We have just finished reading “Why Fiction Is Good for You” by Jonathon Gottschall. We have also been looking at the question of identity in our other readings. Gottschall posits that fiction is good for society because, in an otherwise hostile world, people learn to empathize through storytelling. For this essay, start with the idea of identity for your research paper: gender, racial, ethnic, sexual, national, religious, class, professional. Feel free to choose one of these or some other. Then, think of a work of fiction that corresponds to that identity. You can choose a novel or short story, a play, film, television movie or series, or any other fictive genre. Gottschall maintains: “This research consistently shows that fiction does mold us. The more deeply we are cast under a story’s spell, the more potent its influence. In fact, fiction seems to be more effective at changing beliefs than nonfiction, which is designed to persuade through argument and evidence. Studies show that when we read nonfiction, we read with our shields up. We are critical and skeptical. But when we are absorbed in a story, we drop our intellectual guard. We are moved emotionally, and this seems to make us rubbery and easy to shape.” Then, think about how you want to approach your work and topic and narrow the topic. For example, you may decide to look at how the work that you select portrays a particular identity or how stereotypes play into the ways in which people in a group see themselves and how those outside the group do. Do past or current stereotypes in novels, on television or in film, for example, reinforce views inside or outside the subject group? For example, The Godfather: Part II examines, among other things, the Italian-American immigrant experience at the beginning of the twentieth century. Hidden Figures looks at a group of female African-American number crunchers at NASA who helped the American space program succeed. You can also analyze the roles that the characters we invite into our home via television and the internet have changed the way we think about subjects like race, gender, ethnicity, family, friendship, and sexuality. Think Modern Family or any other show that deals with changing norms. Think about the word identity. It has many meanings and contexts. In terms of narrowing the final topic, decide what aspect you want to discuss. For example, if you choose gender, are you dealing with male / female roles? gender fluidity? What does a traditional novel like Catcher in the Rye say about adolescent masculinity or a graphic novel like Persepolis say about women’s roles in traditional societies like Iran? These are just a few ideas. There are many other paths that you can follow.
Then, research sources appropriate to your topic. Many if not most of the essays in the textbook deal with issues of identity. Feel free to consult any of them. You will need to use these resources to support and develop your argument. Sources must be reputable. You may choose from scholarly sources (scholarly journals, documents) or popular sources (newspapers, magazines, media); other sources (books, web sites) can fall under either of these categories.
The paper must be a minimum of two thousand words. If necessary, the paper can be longer. You must use the MLA format. You must cite a minimum of THREE secondary sources, at least TWO of which must be scholarly sources. The paper is due December 6, 2021. Here are your deadlines:
October 12, 2021 Topic and thesis (no topic changes)
October 24, 2021 Working Bibliography (minimum of eight sources, three
annotated)
November 11, 2021 First draft (not required but highly recommended)
December 6, 2021 Paper due
You are expected to be intellectually honest. Plagiarism will not be tolerated and will result in failure for the course.
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