The Possibility of Humans to Convincingly Portray Nonhumans Creatures

Writing Diagnostic Essay
Details
Word count: minimum of 300 words, maximum of 400
Submission types: .doc, .docx, & .pdf file types accepted
Format: MLA
Assignment Criteria
This Writing Diagnostic Essay will only be graded as "Complete" or "Incomplete". If you do not complete it before the next essay is due, you will be dropped from the course. It serves two purposes: (1) It lets you jump in and start writing right away, getting you a little more accustomed to what’s to come, almost like a good stretch before a more rigorous workout; and (2) It gives me some idea of both your writing strengths and your potential for growth.
As our syllabus states: "We will primarily focus on how to interpret what we are reading by paying close attention to (1) What information a variety of texts contain (content), and (2) How that information is presented (form)."
Just so, we're going to look at the content and form of the story "Love Is the Plan the Plan Is Death" and decide whether or not we think its form and content convincingly portray the thoughts, actions, and identity of a creature that is not human. For the purpose of this assignment and forming your argument you can focus on just content, just form, or both at once.
First: Read “Love Is the Plan the Plan Is Death” and “Human-Nonhuman” (in whatever order you prefer)
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Next: Consider the following:
In our Week 2 reading “Human-Nonhuman,” Jonathon Culler writes, “recent theoretical work focuses on the…radical otherness and inaccessibility of animals, whom we cannot presume to understand (especially once we move beyond dogs and horses).” He also points out that some writers try to write about what life might be like to animals, but they only end up, “anthropomorphizing, treating animals according to human models.” (125)
Then: Write a paper answering this question:
Do you think it is possible for humans to convincingly portray the thoughts, actions, and identities of nonhuman creatures?
Your paper should include:
An introduction with a clear thesis statement in which you either (1) claim that humans are incapable of convincingly writing things from the perspective of nonhuman creatures and that “Love Is the Plan…” is proof of this -OR- that (2) humans are capable of convincingly writing things from the perspective of nonhuman creatures and that “Love Is the Plan…” is proof of this
A short summary of “Love Is the Plan…” written in your own words
At least one quote (but you can have more than one quote if you want) from the story that you believe will help support the claim of your thesis. You must introduce the quote and discuss it, explaining why you think it works as an example that supports your thesis. You can also use a quote from “Human-Nonhuman” to support your thesis, if you’d like
A counterargument that you imagine someone who believes the opposite of your position might write and your response to that counterargument
A satisfying conclusion
Paper Resources
Sample Writing Diagnostic Essay Download Sample Writing Diagnostic Essay
(The above is an original student paper with teacher notes followed by a version of the paper that your teacher revised) I will be including in a pdf.
Plagiarism is not allowed