Blog Prompt #2

For your second blog post, I would like you to focus on character development.

Begin by determining the overall point of the play as you understand it, developing a statement of the point in the manner that we practiced in class and in Blog Prompt #1. In particular, you’ll want to think about the values and attitudes that the author expresses or condones in the play as a whole. This statement should serve as the first sentence of your post (there is no need to summarize the plot… you should assume your audience has already read the play).

Next, choose a character from the play; you can choose a major or a minor character. Consider the values, attitudes, and actions this character emblematizes or condones over the course of the play. Now, think about how those values, attitudes, and actions overlap or contradict those that the author expresses in the play as a whole. It may be helpful to consider the character and the author as elements of a venn diagram; where do they overlap? Where do they diverge? Why is this significant? Your answer to these questions will comprise the thesis statement of your post.

Finally, choose a short passage (ideally 10-15 lines) that strike you as crucial to understanding this character. The lines can be a speech or dialogue between your character and another. Note how this passage supports the argument you made in your thesis statement. Further, how does the author make it clear what values and attitudes belong to the character only and which ones are condoned more subtly by the author in the play as a whole?