Discuss the ways in which the authors grapple with the moral and political dilemmas that arise with Israel’s founding on previously inhabited land. For example, you can compare S. Yizhar’s realist narrative with Yehoshua’s more symbolic (perhaps surrealist) approach.

that the Kibbutz life has a controversial role on family life and interactions between characters. Essay topic

Midterm Essay Guidelines (5-6 pages+
Works Cited)
In this essay, you will
practice literary analysis and interpretation, focusing on 1-2 of the works we’ve
read and viewed so far. Your essay should have a clear thesis statement
which represents your perspective on the work. You will then develop your
argument through a discussion of specific passages from the text. Make sure to
pay attention to narrative style, setting, characterization, symbolism, and/or other
literary elements.
Its important to write 3 more pages more than what I wrote
Note that the questions in
the prompts below are starting points for brainstorming. Your essay should focus on your own argument and
not consist of a list of answers to these questions.

You may also refer to secondary sources, but
outside research is not required.

1) Choose any two relevant
stories and
discuss the ways in which the authors grapple with the moral and political
dilemmas that arise with Israel’s founding on previously inhabited land. For
example, you can compare S. Yizhar’s realist narrative with Yehoshua’s more
symbolic (perhaps surrealist) approach.

2) Amos Oz’s Between Friends: choose
A or B and focus on no more than 2 of the stories. Make sure to develop an
argument and discuss the stories’ literary elements. If you choose this work,
please be careful not to repeat your work in the response essay.

A) How does Amos Oz use the microcosm
(self-contained environment) of the kibbutz to reflect on the state of Israel
in the 1950s? In what ways do the characters, their relationships, and the
ideologies of the settlement reflect or do not reflect the conditions in Israel
as a whole?

B) In what ways does the kibbutz’s ideology and/or
organizational structure affect family life or relationships between characters
more generally?

3) In
The Scapegoat, discuss the ways
in which the narrator uses the semi-autobiographical novel genre to dismantle
stereotypes about immigrants from the Middle East and North Africa. What do we
learn from the novel’s first-person narrative that we might not have learned
from a more ‘detached’ 3rd person narrator? Conversely, what might
be omitted? What could have been represented more forcefully?

4) Choose any one or two works where the
landscape plays an important role. How do the authors use various
depictions of the landscape to create meaning in their stories? Some relevant
literary devices may be allegory, symbolism, setting, and plot.

Requirements:
Length:
5-6 pages double spaced + Works
Cited, following MLA format.
Essay
must focus on analysis and argumentation. Avoid summary, overview,
“reports” compiled of secondary sources, etc.’
Thesis statement: 1-2 sentences clearly summarizing your
argument in the first paragraph.
Clear
and coherent organization that helps readers follow your train of thought.
MLA
citation format: all the
sources should be cited in the text and in a Works Cited.

Recommended:
· Consult Purdue OWL
(https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/4/17/) or a handbook for further
guidance on writing about literature.
·
Stop by the
Writing Center and/or meet with the instructor.

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