Essay One, Final Draft

Essay 1 – Defining & Proving the Existence of “The Quest” in Contemporary “Literature”
As established, our first essay involves “teaching” the quest and then demonstrating that it exists in our current “literature.”
As you read your assigned Pearson chapters and subsequent sources you were exposed to archetypal aspects of “the hero’s journey,” also known as “the quest.” Your first essay (worth 250 points) involves you researching and then “teaching” the concept of the Quest to your reader. In this case, I am your most crucial reader, and you get to approach your discussion/analysis as if I have NEVER heard about this concept at all. This will allow you to fully utilize any/all sources to support your explanations/definitions.
Your writing goal here is to “define” the quest, then “apply” it by demonstrating that it exists in your chosen “literary” title. Thus, your ideal structural goal will be to define/apply, define/apply, etc. (“The Wanderer is… quote, quote, paraphrase; this can be clearly seen in The Hobbit when Bilbo experiences quote paraphrase…”.) You do not have to use all four of Pearson’s archetypes in your final essay. The Warrior is generally present in most literary pieces, but, for example, perhaps not the Magician (although there is clearly a Magician stage in, say, The Hobbit?).
As mentioned, for purposes of this essay we are expanding on the traditional definition of “literature,” which typically refers specifically to the written word (novels, plays, poems, and even screenplays). As you define the quest you will demonstrate that it exists by applying it to the characters and/or plots from any literary text, movie, or even television series that you choose (most students have chosen movies). Why do these “literary” formats fit with the task? Because ANYTHING written, presented, published, etc. HAS A QUEST AT ITS CORE (even a simple haiku!).
Essay One will be 1500 words minimum and require three scholarly sources minimum. (You cannot pass the assignment without hitting these most basic requirements!) Pearson counts as one of the three scholarly sources; the movie, etc. that you are analyzing will not. It is not scholarly.
Submit your essay in precise MLA format, including a correctly formatted Works Cited page, and include a word count at the end.

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