CLST 283-WI: Classical Comedy and Satire

CLST 283-WI: Classical Comedy and Satire

Spring Semester 2003
Dr. Jacqueline Long

Writing Assignment 4

Goals

To explore a problem about Roman formal verse satire and how it operates, using literary evidence
To build a persuasive argument about your conclusions
To practice skills of analysis and exposition in essay form

To submit to peer review in class on Monday, 14 April: have in hand, in our room, at the start of class period:

In 900-1100 words (4 word-processed, double-spaced pages in 12-point Times Roman) an essay proposing and defending YOUR ANSWER to the question: In Satire I.10, when Horace comes back to considering what satire should be and what he is doing in satire, compared to Lucilius, how does he use the idea of SPEECH to continue to assert that his own satire improves on Lucilius's model?

Questions that are part of this one:
- What does SPEECH, which includes the notions of LANGUAGE, TALKING, CONVERSATION, and POETRY, matter to Horace's purposes in his satires? For what it's worth, Horace actually called them sermones, which is Latin for "Conversations".
- How do the other satires of Book I connect to things Horace says in I.10, and help support his argument?
Recommended strategy - just like Writing Assigment 1:
1. Form a hypothesis based on the text; think it through, test its implications, double-check against the text, refine your hypothesis, and test again. Be sure you have taken everything into account.
2. Build your argument so that it sets forth your hypothesis and its proof in the most persuasive way. Refer to specific passages of the text as concrete, specific pieces of relevant evidence, and explain clearly how your evidence supports your conclusion.
3. Write, realizing your plans.
4. Reread and "test" your essay as a written argument. Does it make the case well? Can you improve it? Revise appropriately.
5. Reread and "test" your improved essay against Strunk and White's rules and reminders for clear and effective writing. Do you avoid the errors they identify? Can you incorporate more of their positive suggestions? Revise appropriately.
6. Think of the suggestions you got in feedback from your peers and your instructor on Writing Assignments 1 and 2: how can you help your readers to understand your judgments and agree with them? Revise appropriately.
7. Proofread and correct your improved essay.
For more suggestions about formulating an argument, see this Guide to Writing Papers. Use the BACK button on your browser to return to this page.

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This file last updated 7 April 2003 by jlong1@orion.it.luc.edu.
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