I found number 5 on the list of possible prompt topics to be very interesting:
"Examine the role of death in multiple texts. In what different ways is death portrayed? Why might death be thought of or experiences differently in different texts?"
This seems like a strong place to start, tough as I begin to write, I may find a more specific question to ask. For now, I think I want to focus on these four texts: "As the Lord Lives, He Is One of Our Mother's Children," by Pauline E. Hopkins, "Chickamauga," by Ambrose Bierce, poems numbers 340, 448, and 479 by Emily Dickinson, and poems numbers X, XIV, and "I [Do Not Weep, Maiden, For War Is Kind]," by Stephen Crane.
I chose these because the two stories are very heavy on race and the Civil War, while Dickinson's and Crane's poems are more about the general idea of death (though there is emphasis on war in Crane's). I want to make sure I'm able to compare and contrast the differences between these writers in terms of their interpretations of death in the different contexts of which they are represented.
Great idea of the essay! I think that contrasting the more general views of death with the more specific is really interesting. There should be a lot of critical material to work with in terms of the authors you've chosen.
ReplyDeleteLet me know if you have any questions as you're working through the ideas here. I'm happy to give reactions/suggestions/etc.