nericcio & chapman, inc.
Imagination Challenge
Essay Extravaganza
Number ONE
This is your first formal writing assignment
for our English 493 class--don't stress too
much over it! Stress kills delicious writing.
DON'T try to guess what I like and spoon-feed
it to me; that's the worst thing you can do.
Read the prompts. Adapt them so that they
fuse with your brilliant imagination and write
about things you love.
That's the only way to become a great writer--
love what you study so much that your prose
carries the influenza of your passion into the
eyes and soul of your reader.
So, here we go.
Your first Imagination Challenge Essay
Extravaganza! Papers, 3-5 pages, due Friday,
March 6, 2009 at 12noon in the box or into my hands at
my private professor's office, Arts and Letters
273. This is NOT the official English Department
office where I also hang my hat, so don't get confused!
You will know you are in the right place if you see
hundreds of things stuck to the door of my office.
NO LATE PAPERS WILL BE ACCEPTED; EARLY
PAPERS ARE ADORED AND WORSHIPED (if they
are damn good!).
Any student who wishes to receive a mark of "A+" or
"A" will incorporate research drawn from at least
two (2) scholarly journals (use Love Library's online
links to peruse what's shaking on Project Muse or
JSTOR); additionally, they will type their work,
double-spaced, and NOT use a cartoony, silly font.
They will carefully proofread their essay and they
will ensure that they are not merely regurgitating
inanities that have spilled out the mouth of their
professor. An essay is an independent project born
of curiosity and filled with ideas that are carefully
substantiated by the writer--sort of like a lawyer
building a killer case.
Here are your prompts:
1. Comedy and Tragedy are Lovers Department
Compare or contrast the tactics of Larry David,
(Seinfeld, The Contest) and Peter Greenaway (The Pillowbook)
when it comes to the representation of female sexuality.
Is it possible that such divergent intellects also reveal
great similarities when juxtaposed in a critical exercise?
2. Jesus on the Cross Department
Nathanael West's Miss Lonelyhearts combines a savage
satirical eye with a sensitive, provocative sensibility--as
much as it unveils the loathing and misogyny of early
20th century Americanus Masulinicus Moronicus, aka,
your typical American male, it also, and simultaneously,
reveals key, usually secret revelations regarding the
intricacies of the male psyche, particularly with regard
to sex and desire. Explore Nathanael West's views of
male sexuality; if you choose to drop in choice findings
from a careful consideration of Larry David's Seinfeld
episode, that might help as well (optional).
3. Lady Love
Can it be argued that Junichiro Tanizaki and Peter Greenaway
are soul mates when it comes to the articulation of the female
psyche? Yes or No. Be prepared to defend your view with
specific close readings drawn from Tanizaki's novel and
Greenaway's cinematic opus.
4. Writing Sex/Sexing Writing
Using any two texts we have closely examine this semester,
including materials included in the Gallerysex blog, write an
essay that studies the relationship between sex and writing, between
sexuality and literature.
5. Asia Sans Stereotypes
Write a brief meditation that evaluates the representation
of Asia in the work of Hal Hartley, Junichiro Tanizaki, and
Peter Greenaway. Is there something particularly "sexual"
about the cultural space of Asia. Do please avoid any and
all wholesale stereotypes in constructing your argument,
erring instead on the side of specifics drawn from your
careful reading of these author/directors.
6. Diary of the Flirt
Use Hal Hartley's theory of the flirt do analyze a character
from any other work we have carefully surveyed this term.
7. You are the Professor!
Design your own thesis based on your readings/screenings
the first few weeks of our class--you must submit your
proposal for this paper topic to me by Sunday, March 1,
2009 for comment/approval.