English 303 /Logan
English 303/Logan
Essay 4: Compare and Contrast
Glengarry Glen Ross + 1; Poems
Draft due:Tuesday, December 5. Bring 5 copies to class.
Final Due:Thursday, December 7, 11pm, Extended: Friday, December 8, 11pm, via Canvas
Length: 2000 words
Value:300 points
Choose one of the following topics for your essay 4. As always, your essay should argue a specific, debatable interpretation on the topic and not be merely a survey of that topic. Cite evidence from the works to support your claims, and use MLA format. (Glengarry Glen Ross, 1992, dir. James Foley, is available at the ARC Library, and is available for rental via Amazon streaming and YouTube.)
Glengarry Glen Ross and The Great Gatsby present what seem to be very different versions of the American Dreambut are they truly so different? Define each work’s vision of the Dream (success, failure, self-creation, freedom, and individuality), comparing and contrasting their treatments of this theme.
Compare and contrast the gender roles and expectations dramatized in Glengarry Glen Ross and The Great Gatsby or Brokeback Mountain.
Both Glengarry Glen Ross and “The Open Boat” depict a small group of men struggling for survival. Compare and contrast the challenges each group confronts, how they deal with them, and the camaraderie and conflict that ensue. (You may also write on this same topic about Glengarry Glen Ross and “The Things They Carried.”)
Though separated by more than a century, Glengarry Glen Ross and “Bartleby, the Scrivener” depict their respective eras’ “common man” working lives. Compare and contrast their conditions, social codes, and values, as well as the price people pay to work in these worlds.
Compare and contrast two Poems of the Week (Canvas > Modules, analyzing their speakers, themes, and figurative language (metaphor, simile, symbols, et al.).
You may also choose to create your own topic, provided it includes Glengarry Glen Ross and one other work from our syllabus. Email me ([emailprotected]) with your topic proposal for approval by Friday, December 1, 11pm, before proceeding.
