Signature Assignment
Overview
The signature assignment addresses all four of the course University prescribed objectives.
Personal responsibility: This essay includes the integration of outside sources; it, therefore,
requires students to demonstrate personal responsibility as they use the words and ideas of other
writers in an accurate and ethical manner. Citing sources properly isn’t just a matter of mechanics. It’s a question of personal responsibility (with real consequences for students) that
overlaps with students’ responsibility to the academic community of which they are a part. The
construction of a clearly articulated thesis statement supported by a careful analysis of textual
evidence demonstrates critical thinking and communication skills. The development of a well- organizedessay that demonstrates the correct use of grammar and other writing mechanics anddemonstrates an awareness of the how to appeal convincingly to an audience further addressesthe communication objective. The critical analysis of the way the selected text engages asignificant issue of social responsibility addresses the social responsibility outcome.
Specific Requirements
For this assignment you will write a well-organized, effectively developed 3-4 page (900-
1200 words) analysis of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart. Your essay should effectively
analyze the way the novel engages colonialism (or related themes, such as cultural change,
tradition, tradition vs. modernity, cultural negotiation, etc.) as a significant global issue. You are
required to use two secondary sources – they must be academic sources! – in your analysis of
Achebe’s novel.
Compare/contrast the two great friends – Okonkwo and Obierika. What major conflict do
these two characters embody and how does this conflict relate to one of the main themes
of the novel?
Requirements:
1. Put an MLA heading on the left-hand side of the paper.
2. Essay should be 3-4 pages long (900-1200 words), typed and double-spaced.
3. Essay should be typed in 12-point Times New Roman with one-inch margins.
4. Give your paper an original title which hints at your thesis or reflects your argument;
highlight or underline your thesis statement.
5. Support the thesis in several body paragraphs by analyzing specific details, examples, and
quotes from the story.
6. Integrate two outside sources; your outside sources must be academic sources.
7. Document sources (e.g., quotes) using MLA format.
8. Provide a List of Works Cited (http://www.uta.edu/library/help/files/cite-mla.pdf); the
Works Cited page does not count toward the length requirement for the paper.
9. Submit your essay as a Word document using the Safe Assign Tool in Lesson 7; the
SafeAssign Tool monitors for plagiarism.
Major Project: Making Connections
.
1. Select one of the readings from the course outline and a theme, issue, or concept from it. For example,if you are intrigued by “Punishment,” you might work with the issue of “women’s rights at the turn-ofthe-century.”If you find “Yellow Woman” thought-provoking, you might explore an idea related toNative American culture. Please Note: You may use one, and only one, reading from the course outlineor course materials in this project. The other four artifacts you use must be a result of creative andcritical thinking and of searching and researching. You may not select a theme and use all five examplesof the theme from the course materials.
2. Next, search for a work of literature, art, music, and film (one of each!) which relates/connects to yourchosen work from the course and illustrates/connects to your theme, issue, or concept. Again, thesefour artifacts (lit + art + music + film) should not come from the course materials, but should be onesthat have resulted from your creative and thoughtful search. The work of literature must be astory/novel/play/poem that you have read on your own or that you plan to read during the researchphase of this project; the section about literature cannot be a summary of a Wikipedia entry or a similar source.
If you need help finding a literary text that relates to your chosen course work and theme, you
may want to research works of literature on Project Gutenberg or Literature Network. Likewise, youmust view the film you decide to write about. Search academic websites, museum websites, and otherlegitimate sources for works of art. Do not get your artifacts from Google Images, Facebook, personalblogs, and such. Your four research items should not come from the course materials, but from yourcreative and thoughtful search. Again, this is a research project, although not a traditional researchpaper.
3. Assemble your five items (course work +lit +art + music + film) in a Word document. You must presentthe course work first; you can present the research items in any order you wish.
• Begin with an MLA heading and a title (such as Making Connections: Transition from Childhood toAdulthood).
• Include the bibliographic information for each of the five items in MLA format.
• Following each bibliographic entry, include a two-paragraph annotation (250-300 words) for eachitem. In the first paragraph, analyze the artifact. In the second paragraph, explain how the itemconnects to your chosen work and theme; this means that you will have to discuss both your specificartifact and the course work in the second paragraph. You also need to make sure that you explainclearly what each artifact suggests about your chosen topic. For example, it is not enough to statethat each artifact addresses women’s rights. You need to explain what each particular artifactsuggests about your topic (e.g., what does the story suggest about women’s rights at the turn of thecentury, etc.).
• Incorporate and discuss 3-5 quotations from your primary sources (the five items) to illustrate yourpoints. Document your quotations using MLA format.
• PLEASE NOTE: Be sure your paragraphs are written in your own words and are not
copied/pasted/plagiarized. Just as in a research paper, you must put quotation marks around any
words, phrases, and sentences that you copy from a source or from information found online, and
you must document the source of the information, using MLA format.
• Include visuals, song lyrics, or other media in the presentation of your work. Document your visualsusing MLA format.