Essay 2 should be an argumentative interpretation of an aspect or aspects of one of the short stories below. These are to be read and analyzed in addition to your weekly class assignments. Each story is available as a .pdf file; perform a search for these using Google, Yahoo, or the like. For best results, enter the story title, the author’s last name, and the abbreviation pdf.

• T. Coraghessan Boyle, “Greasy Lake” • Raymond Carver, “Cathedral” • Ralph Ellison, “Battle Royal” • Joyce Carol Oates, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” • Tillie Olsen, “I Stand Here Ironing” • Daniel Orozco, “Orientation” • George Saunders, “The 400-Pound CEO”

Limit the scope of your essay to one of these stories; each should provide plenty of potential approaches. Also read the biographical headnotes preceding the stories, which provide some insight and background.

Some possible approaches are listed below. Note that these are broad approaches, only beginning points. It is your job to narrow and limit these in order to properly fit the scope of your essay. If you have another idea which isn’t listed, please check with me first.

• One or more of the literary terms we discuss as they apply to short stories (metaphor, symbol, setting, character, tone, etc.). • Conflict(s) rooted in gender, race, age, culture, and/or economic class • Societal “norms”: how do characters function within and/or rebel against their communities? • Male/female relationships

• Manhood, womanhood: how do characters fit and not fit traditional gender roles? • Parental roles • How male and/or female characters deal with trauma or misfortune

• Family relationships • Coming of age/loss of innocence • Narration/point of view: how does the telling style govern what story gets told?

• Rituals/ceremonies and their significances: marriages, funerals, parties, etc. • A character analysis, in which you pick a character (or two) from a story that interests you and explore his/her motivations, desires, etc.

2 Discussion threads will also hopefully be a springboard for your writing; take a topic or angle we’ve broached and explore it further.

But please don’t simply repeat things you’ve read in discussions; put your own stamp on them. Don’t forget you have additional sources for feedback on your work. GSU’s Learning and Tutoring Center offers online assistance with your writing at this link: https://success.students.gsu.edu/learning-tutoring-center/. Alternately, email me or post your question to the Q & A discussion in Start Here. Reminders: • The final draft of your paper should be a well-developed essay.

It should have a recognizable introduction, body, and conclusion and should have a minimum of five paragraphs, each with a topic sentence and supporting details from the work you are analyzing. The essay should also contain a thesis statement at the end of the introduction that sums up the main argument of your paper. I should be able to detect a flow and “path” to your analysis. Make sure all parts of your essay are working together.

• Specific details from your chosen story are essential to make your main points and thesis statement clear. When you write a paper of this kind, you become the teacher—you are illustrating some facet of a work of literature for an audience who doesn’t have the same insight you do. Keep your reader in mind.

• No plot summaries. The goal of this essay (as with the others) is interpretation—advancing a main point which asserts something debatable, and illustrating that main point with concrete and appropriate evidence. Rehash and summary is not interpretation.

It’s fine to explain the significance of a small portion of the story to advance the argument you are making, but plot summary will be penalized if done in excess.

• As before, proper parenthetical documentation and a Works Cited page, both in MLA format, are required. Five points will be deducted for failure to include both of these.

When you quote, paraphrase, or summarize passages from a piece of prose, you need to parenthetically cite the page numbers they come from.

(And make sure you place quotation marks around exact quotes.) • Re-consult the document “Submitting Your Essays and Formatting Requirements” in the Start Here folder as you move through this process. Also re-consult the grading policy in the syllabus for details on late submissions.

Do you think it’s acceptable to allow the focus to stray from the purpose of a group; why or why not? What could be one benefit and one drawback of allowing the focus to shift? Explain.

– Cutting Off and Drawing Out

1. If you were a group member and ended up monopolizing a group’s time, how would you like to be brought back to the task?  What approach would allow you to feel respected, but also see the need to move along?

2. If you were a quiet group member, what approach do you believe would most comfortably get you involved?

What is a definition of family that encompasses the different family structures prevalent today? Discuss the importance of acknowledging nontraditional family structures. Explain how family systems theory can be used to better understand the interactions of a modern family (traditional or nontraditional).

About 200 words are required in this discussion. There should be at least 3 references with in-text citations following APA 2007 style.

Matthew is an 80 year old white male who was brought to the emergency room by his neighbor, after finding him after he had fallen in his yard. He was unable to get up on his own and the neighbor thought he should be examined at the ER. Matthew’s x-rays all came back fine. It was discovered that his blood sugar was low, which caused his dizziness, resulting in him falling. He was also a bit dehydrated.

After examining him, the nurse heard his story. She thought the social worker may be able to help him in some way, so she called him/her in to meet with Matthew. Matthew just lost his wife of 40 years. He states he is just lost without her.

He has two children. One lives locally and the other lives in California. He has been active in church with his wife until recent health problems have prevented him from attending.

He gets by on his Social Security, but worries it may not be enough since his wife’s income is no longer present. He states he is lonely and feels sad. He isn’t sleeping well and barely has an appetite. He knows it is important to eat a healthy diet, because he has diabetes and must keep on a schedule.

His wife did the cooking and cleaning while she could. He also worries about keeping his yard clean and mowed. You are the medical social worker.

After selecting your case study, answer the following questions:

1. Meeting One: Introduce yourself to your client, including the agency in which you work. Be sure to explain the purpose of your agency and what services you can provide for your client.

2. After creating your client, identify his/her strengths and weaknesses. These will help you decide on interventions in the future.

3. Describes which interventions could be used. Label each as micro, mezzo, or macro. This helps you begin your role-play project.