Your first essay will be a character analysis of one character in a short story assigned in Module 1. As you work on your essay, consider the following kinds of questions and generate a list of examples from the story:
? How is the character presented at the beginning of the story?
? How does the character change as the story progresses? Are the changes in this
character important – and if so, why?
? How is the character presented at the end of the story?
? Is this character the story’s protagonist, antagonist, or a supporting character?
? Is the character strong or weak? How do you know? What evidence does the story
provide?
? What kinds of strengths or weaknesses does this character possess? Physical,
emotional, moral, spiritual, other?
? What does this character want? Are the character’s expectations realistic?
Appropriate? Fair?
? What is the source of conflict in this character? How does the character resolve the
conflict? Does the character gain or lose from the measures taken to resolve the
conflict?
? Are the character’s actions genuine or do they suggest ulterior motives?
? How does the character relate to other characters in the story?
? Is there any symbolism associated with this character? If so, what do the symbols
suggest about the character’s state of mind, yearnings, beliefs, and challenges?
? What lessons can we learn from this character’s experiences?
Remember: you can’t answer all of these questions in a single essay! The questions are to help you get started with some pre-writing work so you can develop a direction for your paper.