Literary Writing
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Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, discuss the theme of personal suffering and loss.
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Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, discuss the theme of personal triumph.
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Using a piece of literature that you have read, discuss the way your views about another culture were changed.
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Using a piece of literature that you have read, discuss how fate intervened and came to the aid of a character.
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Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, discuss a character who served as a guide, and explain that character's
purpose.
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Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, discuss a determined main character.
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Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, discuss how the weather or climate affects the mood or tone.
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Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, discuss how struggle is symbolized.
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Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, discuss how evil is personified.
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Using your knowledge of contemporary writers, speculate as to who might become the next literary giant.
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Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, discuss how one character influences other characters to change.
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Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, discuss the theme of unrequited love.
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Using a literary piece that you are familiar with, discuss a character who begins as a minor character, but who evolves into a
major character with an important role as the novel progresses.
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Using a work of literature you have read, describe the hero or heroine and his or her characteristics.
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Using a specific literary work, explain how a novel might influence change in society.
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Discuss a figure from history, other than Anne Frank, whose journal entries have spawned a classic literary piece.
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Discuss a novel that you think might be the best novel of the twentieth century.
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Discuss how doom is foreshadowed in a piece of literature that you are familiar with.
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Discuss the difference between poetry and prose, using literary pieces that you have read.
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Discuss a novel that has been controversial and perhaps banned, and explain why.
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Discuss a poem that you think might be used as the keynote speech for a meeting at the United Nations.
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Discuss a well-known piece of literature that contains a mythical beast.
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Discuss how technology plays a major role in a literary work that you have read.
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Discuss how irony helped a character in a dramatic work that you have read.
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Discuss the theme of nature in a piece of literature that you have read.
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Discuss a character who goes through a complete mental breakdown, using a piece of literature that you are familiar with.
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Discuss a piece of literature set in another country, and how this venue enhanced your enjoyment of the piece.
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Discuss your favorite story from Roman mythology.
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Discuss a piece of literature from the Industrial Revolution and its treatment of issues like child labor, working conditions, and social classes.
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Discuss the theme of social injustice, using a piece of literature that you have read.
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Discuss a piece of literature in which the setting switches between the past and the present.
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Discuss a literary trilogy wherein the reader must read the succession of novels to understand the plot.
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Discuss a specific literary work that focuses on adolescent main characters.
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Discuss how faith is symbolized in a piece of literature that you have read.
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Discuss the theme of prejudice, using a piece of literature that you have read.
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Discuss a piece of literature that you had to read more than once in order to fully understand it. Explain how and why the
meaning of the piece became more clear to you.
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Discuss a piece of literature that uses an object of worth, such as a sword, as its focus. Discuss the symbolic purpose of this object.
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Discuss a hero in a literary piece that you have read.
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Discuss why Shakespeare used only men and boys in his dramatic works at the Globe Theater.
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Discuss a piece of literature that utilizes spirits or ghosts.
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Discuss a character from literature that embodies a dark mood.
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Discuss your favorite historical poem, its theme, and the historical events on which the poem is based.
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Discuss the use of metaphor, imagery, and word play in Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland.
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Discuss the theme of greed in a piece of literature that you have read.
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Discuss a prominent leader in our society and his or her literary influences. Discuss what this reveals about that leader.
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Discuss the themes of two fairy tales that you know. Tell how these themes benefit young children.
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Discuss a piece of literature that uses the theme of personal survival.
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Discuss a character from literature that seems to be present only for comic relief. Explain how this character adds to or detracts from the work.
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Discuss whether or not a piece of literature has ever predicted actual events. Using a work that you are familiar with, discuss
this topic using specific details.
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Discuss your favorite character from Greek mythology. Be sure to include details and elements from the myth as you describe this character.
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Discuss a character in literature that you loathed. Explain the techniques the author used that caused you to feel this way.
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Discuss the key events that you would offer to a person writing a biography of your life.
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Discuss a character in literature that you loathed. Explain the techniques the author used that caused you to feel this way.
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Explain the items you would want to place in a time capsule.
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Explain the most important lesson you learned from a piece of literature. Use specific details from a literary work you have read.
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Explain the appeal of war literature. Use a piece of literature from this genre to describe its allure.
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Explain the popularity of science fiction writing. Use a work from this genre to explain its appeal.
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Analyze a poem that uses a pessimistic tone.
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Analyze a poem that uses a hopeful, optimistic tone.
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Describe the plot of a novel that would portray the attitudes and feelings of the people and the society in the year 2002.
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Describe a character from literature that you would trade places with, and explain why.
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Explore the theme of social breakdown or anarchy, using a piece of literature that you have read.
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Explore the theme of personal degeneration and abandoning morals, using a piece of literature that you have read.
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Compare how a social studies textbook and historical fiction are similar yet different. Explain which medium you would want to choose in order to learn more about a historical period.
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Write a lengthy, detailed journal entry from the point of view of someone you have studied in history. Include accurate, historical details in the diary entry.
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List ten sensory images for each of the four seasons-winter, spring, summer, and fall. Then, write a brief explanation of why you chose those specific images.
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Often in literature, a character has ironic experiences that can be humorous or fateful. Discuss how this technique was used in a piece of literature that you have read.
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Often, an author will give the reader more information than the characters have. Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, speculate on the reasons an author would use this method.
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Often, in literature, a character is viewed as an outsider or a loner. Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, discuss such a character. Be sure to describe this character's attitudes towards himself or herself, and how he or she deals with the isolation that comes with these two labels.
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Often in literature, there is a heroic figure, or archetype. Discuss the characteristics of an archetype, using specific examples from a piece of literature.
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Frequently, popular novels are adapted into motion pictures. Discuss a novel that you have read and that has been made into a motion picture. Compare/contrast the plot, setting, and characterization in both mediums.
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Sometimes an author will write dialogue that illustrates a person's intelligence, speech pattern, or locality. Discuss a piece of literature in which this happens. Also discuss whether this technique helps or hinders your reading.
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Many times in Shakespeare's plays, the setting changes from rural or pastoral to urban. Compare and contrast these settings. Explain the reason for the shift of scenery, using support from specific plays.
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A burlesque, such as Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, is a literary piece that explores a serious subject in a trivial manner or a trivial subject in a serious manner. Choose a literary work that fits this description and explain why it should be classified as a burlesque.
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Repetition is a technique used by a poet to create sound or to emphasize a subject in a poem. Discuss how and why this technique is used in a poem that you know.
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Imagery is the use of descriptive details that appeal to the reader's senses. Using a literary piece that you are familiar with, discuss how the author's use of imagery enhanced your reading experience.
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Conflict, in a work of literature, is the struggle between opposing characters or opposing forces. One type of conflict is character vs. character. Explain this type of conflict using a piece of literature that you have read.
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Another type of conflict is called character vs. nature. Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, explain how the author uses this type of conflict.
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A third type of conflict is called character vs. him/herself. This is also referred to as internal conflict, because the character must face self-inflicted fears and problems. Write about this type of conflict, using a piece of literature that you have read.
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Foreshadowing is when the author gives hints to the reader about what is going to take place later in the work. Using a piece of literature that you are familiar with, explain how the author uses foreshadowing and how the use of foreshadowing added to the plot.
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Flashback is a technique whereby past events are recalled while telling a story in the present. Discuss this technique as it was used in a piece of literature that you have read and tell why this was the best way to tell the story.
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The protagonist in a story is usually the do-gooder, or the character that most readers emphathize with. Identify a piece of literature where the author wants us to empathize with the antagonist, or evildoer. Explain by using details from that work.
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Personification is the technique wherein a non-human character is given human thoughts, feelings, and dialogue. Illustrate how this technique is used in your favorite novel or short story.
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The setting of a novel is where the action takes place. Explain how the setting complements the story in a novel you have read.
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The climax of a work is when all of the events come to a breaking point. Using a piece of literature that you know, explain the events that lead to the climax, what happens at the climactic scene, and how the story changes after the climax.
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Third person point of view is when the narrator has no part in the action. He or she is simply telling the story using the words he, she, or they. A story would be very different if it were told from the first person (using the pronoun I) point of view. Using a novel written in the third person, discuss how it would be a very different story if it were told in the first person.
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A haiku is a three-line, non-rhyming poem usually centered on nature. It has also been defined as a snapshot of something ordinary. From your own experience, describe the natural images you feel are worthy of a haiku.
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A struggle between two or more opposing forces in a work is called conflict. Cite a piece of literature and explain the conflict embodied in the work.
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The theme of a literary piece is the central idea or message that it delivers. Cite a specific literary work and discuss the theme.
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Tone is the mood or feeling the author intends the reader to experience. Using a specific piece of literature, explain how tone enhances the work.
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Poetry has been defined as, "putting the best possible words in the best possible order." Explain what this means and apply this theory to a specific poem.
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Narrative poetry tells a story and doesn't necessarily rhyme. Often, narrative poems are written about historical events. Name three historical events that could be considered worthy of a narrative poem. Describe the key elements from each historical
event.
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Novels often become mirror images of life. Discuss a time when you saw a similarity between your life and that of the main character in a novel. Explain the situation and compare the way you handled the situation with the way the character did.
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In drama, when a character speaks his or her innermost houghts, it is called a monologue. Explain your favorite monologue from a dramatic piece and tell how this monologue affected the plot.
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Death has been symbolized many different ways in prose and poetry. Using either of these genres, discuss the symbols that authors use when they write about death. Describe the impact of these symbols.
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Oral tradition is a form of storytelling that is passed on from generation to generation. It has often been said that an original story could be altered from when it is first told to when it was first written. Give examples of how this could happen using evidence from a story you know in the oral tradition.
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Music and poetry have many similarities. Discuss the connection using specific examples from both musical and poetic works.
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In the beginning of a novel, an author may present a character one way, but by the end of the novel, this same character may behave differently. Through characterization, we can learn to understand people. Using a piece of literature that you have read, discuss the ways in which the author used characterization to present personality.
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The coming of age theme is very popular in literature. This term refers to a pre-adolescent boy or girl going through many difficult, life altering experiences in order to reach young adulthood. Using a novel you are familiar with, discuss this theme. Be sure to use supporting details and evidence in your essay.
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Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet is a powerful drama about young love and familial conflict. Compare this play to another piece of literature that you have read and that embodies the same themes.
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Anne Frank became famous for keeping a diary during her experiences in the Holocaust. Explain how simply keeping a diary gave Anne such worldwide recognition.