Assignment
For this paper, choose another story and consider the following question: What does this story have to teach us about empathy for others? In responding to this question, your focus will be on the themes that arise from your close readings of the story. You will develop an argument on what the story teaches us about empathy and how it is conveyed.
Alternatively, you may choose to argue that the story does not teach us about empathy. In either case, you will use elements from the story to support your argument.
In addition, you will use evidence from at least one of the following articles to support your argument:
Schmidt, Megan. “How Reading Fiction Increases Empathy and Encourages Understanding.” Discover Magazine. discovermagazine.com. 28 Aug. 2020. https://www.discovermagazine.com/mind/how-reading-fiction-increases-empathy-and-encourages-understanding
Kidd, David Comer, and Emanuele Castano. “Reading Literary Fiction Improves Theory of Mind.” Science, vol. 342, no. 6156, American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2013, pp. 377–80, http://www.jstor.org/stable/42619922.
Coleman, John. “The Benefits of Poetry for Professionals.” Harvard Business Review, 2012. https://hbr.org/2012/11/the-benefits-of-poetry-for-pro
Thorpe, J.R. “Why Reading Poetry Is Good For Your Brain.” Bustle, 20 Apr. 2017. https://www.bustle.com/p/why-reading-poetry-is-good-for-your-brain-51884
Most of the articles in this list were referenced in the Week 1 Insights (see above). You should also refer to “Week 6 Insights: Integrating Sources Using Your Own Voice” for guidance on working with your chosen article.
Length and Format:
- Five-paragraph literary analysis paper
- 1000–1200 words for the paper (approximately 3–4 pages, double-spaced)
- MLA style for document format. See this MLA Style Demo video for how to set up your document.