also highly recommended, as is the soon-to-be-active discussion board on mygateway.umsl.edu.

Some essay topic links from past classes (note that some of them obviously refer to materials that we haven’t yet read, and may not read):

http://www.umsl.edu/~gradyf/theory/f05TOPIC1.htm

http://www.umsl.edu/~gradyf/theory/midtermqs05.htm

http://www.umsl.edu/~gradyf/theory/f05TOPIC2.htm

http://www.umsl.edu/~gradyf/theory/f05TOPIC3.htm