English Literature Argument Essay. 3 pages!!

For this paper you will write a 2-3 page analysis of a piece of literature. You may choose one of the poems on Canvas under this assignment or you may choose your own poem, song, or rap provided that you have not written on it before. If you choose your own work you must also include a copy with your paper. Another option is to compare two pieces of literature with similar or opposite meanings. Keep in mind that this class deals with argument (meaning) and not just style. Any work you choose must have enough substance to allow for a meaningful analysis in your paper. There are many songs and poems that are just “feel good” or clever, or one-note, without deep argument or meaning, and are not acceptable for this assignment. Show me your choice if you are unsure. Think about what the author is trying to say—what is the argument or point, and how is the author making it? Use textual evidence to back up your interpretation. Among the things you may wish to discuss are the author’s use of logos, ethos, or pathos; use of imagery or metaphor; any analogies; symbolism used to make the argument; or social context. Your main focus should be your discussion of the work’s meaning, how the author conveys it, and what in the text supports that meaning. That means your analysis should quote from the text. Resist the urge to google what the meaning is—I want YOUR analysis and interpretation, which is every bit as valid as anything you find online. Plagiarizing words or ideas is unacceptable. Format: Your paper should be in essay form, NOT the abbreviated form I used for Dylan and Billy Joel. The essay should be double-spaced, typed in 12-pt. type, and follow MLA style. Give your essay an interesting and descriptive title. Just as with the argument analysis essay, near the beginning of your paper you should state the full name of the author and the title of the work you are analyzing. Poem titles and song titles go in quotation marks in MLA style. The essay itself should be 2-3 pages long (at least 2 full pages), not including the work itself. You do not have to include a Works Cited, but on the copy of the work you are discussing you should include the source. Is it from lyrics.com, a book, or where? In-text citations for poetry generally go by line number, however, if your source does not have line numbers I will excuse you from this requirement as long as I can easily find the quoted material without them. Line breaks in songs and poems are indicated by slashes.