Write a 5 to 6-page research essay on one or more of the books that we have read in the second half of the class: The Great Gatsby, Absalom, Absalom!, The Invisible Man, or Tripmaster Monkey.

Passing papers will use/cite at least one outside-source. "Outside sources" may include information about the author, the history of the time in which the text was written or set, other criticsí comments about the text, or information about literary stylistics in general. Any paper that does not cite any and all ideas, information, or words borrowed from others will receive an F.

The following are the three key areas that I will be focusing on in order to determine your grade (see the syllabus for a detailed description of the grading rubric):

• Accurate use of textual evidence from both the novel and outside sources
• Thoughtful and persuasive analysis that teaches readers of the novel to see it in a new or clearer way.
• Clear and well-edited prose: the paper follows the demands of standard written English and the MLA-style formatting of citations and bibliographic information

Here are a few suggestions for paper topics but please feel free to come up with your own as writing about what interests you is your first step towards engaging the interest of your reader:

Reuse: All of the topics from paper one would work again for these books, including "Laws Broken and UpheldÖThe Self in SocietyÖNarrating History," American ideology and gender roles. If you no longer have a copy of the paper 1 topics but would like to focus on one, you can find the whole of the paper 1 handout at http://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/awilliams/E168paper1.html. You might also use a question from any of the handouts as a topic. These various questions may also be helpful when you are reviewing for the final exam.

Recycle: Characters or authors in the last four texts have all taken existing narratives and rewritten or retold them in their texts: Journey to the West, Brer Rabbit stories, stories about Sutpen, one's autobiography, etc. How is a repetition of stories with a difference used to produce some new meaning? Why do you think the author or character focuses on the stories s/he does? What power do these narratives have in the community? Of what use are parody and revision to the author or character? You might expand this question to cover the use of cinematic and musical "texts."

Renew: Explore the use of stylistic innovation in one or more of the novels from the last half of the class. To what use is the innovation put? What kinds of influences or impact do you perceive in this innovation?

"Knickknackatory" culture: How is culture represented? Are there any ambiguous feelings about our cultures of origin, region, folk culture, and/or the national culture generally? How does culture shape the material or psychological aspects of our lives?

"Who . . . Are . . . You?": How is identity defined, (re)constructed, or signified? How does a character express or find his or her identity? According to the text, do we have a choice in our identity?