2 short story comparison

Topic for Paper 2: How do two short stories help the reader understand a common theme? By writing this paper, you will answer this question and demonstrate the following skills for writing and literature:

• Analyze literature for a purpose
• Distinguish digital or print materials through annotation in order to demonstrate reading and summary skills
• Identify a common theme in two short stories
• Identify one to three examples from each story as evidence of the theme
• Write a thesis statement that clearly identifies the titles of the stories, their authors, their common theme, and what the paper will discuss about the stories and the theme
• Write clear topic sentences for paragraphs that inform the reader what the paragraph will discuss
• Develop paragraphs that support the topic sentences
• Organize a comparison and contrast paper by presenting paragraphs in a logical and interesting fashion, using one of two methods for comparison and contrast: story-by-story or idea-by-idea
• Write sentences in standard American English that clearly express ideas
• Demonstrate correct use of MLA formatting within the paper and on a Works Cited page
• Explain your writing process in a clear and logical fashion

Overview of the Workshop Format for Paper 2

In Paper 1, you developed an initial thesis statement that considered how a theme is shown in a short story. In Paper 2, you will be building on that discussion by considering and analyzing a second story. You will be developing a comparison/contrast paper that focuses on bringing in appropriate material from Paper 1 and your two chosen stories. You will be using the feedback you received on Paper 1 from your instructor to help you revise any material you may want to use in Paper 2.

For Paper 2, review the selection of stories and choose another story that would work with your previously chosen theme and short story. Then, as you did for Paper 1, you will workshop the following areas in the weekly discussions.

Week 5: Thesis. Your thesis statement should identify both stories and the theme. You will work on the thesis, pattern of organization, and outline in the Week 5 discussion. Topic sentences for the outline will be reviewed, and you will also be applying the critical reading skills you’ve been developing throughout the course.

Weeks 6, 7, and 8: Development. Paragraphs of the body of the paper will focus on analyzing how literary elements in each story exemplify the common theme. During Weeks 6, 7, and 8, in the discussions, you will review the following writing strategies to develop your paper. The paragraphs are becoming more complex because you will be using the two stories (instead of one) to develop and present your ideas.

• development of body paragraphs that include strong topic sentences and transitions that set up comparison/contrast of the two stories and their shared theme
• development and management of signal phrases when using multiple sources in writing
• inclusion of claims and evidence that help to develop your argument
• using key words and quotations as development techniques

Throughout Weeks 5 to 8: Sentence Level and MLA. Your writing should be carefully proofed for sentence-level concerns. It should be formatted and documented according to MLA documentation in the form of parenthetical citations and a Works Cited page. Throughout the writing of Paper 2, you will be applying grammatical and documentation skills you learned from Paper 1.

Reminder: As in Paper 1, remember that your reader has read the stories and is familiar with them. You do not have to spend time on summary. Instead, your development should analyze and explain how selected literary elements from the two stories illustrate the theme and support your thesis.

Reflection: When complete, upload your work to the Assignment Folder within the link “Paper 2” by the deadline. On a separate page of your submission, provide an overview of your writing process for this paper.

Include a few paragraphs (250-500 words) on your writing process, including what you learned about writing in moving from Paper 1 to Paper 2.

Word Count: 800-1,000 words (Paper 2)

Short story 1 http://americanenglish.state.gov/files/ae/resource…

Short story 2 “The Signal” | Vsevolod Garshin. http://www.classicreader.com/book/2150/1/

Paper 1

“The Open Boat” is a short story written by Stephen Crane in which four men are stranded in an open ocean after their ship breaks down. The men struggle to get their small boat to the shore amid rough surf and ferocious waves and risk the dangers of capsizing (Crane, p. 1-46). The ocean, “perhaps marvelous,” continues to toss the small boat but then the men are in such hardship and danger that they do not tend to consider the beauties of the sea. This paper will discuss the prevailing theme of the indifference of nature to man in Crane’s short story “The Open Boat.”

The central theme in the short story, “The Open Boat” is man versus nature (naturalism), and illustrates the insignificance of life. This is expressed by the manner in which the story’s characters are pocked in a small boat once they survive a shipwreck. These people have to face the deep sea, plus the forces that nature is unleashing upon them. Certain elements in Crane’s story help to build up as well as reinforce this theme. Examples of these come from the manner in which the men are relentlessly battling against the open sea, and regardless of the things they do nature has a stronghold.

In the short story, Nature gives no quarter to the situation the people have become involved in. Examples of this “no quarter” atmospheric stand out in “The Open Boat,” with one of the opening sentences being, “none of them knew the color of the sky” (Crane, p. 96). The author refuses to give compassion towards the state of affairs of the people. Crane makes use of color in nature, such as amber. The sea in “open boat,” is “streaked with amber,” to give it a red hue that cautions of death (Crane, p. 97).

People in the story understand the effect of nature towards them by accepting the consequences, whatever they might be. For instance, the communicator considers death and decides that “drowning has to be a really comfortable arrangement” (Crane, p. 111). Therefore, the author shows that people can never outdo nature. Because of the ignorance of man, man will always view nature as the unfair opponent.

The setting of the “open boat” is a small boat in the sea with the theme being the stark difference between life and death at the mercy of the sea. This situation shows that there is no free will because fate and the sea hold the advantage (Crane, p. 101). Crane makes a comparison of the uncaring nature about the situation of the people inside the boat. Each of those persons in the boat has own weaknesses and strengths but they each try to focus upon their one goal of survival. A feeling of suspense that does not relent always prevails in the storyline. This suspense is intensified with the use of imagery that points out the deadliness of the sky and sea, which seems to come to life (Crane, P. 111). The fates as well as different point of view of each person are given during the story, providing highs plus lows for the reader. The high plus low smiles to the ocean where the boat is trapped in as the waves going up and down in the boat are highs and lows in Crane’s story tinged with relentless suspense for the reader.Crane makes use of many literary elements like color, similes, metaphors and visualizations to get the story across in a clear and simple language. Men’s struggles to face this elemental insignificance are often manifest by a grim irony.

Crane uses symbols for insignificance, indifference and isolation to illustrate the theme of insignificance of life. The symbolisms that Crane uses include the ocean’s power against the insignificant boat, the small boat in a huge sea from the people on the shore, and the seas against the universe. The indifference aspect is where things serve no purpose and there is truly no care for anything or anyone. The universe is symbolized by the ocean’s power and the “small boat” (Crane p. 1-46) in the ocean is figurative of man in this huge universe. At the same time, the tidy power of the ocean is very unsympathetic to the small boat just like the gigantic universe could care less for man. Insignificance means lack of importance and those little insignificant things mean nothing to the universe. In Crane’s “The open boat,” the sea is insignificant to the universe although it is very large to the mankind. Isolation is being held captive or lacking contact with the universe. The little boat in a huge sea symbolizes isolation from the people on the shore (Crane, p. 23-25). Although this small boat appears important to those on it, those isolated on the shore simply see it as one of the many objects inside the giant sea. This is a prime example of mankind versus the society.

In conclusion, Crane’s short story gives an interpretation of man’s relation to nature and the place of mankind in the universe. It conveys the sense of loneliness emanating from the understanding of man the he is alone in this universe and that he is insignificant in the universe’s workings. Underneath the narrator’s and men’s collective rants at the universe and fate is the fear of nothingness. Although nature has a complete control over humanity, it is eventually indifferent to mankind, neither against or in favor of humanity.

Works Cited

Crane, Stephen. The Open Boat: And Other Tales of Adventure. No. 1256. Doubleday & McClure Company, 1898.

Crane, Stephen. “The Open Boat”. American Literature After the Civil War.Ed. George Perkins and Barbara Perkins. Create Edition, McGraw-Hill, 2011. 96, 107, 111.