Write an essay of about 2000 words on one of the following topics
TOPICS
1. The story we know as “Cinderella” exists in many different versions, all around the world. Choose one or more of the
following versions and compare it to “Cendrillon” and/or “Aschenputtel”. Which aspects of the tales are similar? Which
are different? And, most importantly, what effect do the differences have on the stories’ overall meaning?
“Tam and Cam” (Vietnam): http://en.vietnam.com/culture/art/fairy-tales/the-story-of-tam-and-cam.html
“Cenerentola” (Italy): http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/cinderella/stories/ceneren.html
“Yeh-Hsien (China): http://www.365cinderellas.com/2011/06/cinderella-153-yeh-hsien-chinese.html
“The Story of the Black Cow” (Himalayas): http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/cinderella/stories/blackcow.html
“Conkiajgharuna” (Republic of Georgia): http://www.sacred-texts.com/asia/geft/geft13.htm
“Catskin” (England): http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/donkeyskin/stories/catskin.html
“The Green Knight” (Denmark): http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/greenknight.html
2. Write your own version of the Cinderella story, structuring your re-telling around the element(s) of the story that seem
most significant or interesting to you. You can tell the story from the point of view of one of the characters or use thirdperson
narration. Think carefully about what specific aspects of the story you decide to emphasise and how you choose to
represent them. Include, as an afterword, a brief explanation of your choices, and how they contribute to the point(s) you
are trying to make in your story.
3. In “Ashputtle or The Mother’s Ghost” Angela Carter retells the story of Ashenputtel three times. What parts of the story
are presented consistently in all three versions? What parts are dropped or changed? What is the significance of Carter’s
manipulation of the original story, her point of view towards her material and the way in which she presents it?
4. “I am not romantic, you know,” Charlotte Lucas tells Elizabeth. “I never was. I ask only a comfortable home.” Charlotte’s
acceptance of Mr. Collins’ proposal focuses the reader’s attention on the practical realities facing most of the female
characters in Pride and Prejudice. Discuss the intersection of economics and romance in the novel.
5. In Gregory Corso’s poem “Marriage” the narrator imagines himself involved in several different potential marriages,
ranging from the stereotypically conventional to the frankly outlandish. Discuss Corso’s poem. Is there a common
denominator to his versions of marriage? Is he ultimately hopeful or despairing about the prospect of being a husband?
6. Analyse Al Purdy’s attitude towards marriage in “Song of the Impermanent Husband” (in the course reader.) Is this
poem primarily a discussion of a specific marriage, or a more generalised view of relations between men and women? What is
Purdy’s ultimate view of marriage?
7 Analyse the two passages from Paradise Lost that appear in the course reader, with particular attention to the descriptions
of Adam and Eve’s love-making before and after the Fall. Pay close attention to Milton’s vocabulary and how he conveys
the difference between the two occasions.
8. Both Michel Faber’s “Tunnel of Love” and Ian McEwan’s ”Pornography” (both in the course reader) feature characters
who work in the pornography business. Compare the two stories. What is the central idea or theme of each story? How
does the setting work towards establishing and conveying that meaning?
9. “Reflections of a Kept Ape” is the story of a failed love affair, told from an unusual perspective. Write your own short
story, retelling the story (or part of the story) from Sally Klee’s perspective, or from the perspective of an imaginary third
party who has some knowledge of the affair. Think carefully about what specific aspects of the affair and/or its aftermath
you decide to write about, how you choose to represent them, and the role that point of view plays in your re-telling.
Include, as an afterword, a brief explanation of your choices, and how they determine the overall “meaning” of your story.
10. Discuss the peculiar forms that love takes in “We So Seldom Look on Love” and “Annabel Lee.” What thematic,
symbolic or metaphoric meanings are attached to the romantic and sexual impulses that these narratives explore?
11. Is Adele Hugo’ story simply the tale of an unfortunate woman who suffered from insanity, or is Truffaut attempting to
make any larger and more generally applicable observations about the nature of romantic love?
12. Discuss the role of Bunbury in The Importance of Being Earnest. To what extent do all the play’s characters rely on fictional
constructs to assist them in their real lives? (An electronic text of the play can be found at
http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/E850003-002/)
13. “Tonight for the first time ever,” says Rob Fleming as High Fidelity comes to an end, “I can sort of see how it’s done.” Rob is
ostensibly talking about making a compilation tape for Laura, but his remark can also be interpreted as referring to maturity.
Does Rob truly achieve the status of responsible adult by the end of the novel?
14. John Donne’s “To His Mistress Going to Bed”, Andrew Marvell ‘s “To His Coy Mistress” and Thomas Wyatt’s “They
Flee From Me, That Sometime Did Me Seek” (all in the course reader) share a common subject — seduction. Compare the
ways in which these three authors approach the game of love.
15. “Cupid and Psyche” tells the story of the love between a god and a mortal and suggests that, when love transgresses
borders, happiness is only won at great cost. Margaret Atwood’s “True Trash” and Margaret Gibson’s “Making It” similarly
concern transgressive love. Compare either or both of these stories to “Cupid and Psyche”. What are the barriers to love
according to Gibson and/or Atwood? Can they be overcome?
16. Discuss how John Cameron Mitchell uses Plato’s ideas (from the excerpt from The Symposium found in the course
reader) in Hedwig and the Angry Inch.
17. Why is the narrator’s gender concealed in Written on the Body? What is Winterson able to accomplish by this evasion?
To what extent would the story be different if the author had assigned a gender to the narrator?