English 414/513                                     Paper Options                          Fall 2008

    Deadlines: a one-page proposal by November 16 on one of the topics below; an initial (polished) draft of approximately 10 pages with no secondary material consulted by December 5; a final draft by December 12 (two days after the exam) with secondary material on one of the topics below (or another approved by the instructor).  The kinds of secondary material to be used will not be announced before December 5.


--study of the structure of another magazine novel (probably of short to medium length), preferably read recently in another class or being read in another class now

--study of the magazine context within which one of the novels we're reading appeared (the other contents, including advertisements, of the periodical issues) as it connects to the novel's content

--study of a contemporary print or electronic/online serial, preferably in a periodical (which could be electronic), with some reference to specific Victorian antecedents studied in class

--study of a contemporary movie or television series, with some reference to specific Victorian antecedents studied in class.

--study of the context within which a contemporary television series appears (the advertisements for products and other shows) from the opening scene to the final credits as it connects to the series' content

--study of the illustrations in one of the novels we are reading this semester--placement within the installment and effect gained by illustration as an addition to the text (and thus lost in later editions which omit them)

--study of an adaptation of a Victorian magazine novel in another medium


For some of these topics, you may focus on one installment, studying it in depth.  Or, if you are interested in how parts connect and carry forward a central theme, you can study 3-4 installments as representative of the whole.  In all cases you must use quotations from the text to provide evidence for your argument.