Life_Questions_Assignment_10 weeks - LIFE QUESTION PAPER...

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LIFE QUESTION PAPER
WEIGHT OF ASSIGNMENT: 200 points
LENGTH: Minimum 1500-2000 words typed and double spaced (can be longer)
ASSIGNMENT: Choose a life question you have had personal experience with (death, love,
depression, anger, nature etc.) and are in the process of resolving. (See the attached list of Life
Questions and suggested readings for ideas. Note that the readings cited are only a sampling of
those in the book and you will want to skim the material in the text for further ideas.) You
might want to explore several life questions you have experienced before making your final
choice for a paper.
I highly recommend you choose a subject you want to think about and explore--not one you
have already made up your mind about. Remember, writing generates thinking, and a wonderful
way to use this assignment is to pick a subject you need to think about in your own life.
Just to give you an idea of some questions that other students have written on in the past, here
are a few to get you thinking about your own:
• How can I have a more peaceful relationship with my son’s father so my son can grow
up without my anger distorting his attitude toward the man who is part of who he is?
• Why do I continue to have relationships with people who are not healthy for me?
• What role do I want nature to play in my life?
• How can I learn to balance my life between doing and being?
• How can I forgive my mother and get on with my life?
• Why do I tend to be so possessive in relationships?
• How can I nurture the relationship I have with my higher power?
• How can I forgive myself for some of the things I have done?
• Am I ready to have a child?
• How can I best deal with my anger in a more healthy way?
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• What is my part in the problems I am having in my relationship with … ?
• How can I get past the death of…?
• How can I deal with my tendency toward depression?
• What profession would be the best one for me to consider at this point in my life? What
am I meant to do?
• What social purpose am I to have?
Once you have chosen a topic and read all the material in the book on that subject (see sample
topics and lists of literature under each later in this assignment), select from pieces from the
book and write a tentative thesis that describes what you plan to explore in your writing.
IMPORTANT: Do not use any of the writings we have already studied in the course.
Check your course syllabus to see which selections we will be doing before this assignment
is due. If we will do a piece of literature after the paper is due, you may include it.
For example, I might decide from my life experience with relationships that "no matter how
much I hate conflict, talking about problems in a marriage is essential if the relationship is going
to work." If this were my assertion, I could use as support my first marriage in which the
communication broke down because my spouse and I did not like to argue--which ultimately