Finding and refining a topic

There are several ways to establish a topic:
*Critical Perspectives offer a way to limit and focus
*Big ideas from class discussions - what did I bring up? What did we spend time on?
*The list I offered on the assignment sheet - all of these possibilities are tried and true.
*Return to the eight step process you learned in 10th grade - Read, Annotate, Pick, List, Group, Prioritize, Explain, Argue

Judgments that are too vague are not useful – drab, interesting, good, fine, boring – these  kinds of words have too many meanings that depend on context.  Be sure your vocabulary choice is deliberate and specific.

Be sure to give reasons to support your judgments.

Specific details from the text help prevent misunderstandings in explanations, criticisms, and analysis.

Analysis needs to explain the relationship of different parts of the text.

Practice weaving your creativity into your explanations, criticisms, and analyses in areas like word choice, transitions, introductions, and conclusions.

Do not pick idiosyncratic topics without fully considering their relevance to the text at hand.  

 

Obedience/Disobedience

I was throwing some ideas around today to get the subject of my paper going. I would like to focus on the role of obedience/disobedience in an individuals life, especially its ethical role. Hoping you/anyone could give me some feedback on this draft of a single intro paragraph, I will have one before it going into further detail of the time period the epic was written about.

Thanks so much,

Maggie

At a time of primal instincts, moral heroic codes, and of violent raging war. Homer’s, Iliad, provoked the idea of dishonorable heroes, gods, and leaders alike. With a story centered around the fulfillment of destinies, gender roles, and victories, the idea of being obedient is deemed necessary in order to succeed. But Homer gives us many reasons to question the benefits of obedience over its detrimental effects on the life of individuals. And does what Homer has to say about obedience in the Iliad still resonate with us as a society today? And is it ethical to live our lives fully committed to one ideal, person, or faith? In his great epic,The Iliad, Homer suggests that it is with moderation of equal obedience and disobedience that we find moral balance in our lives. Homer illustrates this idea through not only the stories mortal heroes: Achilles, Agamemnon, and Paris. But also through the most highly recognized authoritative figures ever created by man, the Gods.