week 5 skill building

After reviewing my Week 4 response paper, I believe one of the strongest parts of my essay was my thesis and how consistently I supported it. My argument clearly showed Alices midnight run as a moment of feminist autonomy rather than a simple emotional breakdown. Although I am proud of my essay overall, I see there are areas I can improve. I repeated similar phrases when discussing gender expectations. There were moments when I may have allowed a brain worm of over-explaining cultural context instead of digging deeper into layered symbolism. Reflecting on this paper has helped me see that strong writing requires not only a clear argument but also a deeper connection with symbolism and theory. In the future I want to focus on making every paragraph not only support my thesis but also deepen it with more analysis. I have not used the free tutoring service yet. I have relied on my own revision process. After earning a strong grade and reviewing feedback, tutoring could help me refine my writing, especially as I prepare for the final research paper. I plan to take full advantage of the free tutoring service to help strengthen my argument development and polish my writing.

Topic:

Katherine Mansfields Miss Brill and Ray Bradburys The Pedestrian through the lens of Psychoanalytic Criticism.

Research Question:

How do Miss Brill and The Pedestrian show imagination as a defense against emotional rejection, and how does that same defense trap the protagonists in deeper isolation?

Thesis Statement:

Through the lens of Psychoanalytic Criticism, in Miss Brill by Katherine Mansfield and The Pedestrian by Ray Bradbury, the protagonists rely on imagination as a defense that protects them from emotional rejection, yet this self-created fantasy strengthens repression and deepens their long-term psychological isolation.

Works Cited

Mansfield, Katherine. Miss Brill. GMC. /courses/7966/files/2472971?module_item_id=664466. Accessed 13 February 2026.

Bradbury, Ray. The Pedestrian. GMC. /courses/7966/files/2640553?module_item_id=725409. Accessed 13 February 2026.