Romanticism and The Gothic Reading Response
RESPOND to one of the prompts below or write a Reading Response on a topic germane to the week’s readings.
Based on this week’s readings about Romanticism and The Gothic, do they belong in the same family (to use Bowen’s metaphor)? Are they brothers and sisters? First cousins? Third cousins? OR What is ONE thing that stood out to you in the readings? Discuss why it stood out to you? Did it confuse you? Make you realize something? Make you think of another text or experience? What? OR Bowen writes “Gothic is thus a world of doubt, particularly doubt about the supernatural and the spiritual. It seeks to create in our minds the possibility that there may be things beyond human power, reason and knowledge. But that possibility is constantly accompanied by uncertainty.” Is Keats’s concept of Negative Capability just another expression of what Bowen says is The Gothic (and what might that mean for our understanding of Romanticism)? |
Grading Rubric
Your reading response essay will be graded based on the following rubric:
Category | Unacceptable (0-1) | Needs Improvement (2-3) | Good (4) | Excellent (5) | Total Possible Points |
Organization (x3) | There is no apparent organization to the essay. It shows some coherence but ideas lack unity. | There is some level of organization though digressions, ambiguities, irrelevance are too many. Transition evident but not used throughout essay. | Essay is coherent and logically organized with transitions used between ideas and paragraphs to create coherence. Overall unity of ideas is present. | Essay shows high degree of attention to logic and reasoning of points. Unity clearly leads the reader to the conclusion and stirs thought regarding the topic. | 15 |
Content (x3) | Essay lacks evidence of critical thinking. Uses superficial, simplistic, or irrelevant reasons and unjustifiable claims. Makes illogical, inconsistent inference. | Essay is primarily opinion without valid support. Little critical thinking is evident. Follows existing evidence to obtain conclusions. | Ideas are logical and reasoned, but demonstrate lesser degree of originality. Follows evidence and reason lead to obtain justifiable, logical conclusion. | Writer develops logical and reasoned independent ideas that go beyond predictable outcomes or the conclusions of researched materials. Follows where evidence and reason lead in order to obtain defensible, thoughtful, logical conclusions or solutions. | 15 |
Grammar & Mechanics(x2) | Sentences are unclear and many grammatical errors in structure make essay virtually unreadable. Spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and vocabulary usage contain major flaws that impede readability. | Most spelling, punctuation, and grammar correct allowing reader to progress through essay. Some errors remain. | Essay has few spelling, punctuation, and grammatical errors allowing reader to follow ideas clearly. Very few fragments or run-ons. | Essay is free of distracting spelling, punctuation, and grammatical errors; absent of fragments, comma splices, and run-ons. | 5 |
Romanticism and The Gothic Reading Response