Description:
This assignment asks that you choose a character from any of the texts we read in weeks 1 and 2 and provide a detailed analysis. You should choose a character that you find “compelling” (though not necessarily your favorite character or a character you ‘like’). You will be discussing the character in terms of labor and identity and how their characterization is shaped by both. Don’t forget to discuss literary period (realism/naturalism) in regard to how the character is presented and the outcome for that character. Finally, make sure you’re using the vocabulary we’re developing to make your argument (for instance, describing the character you’re writing about as a protagonist or a round character).
You must answer both of the following:
- What job/career/labor does the character perform? Is the character wealthy/poor? How does this affect their lives?
- How do the conventions of realism/naturalism affect the outcome(s) for the character you’ve chosen (that is, where the character ends up at the end of the story)?
You should answer some of the following: - What are the character’s identification categories (race, gender, religion, sexual orientation etc)? Does that affect how other characters interact with this character?
- What seems to be the primary motivation of the character to do the things they do? How do you know?
- What are the character’s strengths? Weaknesses?
- Is the character fully developed as a round character? Or are they stock, foil, background, stereotypical etc? Does the character change?
- How does the character fit in the plot of the story?
Sample Solution
