It's important to remember that your essay needs a strong title.
There is a general formula you can follow to create solid academic paper
titles, as well as some general guidelines about titles that should
give you some clues as to how to craft yours.
Rule 1: Your title should essentially be your thesis statement, albeit
condensed to its most essential parts. In other words, your title should
give your reader a clue as to what the main purpose of your paper is.
Example:
Yours, Mine, or Ours? Perrault, the Brothers Grimm, and the Ownership of Fairy Tales
Rule 2: If you are writing about a work of literature (or art, or a
film, or a scientific phenomenon, or anything really) you should include
the name of that work of literature in the title, and most of the time
the author as well.
Example:
Poisoned Apples and Mean Mirrors: Reconsidering the Wicked Stepmother in Disney's
Snow White and the Seven Dwarves
Rule 3: This rule goes after Rule 2 for a reason. While it is necessary
to include the thing you are focusing your paper on, you should not let
that thing alone
be your title. The reasons for this should be obvious: if you call your paper "
Cinderella" you are basically saying that it
is, in fact,
Cinderella. It is not. What about
Cinderella are you trying to say? The answer to that question should be your title.
Example:
Upward Mobility and the American Dream in Gary Marshall's
Pretty Woman
*Remember, Pretty Woman is a Cinderella story
Rule 4: When considering how to "sum up" your paper in your title, try
and think of several words or a brief phrase encapsulate the main idea
of the paper. You will combine this phrase with your subject (in this
case, the fairy tale and it's author).
Example: From Naive Girl to Ferocious Wolf: Little Red as Feminist Hero in
Once Upon a Time
For additional support on title creation, I recommend this
Wiki How, which is actually pretty solid and helpful. Just don't read the bad title suggestions in the comments.
