ENG 4140 DMWA                                                           Berggren

 

 

PAPER ASSIGNMENT

                                  Troilus and Cressida /Macbeth

 

DUE:  Thursday, 8 December

 

LENGTH:  6-7 pages (1500-1750 words)

 

TOPIC AREA:  Sex, Violence, and Identity in Troilus and Cressida and Macbeth

 

These two plays explore a range of complex relationship between sexuality, violence, and the nature of the self.  Characters find themselves in the grip of compulsions that they do not fully understand.  Driven by the will to dominate or simply to survive, they take actions that violate their deepest natures.  In this paper, I would like you to examine some aspect of the nexus of sex, violence, and identity in each text and relate it to the generic identity of these two very different kinds of plays. Here are some suggested approaches; they do not exclude others of your own invention.

 

1.      Thematic analysis

a.       Leadership and authority

Both Troilus and Cressida and Macbeth examine the difficulty of governing well. When a society is in turmoil, what is the right thing to do?  The pressure of personality influences political decisions that have profound personal as well as social consequences. In this paper, you are to formulate an opinion about at least two specific decisions that leaders in each of these two plays make.  Think about Agamemnon, Ulysses, Duncan, Macbeth, and others.

 

b. The power of nature

Troilus and Cressida and Macbeth examine the relation between human behavior and natural impulses.  Consider the meaning of “nature” in each play and discuss the degree to which human beings are separate from or subject to nature.  Find two specific examples in each play that you use to develop your argument.

 

c.       The conception of time

Trace the references to time in each of these plays, which are equally preoccupied by time but view it through different lenses.  How does the consciousness of time—the opportunities it seems to offer, the depredations it causes—motivate or stymie action in each play?  How does time intensify the pressures inherent in sex and violence and impinge upon the individual’s sense of identity?

 

 

2.      Dramatic technique –soliloquies

More characters get the chance to speak alone on stage in the plays of this great middle period of Shakespeare’s career than in the early or late plays.  Choose at least two examples of notable soliloquies in different styles from each play (in other words, a total of at least four specific speeches) and analyze them in careful detail.  What kind of insight do they offer into the speaker?  What kind of relationship do you think they establish with the audience?  Why are they singled out for the spotlight in this particular way?  Compare and contrast the significance of these soliloquies within each play and then across plays to see if you can deduce the reasons why some Shakespearean characters but not others are allowed this kind of dramatic speech.

 

3.       Character studies – paired types

Macbeth and Hector or Achilles–the warrior

Lady Macbeth and Cressida—what do women want?

Critical commentators:  the Porter in Macbeth, Thersites

 

TIMETABLE FOR COMPLETING THE ASSIGNMENT

           

Wednesday, 23 November     Submit a tentative thesis statement with a brief outline that

lists some of the dramatic evidence for your point of view.

I will return these with comments on Monday, 11/28.

 

Monday, 28 November-Friday, 2 December         Optional private conferences in my office to review your  draft and discuss your ideas.

Thursday, 8 December         PAPER DUE

Revisions will be possible, but only for papers that are submitted by the end of this day. Please submit your paper as an e-mail attachment.

METHOD OF PROCEEDING:  Keep your focus narrow enough so that you don’t work in broad generalizations.  Your essay will need a strong controlling thesis that explains what your comparison and contrast involves.  Make a statement about the relationship that you will examine and offer detailed critical analysis of two significant pieces of evidence from each of the plays you discuss.  In preparing your essay, consult at least two pieces of literary criticism or source material available in the Signet editions that we have been using and incorporate them into your analysis. Be sure to document your sources properly.  DO NOT rely on Wikipedia or online study guides.

PLEASE refer to the Check List for Essays (available on our blog) for instructions about formatting quotations and so on.