Taken from my syllabus: The purpose of this assignments is to show your ability to discover the significance of fiction by showing how meaning is achieved through the use of the elements of fiction. Objectives for Textual Analysis Assignments: ? You will demonstrate your understanding of the elements of fiction in Literature. ? You will demonstrate your skills of analysis and critical thinking. ? You will demonstrate your ability to write in a concise, unified and coherent style. Your Task: After reading the assigned novel, analyze the theme of the work and what elements of fiction (techniques) were used by the author to achieve this thematic expression. You will not comment on the entire text, but rather focus on specific excerpts that illustrate the point that you are trying to make. Your Textual Analysis should be about one page single spaced, 12 point, Times New Roman font. Because I am asking a lot in a little space, you will need to be very concise. At the same time, you will need clear and relevant examples and explanations to support your thesis. You may find that the theme is rather complex (the author makes several points) , and it would be best to focus on a specific idea and on one or two specific techniques that the author uses to express that idea (theme). Or you may want to explore a broad spectrum of thematic possibilities and techniques. Either way, your writing must be insightful and original, concise, coherent and well supported. . . and . . . no more than two pages! Two and a quarter at the most! Evaluation Criteria: You will be evaluated according to (1) how insightful your analysis is, (2) how clear and (3)cogent your thesis is, (4) how well it is supported with examples and explanations, (5) how concise and (6) coherent your writing is. You will also be evaluated, naturally, on (7,8,9,and 10) grammar, spelling, punctuation, and the observance of MLA style. My theme: Consumerism/Anti-Consumerism