Essay 2 Questions on The Road Past Altamont by Gabrielle Roy
Course: 603-101-MA Composition Dates: week of May 6-10 for draft and good copies
Directions: This is an MLA-style English essay of 750-words that is written in class time. The brainstorming and the draft outline will be done at home, using the outline template distributed. Students will bring this outline to class the week before to be checked; it you do not, you won’t get the feedback, but you may still write the draft essay regardless. You have one class period to write the draft, and you have the second one to write the good copy (same as for essay 1). There should be three to four body paragraphs; the word count includes the quotations. Write in pen.
You must have textual support; read the doc. “Integrating Quotations.”
Choose only one question. You do not have to organize the preview sentence and body around a literary device as you did for the poetry essay, but you must mention at least one literary device or a basic technique (such as conflict, for example) in each body paragraph. The topics are underlined below, and you will have to formulate a thesis about one you selected.
1. The development of the protagonist: Analyze and discuss the ways that Christine has developed in the course of the plot of the novel and state why this is a type of Bildungsroman.
2. Journeys of self-discovery: Analyze and discuss the journeys that Christine has made and what she has learned from each one.
3. Families: Roy has mentioned a few families in the novel and their own particular issues or challenges. Analyze and discuss three or four families she has described and identify each one’s difficulties. What does Christine learn about families as she grows up?
4. The use of contrasts in the novel: Roy mentions many contrasts in the novel; choose three or four and analyze what each one is about, what it teaches Christine about life.
5. Characterization: There are many major and minor characters that Roy has developed in the novel, some moreso than others, of course. Choose three or four and analyze the methods used by the author to portray them, and state what types they are: round, flat, static or dynamic. State what each one’s contribution to the plot and theme might be.
6. Symbolism: Roy has used several symbols in the novel; find three or four and analyze and discuss their significance and meaning in the story.
7. Settings: Roy has highlighted the ways the settings that people are part of in their surroundings influence them, become a part of them, make them happy or sad or bored, etc. Analyze and discuss a few of the settings that are developed and described by Roy, and then show how they have influenced some of the characters. Be sure to note the devices used to depict them.