Getting started on Core 1 Model: “The Company Man” by Ellen Goodman

Library/Research: Before you are going to write a good paper about a piece of literature, you need to know it through and through. You can’t be fuzzy about anything. If you still feel fuzzy on who the author is and what the piece is about, you need to continue researching and reading around. You may even need to continue at home

“The Company Man” by Ellen Goodman Look for parallels to The Metamorphosis. Ms. Mullen is writing her core 1 on “The Company Man.” Did you read it yet?

Then I go to the library… I become close to an expert on Goodman and Kafka. I read about The Metamorphosis and about the kinds of things Goodman usually writes. [Just so you know --I don’t see a ton of parallels between Goodman and Kafka or between Goodman and this piece of writing, so I’m going to just write a background paragraph on both authors at the beginning that explains the tremendous difference in context. I’m also going to remember to cite my research in this paragraph and use proper in-text citation format]

So now, I remind myself of the prompt… Question: What does something written by one person in one time and place have to do with something written by someone else, far away in time and space? Nothing, right? Or could there be some connection, linking us as human beings? Your Task: Your job will be to show such a connection. In other words, analyze an idea or concept that surfaces in two texts with distinct contextual differences in order to arrive at a meaningful conclusion about the significance of the shared issue despite the contextual differences. Explore how both authors approach the same idea differently or similarly.

Workaholic Identity – lack of it Obsession with time Easily replaced, squashed, thrown away Lack of intimate relationships “Board together” – family lives together but that is it Death Competition – to work harder and hardest Loneliness Conformity Isolation Dehumanization Self-worth – mixed up $$ and “taking care of the family” Powerlessness Modern life Soullessness of work/business I brainstormed ways the pieces relate to each other. I made a list!

Then I zoomed out, so I could try to express as much as possible about my list on the previous slide This is the common thread. It isn’t easy to realize it or express it. It takes many attempts.

Workaholic Identity – lack of it Obsession with time Easily replaced, squashed, thrown away Lack of intimate relationships “Board together” – family lives together but that is it Death Competition – to work harder and hardest Loneliness Conformity Isolation Dehumanization Self-worth – mixed up $$ and “taking care of the family” Powerlessness Modern life Soullessness of work/business What’s the common thread?

Common Thread/Ideas (Themes) Modern life often traps individuals in a soulless existence. While trying to validate one’s worth in family and society, it is easy to lose one’s individuality and humanity. Modern life is often dehumanizing because it drains relationships and work of humanity. [Now, I basically have my thesis! Remember the core 1 prompt --“analyze an idea or concept that surfaces in two texts.” This is the idea!]

Thesis? (All I have to do is shape it so it directly addresses the prompt.) Despite the difference in context, Kafka and Goodman continue to remind readers that while trying to validate one’s worth in family and society, it is easy to lose one’s individuality and humanity. Formula: Despite the difference in context, Kafka and ________ ___(verb)____ readers that ____________(theme)__________.

Where I think I want to end up: They both looked for meaning in the wrong place and ended up living a meaningless life, serving others instead of nourishing their unique selves. Modern life may lead to isolation and lack of relationships. Having personal and rich relationships is what makes a human. [These are the takeaways that I will probably write about in my conclusion paragraph. If you have an idea about the firework you’d like to set off at the end, write it down so you don’t forget!]

Now what? Now  We go back to the texts and look for places/passages that speak to the common idea/working thesis.

My Collection The boy once said, “My father and I only board here.” “Those had been fine times but they had never recurred, at least not with the same warm feelings” (Kafka 959) They are both workaholics. “Whenever the conversation turned towards the necessity of earning money, Gregor left the door and threw himself on the leather sofa that stood nearby, for he burned with shame and sorrow” (960). She would be “well taken care of.” He worked himself to death, finally and precisely, at 3:00 AM Sunday morning. Obsession with time. Personal relationships are non-existent.

Then, I zoom out again! I look for patterns in all the pieces I collected. The pattern I notice is that half of it seems to deal with family and the other portions deals more with work. That’s how I developed the body paragraph topics. Take a look at my outline. Notice that the topic sentences.

I’m ready to outline! Follow the assignment sheet to start working on your own. Be sure to type it