Using the different ways of discussing fiction, write a paper in which you discuss how the author of one
of the stories we read makes meaning and what that meaning is. The central question to answer is: what
techniques are used most effectively in the short story to make meaning and what is the meaning or
message of the story? What’s the significance?
Each story will use more than one strategy, and you can discuss each of them strategies. You must come
to a conclusion of which two or three are most significant to meaning making in the story. Possible
strategies or elements: plot, narration, point of view, characterization, setting, symbols, figurative
language, themes.
Research: To deepen your discussion, include at least two pieces of research in the essay. Your research
can help you understand ideas such as the significance of common symbols being used or the temporal
setting. Avoid, however, using research such as dictionary definitions, as this does not help progress the
ideas of your discussion. A note on form: every paragraph must include specific examples (quotes) from
the text you’re analyzing.

Choose one of the following stories to write your essay on:
Raymond Carver, Cathedral
Joyce Carol Oats, Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been
Edgar Allen Poe, The Cask of Amontillado
Toni Morrison, Recitatif
William Faulkner, A Rose For Emily
Gabriel Garcia Marquez, A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings
Jhumpa Lahiri, Interpreter of Maladies
Louise Erdrich, Love Medicine
Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Birthmark
A.S. Byratt, The Thing in the Forest
Juno Diaz, Wildwood