Subjects for Writing Frequently your subject will be given to you. In a psychology class, for example, you might be asked to explain Bruno Bettelheim’s Freudian analysis of fairy tales. Or in a course on the history of filmmaking, you might be assigned an essay on the political impact of D. W. Griffith’s silent film The Birth of a Nation. In the business world, your assignment might be to draft a quarterly sales report or craft a diplomatic letter to a customer who has complained about your firm’s computer software. Sometimes you will be free to choose your own subject. Then you will be wise to select a subject that you already know something about or one that you can reasonably investigate in the time you have. Students in composition classes have written successfully on all of the subjects listed here, most of which were later narrowed into topics suitable for essays of 500-750 words. By browsing through the lists, perhaps you can pick up some ideas of your own. Many of the subjects listed below are too broad. Part of your challenge as a writer will be whittling broad subjects down to manageable topics. If you are limited to a few pages, for example, you could not possibly do justice to a subject as broad as “sports for the handicapped.” You would be wise to restrict your paper to a topic more manageable in the space allowed—perhaps a description of the Saturday morning athletic program your college offers for handicapped children. Education Careers and the workplace Families Health Sports and hobbies The arts Social justice Death and dying Violence and crime Nature and ecology Science and technology Education computers in the classroom an inspiring teacher sex education in junior high school magnet schools a learning disability such as dyslexia programmed instruction parochial schools teacher certification a local program to combat adult illiteracy creative means of funding a college education Careers and the workplace working in an emergency room the image versus the reality of a job such as lifeguarding a police officer’s workday advantages of flextime for workers and employers company-sponsored day care mandatory drug testing by employers sex or racial discrimination on the job the psychological effects of unemployment the rewards of a part-time job such as camp counseling e-mail privacy issues Families an experience with adoption a portrait of a family member who has aged well the challenges facing single parents living with an alcoholic a portrait of an ideal parent growing up in a large family the problems of split custody an experience with child abuse the depiction of parent-child relationships in a popular TV series expectations versus the reality of marriage overcoming sibling rivalry the advantages or disadvantages of being a twin overseeing a child’s access to the World Wide Web Health a vegetarian diet weigh loss through hypnotism a fitness program for the elderly reasons not to smoke the rights of smokers or nonsmokers overcoming an addiction Prozac as a treatment for depression the side effects of a particular treatment for cancer life as a diabetic the benefits of an aerobic exercise such as swimming caring for a person with AIDS Sports and hobbies an unusual sport such as free-fall parachuting or bungee jumping surviving a wilderness program bodybuilding a sport from another culture the philosophy of karate the language of sports announcers pros and cons of banning boxing coaching a Little League team cutting the costs of an expensive sport such as skiing a portrait of a favorite sports figure sports for the handicapped the discipline required for a sport such as gymnastics the rewards of a hobby such as woodworking salary caps for professional athletes The arts working behind the scenes at a theater censorship of rock and roll lyrics photography as an art form the Japanese tea ceremony the influence of African art on Picasso the appeal of a local art museum a portrait of a favorite musician or artist performing as a musician a high school for the arts the colorization of black-and-white films science fiction as a serious form of literature a humorous description of romance novels or hard-boiled detective thrillers Social justice an experience with racism or sexism affirmative action reverse discrimination making public transportation accessible for the physically handicapped an experience as a juror a local program to aid the homeless discrimination against homosexuals pros and cons of a national drinking age of twenty-one Death and dying working on a suicide hotline the death of a loved one a brush with death caring for terminally ill patients assisted suicide the Buddhist view of death explaining death to a child passive euthanasia death with dignity an out-of-body experience Violence and crime an experience with a gun a wartime experience violence on television news programs visiting a friend in prison alternative sentencing for first offenders victims’ rights a successful program to eliminate violence in a public high school Internet fraud capital punishment preventing terrorist attacks domestic violence and the courts Nature and ecology safety of nuclear power plants solar energy wind energy air pollution in the national parks forest fires on the California coast grizzly bears in Yellowstone communication among dolphins organic gardening backpacking in the Rockies marine ecology cleaning up Boston Harbor the preservation of beaches in Delaware Science and technology pros and cons of writing on a computer genetic engineering an experimental farming technique a medical breakthrough free speech and the Internet