3 in-depth questions, 2 quotes AND in-depth ARGUMENT.
This assignment is based on the reading “August” (1933); written by Bruce Schulz. I will attach the link to access this reading at the end. After having read this full reading and comprehending the major aspects, you must formulate THREE IN-DEPTH questions that generate discussion well. The questions should be very detailed and you can even corporate two questions within one question. MAKE SURE within at least one of your questions AND your argument, you point out how the reading has elements of realism or romanticism. (EX – are they realistic or romantic pieces – why?) Instead of just jumping right into the question, also give a short background — here is an example based on another reading —
To me, the financial consequences of Emma’s romanticism clearly mark this novel as realistic (not romantic): the finer things in life all have a price in Flaubert’s novel, and usually consuming them makes Emma happy for only a short time before she is unsettled and needs more. Moreover, her debts become very confusing (for the reader too), and she struggles to keep track of them. Do we blame Emma for her spending? Or does Lheureux trick her into it?
See how the quote above does not jump right into the question but gives some background context to set the foundation for the question? That’s what you MUST do.
As for the two quotes, you can make TWO quotes the basis of TWO of your questions — formally and in-depth. The quotes you choose should help us discuss the themes or questions that the text raises!!
Here is an example of using a quote then using it to form a question
Quote: “Her chest soon began panting rapidly; the whole of her tongue protruded from her mouth; her eyes, as they rolled, grew paler, like the two globes of a lamp that is going out, so that one might have thought her already dead but for the fearful laboring of her ribs, shaken by violent breathing, as if the soul were struggling to free itself. Felicite knelt down before the crucifix, and the druggist himself slightly bent his knees, while Monsieur Canivet looked out vaguely at the Place. Bournisien had again begun to pray, his face bowed against the edge of the bed, his long black cassock trailing behind him in the room. Charles was on the other side, on his knees, his arms outstretched towards Emma. He had taken her hands and pressed them, shuddering at every beat of her heart, as at the shaking of a falling ruin. As the death-rattle became stronger the priest prayed faster; his prayers mingled with the stifled sobs of Bovary, and sometimes all seemed lost in the muffled murmur of the Latin syllables that tolled like a passing bell…She was dead.”
QUESTION – Now that we have reached the end of Madame Bovary what can we say about the act of loving? Does anyone really love in this novel? Is her love for Leon different than her love for Rodolphe? How does Charles express his love for her after her death (he becomes a romantic!) Take note of her death scene, how is it different or similar than Werther’s or Ivan Ilych’s?
See how one question incorporates more than one question and it generates discussion? That’s what you MUST do. Furthermore, see how the quote is used to generate the question? that is what is expected.
Here is another example of a quote and question —
Quote: “There existed, then, in the place of happiness, still greater joys—another love beyond all loves, without pause and without end, one that would grow eternally! She saw amid the illusions of her hope a state of purity floating above the earth mingling with heaven, to which she aspired. She wanted to become a saint.”
Question: Madame Bovary has tried going to God as a resort to help her and tries to be a better person for her family and Charles. Is she doing this because she feels guilty for her cheating and knows one day Charles might find out or is she just romanticizing God like everything else? Does she feel like if she does these good deeds that God will save her from her problems and give her some kind of power or feeling?
Please make your questions as detailed as the examples shown above using the reading. THREE questions and TWO quotes.
After having done this —
Please formulate an argument you have about the overall text, this should be lengthy and in-depth. Here is an example of an argument made from another reading
My argument — We come to read at the beginning of the novel that Emma only ever really wanted love. She dreamt of romance, desired romance. She wanted her life to be as she had read in novels and urged for her to feel what she read she was supposed to feel. Is what she wants ideal? Is she asking for too much? I argue that her unhappiness was based on her fantasy of a love that just isn’t realistic. Along with her character, she truly isn’t a good person or faithful and definitely didn’t need to manage her issues the way she did. Emma’s trigger was based on her rooted mentality in stories and making sure she was taken care of and saved, but always feeling like she deserved something, not having empathy for anyone but herself. And yes you can argue that she is just a bad mother and wife and only cares to have an interest in Leon and Rudoph but ultimately the idea of romance brewed her sequence of actions to commit towards the novel.
See how it is very detailed (in-depth, not broad) and argues a stance? this is what is expected.
Here is how you know you are on the right track with your argument —
So how do you know if you are making an argument?
An argument:
Is more than a factual statement
Is not a yes or no question
Challenges our preconceived notions about the text using evidence (quotes from the text)
Tries to interpret what the author’s larger purpose is in writing the text.
I know the instructions seem long, but it is just because I included examples for you to see what is expected. Thank you so much!
