Instruction
Please address one of the following:
Pick one of the two topic choices below. In addition to using specific quotes from the story, you should utilize at least one additional outside credible source.
Prompts:
Topic Choice #1:
What is the nature of the conflict Marshal Potter feels in Part 1 of “The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky” by Stephen Crane? Why does he feel that he has committed a “crime” in bringing home a bride to the town of Yellow Sky? The heroes in western stories are rarely married. Why is Crane’s use of marriage central to his theme?
Topic Choice #2:
Examine at least two examples of irony in “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe. How is dramatic and verbal irony used to foreshadow Fortunato’s eventual demise? How do those examples relate to the theme of revenge in the story?
Essays must be in MLA format
The Bedford Handbook provides a guide (MLA Chapters 48 to 51)
Essays should be a minimum of 1,000 words
Meyer, Michael. The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature: Reading, Thinking, Writing, 11th ed., Macmillan Learning, 2017.
Chapter 5: Setting (Introductory pages only)
Chapter 7: Symbolism (Introductory pages only)
Chapter 8: Theme (Introductory pages only)
Selected literary works
“The Ice Palace” by F. Scott Fitzgerald, found in Chapter 5
“The Cranes” by Peter Meinke, found in Chapter 17
“The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky” by Stephen Crane, found in Chapter 8
“The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe, found in Chapter 18
-----------------------------------
Initial post of 250 words or more to one of the questions is due by Thursday. You must make a substantive and thoughtful reply post to a classmate who answers the other question, the one you do not answer, by Sunday.
Discussion Question 1
How is the South presented in Part 1 of “The Ice Palace” by F. Scott Fitzgerald? How is the atmosphere of the setting established? What seems to be Fitzgerald’s attitude towards the South?
Discussion Question 2
Consider how symbols convey the central meaning of “The Cranes” by Peter Meinke. How might the cranes be read as both conventional and literary symbols in this story? What do you think happens at the end of “The Cranes” and what do you think this story is about?