ENG101 How to Read Critically

ENG 101: How to Read Critically

Adaptation Project

Instructions

We’ve spent a lot of time in this course discussing, and looking at examples of, adaptations. Our definition of adaptation has been broad: a version of a text that has been transformed—in content and usually form as well—to suit different audiences, purposes and times.

For this assignment, you will create your own adaptation based on one of the readings from this course (any text listed on the syllabus). This could take the form of a

You may parody the work or treat it with reverence. If it’s an older work, you might choose to update it for the twenty-first century. You might use the adaptation to critique aspects of the original work. You do not have to adapt the entire work—you can focus on a part of it.

One of the goals of this assignment is to demonstrate that writing an essay is not the only the way to analyze literature critically. Creating an adaptation requires critical reading. Parodying, updating or changing the form of the original in any way forces you to think long and hard about how the original works—what aspects are interesting, significant and timely? How can you preserve or even enhance something about the original by altering the form? Think about the comment that Carter is making when she turns the docile sculpture of Ovid’s Pygmalion into a man-eating automaton, or how Antigone in Ferguson updates the clash of principles at the heart of Antigone to reflect the racial tensions of twenty-first century America, or how the short film version of “Bullet in the Brain” uses voice-over and montage to capture the extended list of (non)memories at the story’s conclusion. These creative choices are all rooted in a critical reading of the original.

Due date: Wed., Dec. 5 at 11:59pm (submit via Quercus)

Value: 8%

Length: It depends on the specific form of the project. I’ve given “A+”s to both ten-line poems and ten-page short stories. (See above for specific ranges of short stories, comic strips, and play scripts)

Examples: I will display two examples in lecture.

Assessment Criteria

The basic requirements are as follows:

• The adaptation demonstrates solid comprehension of the original work

• The adaptation highlights something thematically significant in the original work

• The adaptation does not simply retell the original, but adds a creative twist

• Some time and effort have evidently been devoted to the project

• The adaptation demonstrates a clear interpretive stance (e.g. critique, homage) on the original, as well as solid comprehension

• The adaptation casts new light on the original work and/or provides insightful commentary on our current culture

• The chosen medium of the adaptation is well-suited to the original work (either through congruity or contrast)

• The adaptation demonstrates a good grasp of some of the narrative techniques and literary devices that we have discussed in the course

• Sustained time and effort have evidently been devoted to the project