Discussion Question Literature

is to write a four-page argument (≈ 1,000 words; double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman, one-inch margins), based in close reading, on Miguel de Cervantes’s Don Quijote, Eileen Chang’s “Sealed Off,” or Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s Matigari. In the assignment handout linked above, you will see three prompts on pp. 2–3. Each relates Don Quijote, “Sealed Off,” or Matigari to a key claim in Mikhail Bakhtin’s “Epic and Novel.” Please write an essay on one of these three prompts.
In your essay, please argue a position on the key question (flagged in bold) posed in your chosen prompt. Then defend your position by citing and analyzing direct quotations from your chosen fiction, along with the quotation from Bakhtin’s “Epic and Novel” specified in your prompt, to develop strong sub-arguments. To persuade your reader, be sure to cite quotations that present the best textual evidence for your points—and give strong, convincing close readings that show us how or why those quotations support your arguments. You may draw on any assigned parts of your chosen text. Please frame your thesis and arguments to respond to Bakhtin’s “they say” with your own “I say.” In your analyses, however, focus on your chosen text; Bakhtin should be secondary, helping you interpret your core text.
On Thursday, October 27, please submit a polished first draft of your essay (4 pages, plus a fifth page containing your Works Cited) You will receive feedback from your TA, via Canvas, by early Monday, November 14. You then will revise your essay based on TA feedback and resubmit it for your Paper #2 grade.
On Tuesday, November 22, please submit a final revised draft of your essay (4 pages, plus a fifth page containing both your Works Cited and a one-paragraph revision memo outlining major changes) online (via Canva You are required to revise based on TA comments on your first draft, so please respond carefully to your TA’s recommendations

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