Select a theme related to women’s roles or women’s bodies that appears in a variety of poems, stories, and non-fiction (for instance, the power/danger of women’s sexuality, the confinement of marriage, the challenges facing the woman artist/intellectualTopic: Select a theme related to women’s roles or women’s bodies that appears in a variety of poems, stories, and non-fiction (for instance, the power/danger of women’s sexuality, the confinement of marriage, the challenges facing the woman artist/intellectual). Note: since you are completing another project on the essays of Wollstonecraft, Woolf, Rich, and Walker, do not include their work in this paper. (Exception: you may include Rich’s poetry.)

Examine how the theme you have selected is presented in six to eight works on our syllabus. At least two of the texts must have been written before 1950. Also, be sure to include at least two of the major forms (poetry, fiction, non-fiction, drama).

What is similar and what is distinctive about each work’s presentation of your theme? (Remember to maintain focus on examining your theme: No need to summarize a work already familiar to your audience.) As pertinent, refer to the works’ historical context and literary elements. In your conclusion, explain which work(s) are most compelling to you and why.

Your Synthesis Paper should include short quotes from the primary texts for support. You may, if you wish, reinforce your evaluation with secondary criticism. Just be sure to appropriately acknowledge these critics (and be sure they are credible). If you include historical research beyond the general information included in our text, be sure to cite that as well.