QUESTION

Genesis or job    

Page of 1 3 CLDV210C WRITING ASSIGNMENT #1 LENGTH: 2-3 double-spaced pages DUE DATE: 11:59 pm on Sunday, March 7 For this assignment, choose between a creative option, a personal connection option, and an analysis option. You’ll write one of each type of assignment over the course of the semester (with different texts to work from each time). So if for example you pick the creative option this time, you’ll pick the connection or analysis option when you’re given topics from the ancient Greek texts for your next writing assignment. Here’s an explanation of each option you have this time. CREATIVE OPTION (GENESIS “FANFICTION”) Write a story inspired by a character or situation in Genesis. Ways to do this include rewriting an event in Genesis from an alternative perspective, writing a “missing scene” (something that wasn’t part of the original text, but could have been), transforming a plotline from Genesis so that it goes in a different direction, or creating a new version of a Genesis story set in modern times. Feel free to write from a particular character’s point of view (“in first person”) or from the perspective of a narrator as in the original text. To figure out what story to write, think about the characters or plots in Genesis that were most compelling, mysterious, incomplete, or unsatisfying to you. What would you have liked to know that the original text didn’t tell you? Whose perspective would you have liked to see? What if some key element of the story were altered? Which stories would work out differently in the twenty-first century? Asking such questions may give you ideas for how to put a new spin on a character or situation from Genesis by writing your own story in your own words. Here are a few examples – but I encourage you to come up with your own idea! • a scene from Cain and Abel’s childhood • Noah’s ark updated for the modern world • Hagar’s point of view on what it’s like to deal with Abraham and Sarah • what if God asked Sarah to sacrifice Isaac instead of asking Abraham? PERSONAL CONNECTION OPTION (JOB OR GENESIS) Write about a character or situation in one of these texts that connects with something you went through. Explain the character or situation in the original text. Then explain in detail how it connects to something similar that you experienced. In what ways does the text shed light on your own experience? How would you compare and contrast the character’s behavior to your own? Your goal is to write thoughtfully about your own specific experience while showing knowledge and insight about the text that you’re relating yourself to. Here are a few possible connections to explore – but I encourage you to come up with your own! • Did you ever suffer when you didn’t deserve it and then have trouble getting support, like Job? • Did you every misinterpret someone else’s suffering, like Job’s friends did? • Did you ever get caught up in toxic jealousy, like Sarah or Cain did? • Did you ever negotiate with a powerful person to convince them to act fairly, like Abraham? • Were you ever extremely tempted to do something forbidden, like Eve? Page of 2 3 ANALYSIS OPTION (JOB) For this option, write an argumentative essay that answers this question: Why did God claim that Job’s friends lied about God and Job has “spoken the truth” about God? (42:7) There is no one right answer to this question, but to make a reasonable argument, you’ll have to analyze what the characters say about how God thinks and acts. How do Job’s claims about God differ from the friends’ claims about God? Your essay should be based on the assigned chapters only. Do not waste time summarizing the plot, enumerating Job’s livestock, or explaining why the friends were wrong about Job. Focus on the claims the humans make about God, including the claims made by Job, and explain why God might have considered those claims true or false. Essays based mainly on chapters one and two will create the impression that the author has not done the assigned reading. Only essays that engage with the challenging ideas expressed in chapters three to fourteen have the potential to offer a meaningful response to the topic question. GUIDELINES FOR ALL THE OPTIONS Formatting: Use 12 point Times New Roman and one-inch margins. Double-space evenly (without extra spacing between paragraphs) for two to three pages total. Don’t waste space. Your three-line heading should ONLY include your name, class section (CLDV210C), and option chosen (Creative, Connection, or Analysis). Give your assignment an original title, centered above the text. Using the Texts: Use the assigned translations of Genesis or Job posted on Blackboard. To cite these texts, use chapter and verse. Cite numerals only, such as (42:7) above. Submitting: Save your document with a filename that includes your last name. Using the SafeAssign link in the Submission Portals area, upload your file in MS Word or pdf format. If your original file is in another format, export your doc to Word or pdf before uploading it. Essays unreadable by SafeAssign will have to be resubmitted and will be marked late accordingly. Note on Academic Honesty: No paper should include any unassigned sources or “outside research,” whether credited or uncredited. Including any plagiarized material means an F for the assignment without the opportunity to revise. Please refer to the Plagiarism and Academic Honesty section of the syllabus for more information. Grading: This assignment is worth 14% of your final grade and will be given a simple letter grade of A, B, C, D, or F, based on the criteria for each option. Creative Option Grading Criteria: • Did you write a story showing original thinking, style, and perspective? • Did your story substantively explore your creative concept, following the instructions for the creative option? • Did your story show familiarity with and understanding of the original text and the Collaborate Ultra sessions that covered it? • Was your story written with clarity, using standard paragraph and sentence structure, appropriate word choices, and correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, and capitalization? • Did your story follow the assignment guidelines, including instructions as to length, heading, font, title, spacing, margins, filename, text, and citations? Page of 3 3 Personal Connection Option Grading Criteria: • Did you convincingly link your experience to the text in a way that sheds light on both? • Did your essay substantively explore the topic you chose, following the instructions for the personal connection option? • Did your essay show familiarity with and understanding of the original text and the Collaborate Ultra sessions that covered it? • Was your essay written with clarity, using standard paragraph and sentence structure, appropriate word choices, and correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, and capitalization? • Did your essay follow the assignment guidelines, including instructions as to length, heading, font, title, spacing, margins, filename, text, and citations? Analysis Option Grading Criteria: • Did your essay make an insightful and coherent argument that was supported with textual evidence? • Did your essay substantively explore the topic, following the instructions for the analysis option? • Did your essay show familiarity with and understanding of the original text and the Collaborate Ultra sessions that covered it? • Was your essay written with clarity, using standard paragraph and sentence structure, appropriate word choices, and correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, and capitalization? • Did your essay follow the assignment guidelines, including instructions as to length, heading, font, title, spacing, margins, filename, text, and citations?

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