Goal: to close read a single text to develop your own argument
According to Chat GPT, in William Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello, the protagonist’s descent from a respected and honored general to a jealous and murderous husband is a complex journey laden with many different themes, such as race, gender, jealousy, etc. Write a paper analyzing how two of these themes intersect. Make an argument showing what the play illustrates about the connections between these two themes. Support your thesis with close reading of quotations from the text.
REQUIREMENTS
● 1-3 pages, double-spaced.
● MLA format: 1-inch margins, Times New Roman 12 pt. font, a running header, a front-page header, etc.
● An introduction that addresses your motive, or the question: “so what”?
● A clear thesis, positioned at the end of the introduction, which addresses the prompt in a meaningful way with an emphasis on the text you chose (i.e., Looking at X, it shows…)
● Close reading in order to analyze your chosen text, reading specific sentences, images, or details closely to support your overall thesis.
● Well-constructed paragraphs, with topic sentences that directly address your thesis / motive and remain focused on your chosen epic.
● In-text citations in MLA format, which direct readers to the Works Cited page with a citation of your text and any other sources*
● A conclusion that recaps how your evidence supported your argument and discusses the next steps.
*Note 1: As this is a close reading assignment, use of outside sources besides a dictionary is not permitted.
