essay topic sharing thread

[Odette]

Thanks for the essay topics

[Odette]

Thought I might add some ...
I'm Not Scared:
Part 1 Questions-
1. "I must pluck up courage and look." 'Although Michele experiences fear, he never lets his fear override his moral convictions.' Discuss.

2. 'Although Michele is devastated by the betrayals of family and friends. he never stops trusting in human goodness.' Discuss.

3. 'Michele learns that loyalty and trust are far more valuable than money or objects.' Discuss.

4. "Why did those wasps make the nest?" How do images of nature contrast with, and expose, the flawed family relationships in I'm Not Scared?

5. Why does Michele continue to love and respect his father, despite knowing what his father has done and is prepared to do?

Part 2 Questions-
1. 'I'm Not Scared suggests that there is a form of wisdom in childhood innocence that adults ignore at their peril.' Do you agree?

2. 'I'm Not Scared shows that there is nothing wrong with being scared- it's knowing what's right that is important.' Discuss.

3. ' I'm Not Scared shows that even the most tightly-knit community can be split by individual greed and self-interest.' Discuss.

4. 'I'm Not Scared explores the consequences for innocent people when desperate people dispense with moral codes of conduct.' Discuss.

5. 'The compassion of individuals towards the helpless and vunerable is shown to be frighteningly shallow in I'm Not Scared.' Do you agree?

[Odette]

Here are some more
Lantana:
Part 1 Questions-
1. 'Leon's actions are based on instinct, without consideration of their consequences.' Discuss.

2. How do the settings of Lantana influence our understanding of its characters?

3. 'Lantana involves a death but it is more than a murder mystery.' Discuss.

4. 'Valerie's biggest problem is that she cannot switch off from her role as a psychiatrist, whether she is in the office or not.' Discuss.

5. 'For the characters in Lantana, it is easier to leave a relationship than stay with one's partner.' Discuss.

Part 2 Questions-
1. 'Although Lantana is concerned with class, its real message is that people's emotional needs transcend class boundaries.' Discuss.

2. 'Lantana suggests that men in contemporary Australia struggle on their personal lives because they have lost their traditional sources of meaning and identity.' Discuss.

3. 'In Lantana it is true that sometimes love is not enough.' Discuss.

4. 'Just as the branches of the lantana bush are entangled, Lantana suggests that all people are interconnected, but not necessarily in positive ways.' Discuss.

5. 'Lantana demonstrates that in relationships there are consequences to every betrayal.' Discuss.

[pepsi]

4. 'Just as the branches of the lantana bush are entangled, Lantana suggests that all people are interconnected, but not necessarily in positive ways.' Discuss.

how are u meant to answer that? like talk about how each relationships has their own problems?

[ninwa]

Sorry, I don't actually know whether they're Part 1 or 2, my teacher just gave us a tonne of topics after Bob Hillman I think? (whoever the English chief assessor is anyway) came to talk to us and told us that he gave his students 70 practice topics or something and my class started asking for that many.

I don't like the idea of writing too many practice essays though. I find that my writing goes a bit .... "stale", for want of a better word, if I write too many. Anybody else feel this way?

Or maybe I'm just making excuses for not studying for English cos my German oral exam is tomorrow and I've been studying only for that and I'm still stuffed


PS> The last four 1984 topics are Part 2s.

[ninwa]

4. 'Just as the branches of the lantana bush are entangled, Lantana suggests that all people are interconnected, but not necessarily in positive ways.' Discuss.

how are u meant to answer that? like talk about how each relationships has their own problems?

I think it's asking you to analyse how the characters in Lantana seem to have interwoven lives; e.g.
Leon --> Jane ---> Pete
Sonja ---> Valerie ---> John
Sonja ---> Valerie ---> Patrick ---> Leon/Claudia
etc.

And elaborate on how these r/ships may or may not be positive (e.g. r/ship between Valerie and John is sometimes negative due to their differing ways of dealing with grief etc)

That's how I'd write it

[Odette]

Wouldn't you also mention Sonja ----> Leon ----> Jane?

[ninwa]

Wouldn't you also mention Sonja ----> Leon ----> Jane?

Yep  

I couldn't remember all the relationships lol

[choc_bananas]

Does anyone have any 'Citizen Kane' topics that they feel like sharing? I would really appreciate it. :-)

[Odette]

Citizen Kane Essay Topics
Part 1-
1. ?Kane?s relationships are destroyed by his lust for control over them.? Discuss.

2. ?Charles Foster Kane collects people in the same way that he collects statues.? Discuss.

3. Kane: ?Dear Wheeler-you provide the prose poems- I?ll provide the war.? To what extent does Charles Foster Kane manipulate events publicly and privately?

4. According to Jedediah Leland, Kane ?didn?t have any [love] to give. He loved Charlie Kane, of course.? Discuss with reference to Kane?s close relationships.

5. While appearing to value loyalty early in his life, ultimately Kane severs all ties with those he trusts.? Discuss

Part 2-
1. ?Acceptance and feeling loved are essential qualities for a healthy life.? Discuss in relation to Citizen Kane.

2. Kane?s father says to Charles when he?s a boy: ?You?ll probably be the richest man in America someday.? ?Wealth and power are inevitably destructive for those who wield them.? Discuss with reference to Citizen Kane.

3. ?Charles Foster Kane?s thirst for power is a direct result of his abandonment as a child.? Do you agree?

4. ?The American public of the 1930s was largely intolerant of people who abused the privilege of their position.? Discuss in relation to Citizen Kane.

5. ?It is Kane?s obsessive need to win at all costs that causes his misery.? Do you agree?

[choc_bananas]

thanks odette. :-)

[Odette]

thanks odette. :-)

No worries

[brendan]

3. ?Charles Foster Kane?s thirst for power is a direct result of his abandonment as a child.? Do you agree?

5. ?It is Kane?s obsessive need to win at all costs that causes his misery.? Do you agree?

These seem more like part 1 questions rather than part 2.

[Odette]

3. ?Charles Foster Kane?s thirst for power is a direct result of his abandonment as a child.? Do you agree?

5. ?It is Kane?s obsessive need to win at all costs that causes his misery.? Do you agree?

These seem more like part 1 questions rather than part 2.

Um well i got them from my insight outcomes cd, and they classify them as part 2 questions so i dont know

[brendan]

"Nineteen Eighty Four is a parable for our own times." Discuss.

I would discard the above part 2 question. It is not a well-written question. Too much room for students to go off topic and go outside the text into some unrestrained discussion of global politics.