Select one (1)of the following poems and the indicated passages:(1) Dryden, “Mac Flecknoe,” lines 1–63;
(2) Behn, “The Disappointment,” lines 91–140;
(3) Pope, “The Rape of the Lock,” Canto 3, lines 125–178;
(4) Johnson, “The Vanity of Human Wishes,” lines 319–368.
In a close reading of the passage, analyse how a single formal elementmost significantly functions to affect and support meaning.
The following is a list of possible formal elements thatyou could choose:• alliteration• parallelism• apostrophe/address• personification• assonance/consonance• punctuation• caesura• repetition(s)• enjambment• rhyme• metaphor• simile• meter/rhythm• synecdoche• paradox• syntax(i.e., punctuation, word order, etc.)
In your essay, focus strictly on the passageindicated for the poem you select. You should establish the contextof the passage in the work as a whole (where is it in the poem? what is the situation? who is the speaker and/or point-of-view character, if any?), but your analysis should keep as much as possible to the passage. Regarding the formal element you choose, consider definingit clearly for your reader in the essay; refer to the Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms(4th ed.) or a similar source, such as A Glossary of Literary Terms(by Abramsand Harpham) or the “Glossary of Terms” intheBroadview anthologies.Your thesis should be narrow and argumentative. Make sure your thesis addresses why the specific formal element is crucial to the meaning of the passageand what you believe that meaning to be (i.e., the central question or issue or problem or idea at stake).
• 4pages(double-spaced, Times Roman12 pt., not including Works Cited). Up to 5 pages is acceptable. Essays of 3 pages or less will be too short and result in a grade no higher than a 72 (B–).
• MLA style, 8th ed.,is required (includes essay format as well as quoting and citing sources); no title page or assignment cover. See the MLA Handbook(8th ed.) and/or the MLA resources in Modules / Links onQuercus.Note that inconsistent and incorrect MLA style can negatively affect your grade.
• No secondary critical/scholarly sources are to be used for or cited in this essay.You can, however, consult and cite sources such as dictionaries, handbooks/glossaries of literary terms,definitions from lectures,and the like. Using and citing a secondary critical/scholarly source (such as a journal articleor blog post on a short story orthenovel) will result in a grade no higher than 72 (B–).