The Comparative Essay: Assignment Requirements

For this assignment you will choose a topic that is portrayed in the novel and the film, and then develop an interpretation the theme. This may be the same for the novel and the film, or you may find variations between the mediums. In the body of your paper you will support your interpretation of the theme using supporting details from the novel and the film. You will evaluate how the author and filmmakers develop the theme using the literary and film techniques we have studied in class. The paper will use this analysis of each text to draw conclusions about the texts, and what the differences in the development of the theme reveals for readers and viewers. What do these differences imply? What implications does your analysis uncover? What is significant about the variation of the theme between the two texts?
Main Characteristics of a Comparative Essay

The main characteristics of a good comparative essay include:

An introduction that provides background information, a statement of the theme, and a comparative thesis. (1-2 paragraphs)
A section of the body that analyzes the theme in the novel. This section should conduct an analysis of at least three scenes of the novel and pay particular attention to the author’s use of literary devices to develop the theme. (3-5 paragraphs)
A section of the body that analyzes the theme in the film. This section should conduct an analysis of at least three scenes of the film, and pay particular attention to the filmmakers’ use of film techniques to develop the theme. (3-5 paragraphs)
Concluding paragraphs that directly state observations of comparison and the significance of your analysis. (1-2 paragraphs)

Choice of Text and Film

You may choose from one of the three novel-film pairing we have studied this term:

Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird and To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
Stephen King’s “Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption” and The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and The Great Gatsby (either 1974 or 2013)

Required Length

2500-3500 words, or about 5-7 pages.