Final Essay/Project

1. B) Creative Path:

For this project, you will make a creative intervention in the Shakespearean canon, engaging with one of the plays we read this semester.

Your intervention could take many different forms, including:

a new scene added to one of the plays.

a sequel or prequel to a play.

an adaptation or rewriting of some part of the play in a different mode, like a short story, a screenplay, or series of poems.

a new storyline expanding the role of a secondary character.

a mash-up of two or more plays in the form of a play or story.

a filmed performance of one or more scenes from a play. (This choice could be a collaboration between two or more people. Only choose this path if you are prepared to do the extra work required to make filmed performance look and sound professional. If you decide to team up on a film or another project, each person will receive the same grade for the assignment.)

a script for a podcast episode, or a recorded podcast.

In general, your project should be, at minimum, 10-12 pp, double-spaced, but length will depend on the nature of your project.

This path is just as challenging as a critical, thesis-based paper. You will need to dedicate time and effort to developing a concept for your piece and executing that concept with rigor and polish. You may feel more comfortable with this path if you have some prior experience with the creative medium youre using, but, of course, you can also choose to take on a new challenge IF you are excited and energized to do the work.

You are not required to clear your idea for the creative path with me, but you might want to check with me to make sure that you are doing something that falls within the parameters of the assignment and that will be realistic for you to complete.

You may also propose a different form of creative intervention than those outlined above. In that case, you must clear your idea with me before proceeding!

I will evaluate how well your project fulfills the goals that you set forth in your reflection essay and how successfully your project fulfills these two goals:

1) This project helps us think about one or more of Shakespeares plays differently.

2) This project displays and executes intentional choices at a high level.

Relevant to both paths:

This essay/project is worth 25% of your total grade for the class, and you will want to begin work on it soon in order to give yourself time to develop and refine your topic and to go through multiple drafts and a process of development. (I recommend at least three drafts, quite possibly more.) This is not an essay/project that you can expect to do well on if you begin writing it a day or two before its due. It will require more sustained engagement. You dont need to have your thesis or goals solidified to begin writing; in fact, the most efficient way to figure out what youre arguing or how you want to shape the piece is to write a draft or two, knowing that the in-class workshop will give you feedback as you go.