Assignment #1: Argumentative Essay
Description
In popular culture,
Frankenstein
is often presented as a story about a crazy, mad scientist who is punished for trying to act like God. But Shelley’s original
Frankenstein
has drawn a more complex variety of interpretations, and there continue to be disagreements about many aspects of the novel. In your first essay, you will make an argument about Frankenstein in response to one of the following three prompts:
1. Victor attributes his tragic fate to his relentless search for knowledge, and often the novel has been interpreted as a warning about how knowledge is dangerous and destructive. Do you agree with this reading of the novel? Why or why not?
2. Trace the similarities between Victor and the monster. Consider their respective relationships with nature, desires for family, and any other important parallels you find. Why does Shelley draw these parallels between Victor and his monster?
3. Both Victor and the monster present themselves as victims, and they each present the reader with an eloquent argument of why they were mistreated and wronged. Which is the most convincing and why?
Requirements
Your essay should be
3 double-spaced pages
long, in 12 pt. font, with 1” margins. Essays shorter than this length will receive a reduction. The main focus of this essay is
argumentative. To do well on this assignment, you should have a strong thesis that advances a main interpretation of the novel that you are persuading your reader to agree with. Below are some additional guidelines to follow:
· Be sure to respond directly to one of the prompts. Include the question number (1, 2, or 3) in your title.
· Avoid summary. Assume your reader already has read
Frankenstein. Focus on asserting and supporting your main thesis.
· To make your argument convincing, you want to back it up with textual evidence. A good rule of thumb here is that for every major point you make about the novel you want to support it with at least two examples.
· Don’t use outside sources for this paper; you’ll have more than enough material from the book to back up your arguments.
· Whenever quoting from the book, be sure to include the page number you take your quote from in parenthesis.
· Include a works-cited page, with the edition of
Frankenstein
you are using in MLA format.
(See next page!)
Grading
You will be graded according the four following criteria: 1) Argument 2) Organization
3) Analysis 4) Grammar/ writing mechanics
Due Dates
Draft for Peer Review: 9/21
Final Due Date: 9/28