Dr. Jekyll and Mr.

Hyde Writing Assignment (Handout)

Purpose:
One goal of this class is to become more comfortable with writing, through
continued practice, while using a variety of formats and styles. Throughout the
year we have focused on different elements of the writing process, particularly as
it relates to formal or academic writing. These types of writing help us begin to
organize our thoughts about particular topics, as well as learn to communicate
those ideas thoughtfully and clearly. We often spend time writing about literature
to help illuminate our own responses to the works we cover and thus to
appreciate them more fully.
This culminating assignment for Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde will be used to
help us focus on the process of writing, particularly as we think about the variety
of themes applicable to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. This assignment will highlight
the skills in writing that you have already developed, as well as show the
importance of the progression of writing and writing-to-learn in different ways
than some of the more formal types of assignments that we have already done.
The hope is that you will begin to be more confident as writers as you view the
efforts of the process to identify and explore thematic content, and how that helps
you to express those ideas clearly in your final product.
We will spend just over a week, looking at the different themes,
brainstorming about their validity, exploring our own opinions about them, and
organizing our thoughts in reference to the development of the theme over the
course of the novel. This will not be a summary, but rather a discussion of
how a particular theme progresses throughout the novel using key
examples from the text.
Goals/Objectives for Lesson:
Use the text (novel) to support your ideas about theme.
State your claims about the theme clearly in writing.
Use writing to learn activities to explore the development of thematic content
in the novel.
Participate fully in process work and thus explore its role in developing writing
skills.
Create a polished piece that shows the evidence of process explorations
revisions.
Expectations/Guidelines:
Please follow the Basic Writing Rules that we have worked on throughout the
year, particularly as you revise your final product. The final piece is not limited to
the typical report/essay structure but should include a cohesive organization with
a beginning, middle, and end. Your thesis/argument, related to one particular
theme, should be either stated or implied clearly throughout. All parts of your
process work will be turned in and assessed, and this work combined with
your final project is worth a test grade for this unit.

Theme Options:
Consideration of human nature
The effects of addiction
Reason/Science v. the Supernatural
Dual Nature or Split Personality
Limits of Scientific Experimentation
The Effects of Society on the Individual
Timeline:
WEEK ONE:
Days One & Two: Theme Introduction Workshop
Each theme possibility will be introduced one at a time. After each
introduction, you will break up into groups and discuss whether or not you
think that this is a suitable theme for the novel, and reasons why/why not?
Each student should be writing during these times of discussion. All notes
will be turned in at the completion of the project.
The last ten-fifteen minutes of each class will be used in personal
reflection for students to begin to think about their possible themes using
free writing.
Homework: Continue reflection/brainstorming. Both evenings you will
choose one theme that you are most interested in.
Day Three: Choosing a Theme
You will spend the beginning of class discussing your notes so far with a
partner.
You must then choose one theme to focus your efforts on, and begin
exploring the text on your own.
Choose five or six good examples from the text that show the
development of that theme and record them.
Homework: Using the double-column strategy students will write about
each text example.
Day Four: Exploring the Theme
Using various writing to learn strategies (mapping, drawing, timelines, etc.)
students will explore the development of the theme and make any
changes to text examples chosen.
We will discuss the possible ways to report your findings (Essay/Report;
Screencast/PowerPoint).
Homework: Decide how you are going to write your final piece. Begin
working on a skeleton outline (or other model) of your final piece.

WEEK TWO:
Days One and Two:
You will have class time to work on your final writing.
This will be individual work time, but there will be opportunities to receive
feedback from both your peers and myself in editing/revising your work.
Homework: Final piece will be due when you come to class on Day Three.
You will submit the final draft online in class. All hand written work should
be neatly compiled and handed in.