Sign In
Not register? Register Now!
Essay Available:
Pages:
6 pages/≈1650 words
Sources:
3 Sources
Style:
MLA
Subject:
Literature & Language
Type:
Research Paper
Language:
English (U.S.)
Document:
MS Word
Date:
Total cost:
$ 25.92
Topic:

Fences Research Paper

Research Paper Instructions:

Research-Supported Essay on Fences
This essay will be a thesis-driven, research-supported essay on the play Fences. Your purpose is to make an original argument and support it with evidence. Your intended audience is an academic one; therefore, tone, language and style should be appropriate for an academic audience.
Format: Double-spaced and indented paragraphs; standard font (Times New Roman); standard print size (12), standard margins (1”). Give essay a unique title.
Length: Minimum length requirement is six pages. Maximum length is 8 pages. The Works Cited page does not count towards page count. If you feel you need to go beyond this maximum, you may do so but only if it enriches the analysis.
Due date: May 8.
Weight towards final grade: 25%
Please choose one of the following topic ideas and develop a thesis and subsequent analytical essay supporting that thesis:
1. How does Troy's character change over the course of the play? Create an essay where you trace and discuss the complete character arc of Troy Maxon. In your conclusion, is Troy a modern tragic hero, a villain, or a combination of these types? 
2. Fathers and sons: Analyze the relationship and conflicts between Troy and Cory. Go beyond just “retelling the plot.” Analyze why these conflicts are occurring. Reach inside the characters of Troy and Cory to tap into their motivation and behavior based on generational differences (as well as Troy’s parenting style). Discuss in your conclusion whether a resolution is reached? In other words, can Troy still be forgiven?
3. What about Gabriel? Gabe cannot be easily dismissed as just a “kooky” minor character. He seems to be quite important to the play (especially his actions at the end) and appears in pivotal scenes. What is his function? Analyze certain scenes in which he appears and how he affects Troy and others. What is his spiritual/religious significance?
4. Historical context: Create an essay in which you explore the late 40’s and 50’s in terms of world events, particular the sports color barrier and racial issues that affected August Wilson. While reading Fences, it is important to look at the year 1957 (in which the play took place.) Trace and comment upon pivotal events that you think influenced Wilson and his creation of the play and how these events of the past affect Troy. Were Troy’s fears/concerns for Cory “valid worries of his time?”
5. Professor William Cook, who teaches at Dartmouth, lectures and writes extensively on August Wilson and his work. He has talked a great deal on what he calls the “confessional duologue”—a “dialogue of personal encounter whereby characters compel certain self-disclosures from one another through interlinked session of talk.” Characters are “forced to speak what is dreaded to confront the ghosts they have refused to acknowledge.” How does this relate to Rose? According to Cook, it seems as if she is an “example of a person forced to confess her troubles with her life after years of keeping her frustrations bottled up inside her.” Create an essay in which you analyze the complex character of Rose and in which you discuss this “confession.” Discuss how she could be said to grow from a submissive victim of historical context to a strong heroine by the play’s end.
6. What is the play's attitude towards women? Do Rose and the women mentioned in the play typify roles of the 1950's or defy them? What attributes or actions of the female characters support your interpretation?
7. Discuss the significance of the title, Fences, as it relates to characters and themes of the play. In other words, there is a literal meaning (the actual building of the fence) and figurative/metaphorical meanings.
8. In many American plays, blacks play only minor roles or are only mentioned in passing by the main characters. Wilson reverses this by only referring to white characters but never having them appear on stage. What effect does this have on the play? How does their absence and presence inform the characters' world? 
Would the play be more effective or less effective if the white characters mentioned in the play were more present? Provide textual evidence to support your answer.
Strategies for the essay
The essay should have the following elements:
• an engaging introductory paragraph. You might even want to cite a quote in the opening paragraph to make your opening engaging to the reader.
• an effective and clear thesis statement at the end of your introductory paragraph.
• a statement of background on the topic, if necessary. For example, you may want to provide historical background on your topic, if needed.
• unified, supported, and coherent body paragraphs that defend the thesis
• research sources cited throughout the body paragraphs that support the arguments in the paper. A balance of paraphrases and direct quotes should be smoothly integrated within the essay. All paraphrases and quotes from sources should be followed with parenthetical citations according to MLA style of documentation.
• an effective, satisfying conclusion
• a Works Cited page that lists the sources cited. The references should be listed in MLA format.
The sources and citation format for this essay
You are required to use at least five academic sources for this essay. 
At least three of the minimum five must be acquired through the databases subscribed to by PGCC’s Information and Library Services (print or electronic). 
You may not use the following sources: Wikipedia, Schmoop, Sparknotes, GradeSaver, Bookrags. 
Keep in mind that if the sources are scholarly, the argument you make in the paper will be more persuasive. For this reason, feel free to use all scholarly sources if you can. 
In addition, please feel free to cite more than five sources. You may find six sources are necessary to establish your argument and defend your thesis. 
MLA documentation info:
*Research Sources should focus on literary criticism of August Wilson and his play Fences as connects to your selected thesis. Avoid simply inserting biographical info of author---“Wilson was born here, went to school here”, etc. as this is just “filler” and wouldn’t support your thesis in any way. For example, if your thesis is to show the character arc of the character of Rose, then your research should focus on her character, Wilson’s views on presenting female characters, and the like. A great resource to use is PGCC’s academic databases on the library website. Go to PGCC’s home page www(dot)pgcc(dot)edu to access the library. You can either type “Library” in the search box at the top or click on the Library link at the bottom of the page. Once you click into the library, click on Online Databases and scroll to a database entitled ARTEMIS Library Sources which combines two fine databases, Literature Resource Center and Literary Criticism Online. You may also peruse other databases as well (such as Academic OneFile and ProQuest) but ARTEMIS is a good place to start. You may not use Wikipedia as a source as it is not considered a scholastic source. Sparknotes, enotes, bookrags, Schmoop, gradesaver etc. are also not to be used. Again, it is recommended that your sources come from PGCC’s library databases. Avoid the use of dictionaries and encyclopedias, if possible. 
How to format in-text citations from your text Fences: When citing from the text of the play, please include act, scene, and page number(s) after your direct quote or paraphrase from the text. i.e. (2. 3. 1358). This indicates that the quote or paraphrase is from Act 2, Scene 3, page 1358.
Follow MLA style of documentation for all in-text citations of outside research sources. Your Works Cited page as well as your in-text citations (parenthetical citations that occur after your quotes or paraphrases within the text of your essay), should be in the updated MLA style. The Works Cited should include your primary source, the play, within your textbook and your selected research sources. As this is a second-level English course, it is assumed that you already have learned this style in your EGL 1010 course. You may also consult a good college writer’s handbook that has the updated MLA documentation style. Papers that do not have the two elements of MLA—parenthetical documentation within the text of your essay after any paraphrases or direct quotes from research and a Works Cited page will not be accepted. There are also MLA supplements found under Lecture Notes. 

Research Paper Sample Content Preview:
Name:
Course:
Course Instructor:
Date of Submission:
Fences Research Paper
Troy Maxson is the father in the play Fences. He is a big man that has a big personality. He is troubled and bitter at the same time because he thinks that he owes his family everything from his salary to his own soul. He is a protagonist or the modern day hero but has a tragic experience. His thwarted dreams make him vulnerable to thinking and believing in illusions he has created for himself. In comparison to other characters in other plays he is Othello, Willy Loman, and Macbeth combined. He is a wanting man for a better life but circumstances do not allow that to happen CITATION Wil86 \l 1033 (Wilson).
He starts the play with entertaining his friend Bono and wife Rose with a story about his struggle with a personified devil, character, or death. He lives in a fictitious life. He depicts this when he lies to his friend about his extramarital affair with Alberta. The character has a complicated relationship with his everyone in the play. His character creates big and small conflicts. He instigates conflicts because of the illusions he creates and his inability to accept the choices of others when they differ with his own.
He aggressively disagrees with Cory’s decision to play in the college football, Lyon’s decision to become a musician, and Rose’s habit of playing with numbers. Rose contradicts his stories about versions of the things that happened in his past and about his life story CITATION Fra95 \l 1033 (Frank).
The name Maxon is an amalgamation between Dixon and Mason the name Mason-Dixon line. This imaginary line name separated Free states from slave states. His name signifies the character of one that lives between opposing ideas. His history has half hope and half disappointment. He was once in a good career full of opportunity as a football player that fell into a dead-end job.
He is the son of a sharecropper, and he tries to bridge his family history in the south to the effects of slavery to the generations of black people. The life in the south and north define his story and decisions. His duality creates a dividing line between his sons, Lyons and Cory who had every belief that they could attain their dreams without any restraint. The play, in song and story, shows the character’s role as the family grit. He has a role as in African traditional cultures as a paternal historian who tells stories that provide an understanding of the context of his loved ones’ lives CITATION Sno04 \l 1033 (Snodgrass).
He depicts his dualism also when he confronts his sons to live practical and responsible lives while he chooses to have an affair. He also rebels against racial practices of his employers by protesting against the limitation of black workers as lifters and not truck drivers on the trash trucks.
He is a hardworking man; he has a strong work ethic, and his determination lead him to instil the same work ethic into his children. He reminds his children about his role as a father and breadwinner every time they mention something he does not agree such as musician. Troy beliefs that his job is his refuge of self-worth. He is a sexist in his way. He loves his wife but he acts...
Updated on
Get the Whole Paper!
Not exactly what you need?
Do you need a custom essay? Order right now:
Order

👀 Other Visitors are Viewing These MLA Research Paper Samples:

HIRE A WRITER FROM $11.95 / PAGE
ORDER WITH 15% DISCOUNT!
Order Now