Short Essays 1 & 2: Requirements
Topic
Your short analysis papers
for this course must be a form of literary interpretation or analysis.
Your primary source(s) for this paper can be one (or more) short story, novel, or poem.
For your primary source or
sources (the works of literature you will be reading), select
work by one or more of the writers in Literature: Reading, Reacting Writing. (If
you want
to use the works of a writer not represented in our text, clear it with me first.)
For more information, read Selecting a Topic.
Secondary Sources
In addition to interpreting
or analyzing the primary source(s) (the work or works of
literature), you need to include reference to secondary sources. Your research should
involve investigating what others have written about the primary source(s) or issues
related to your paper's focus.
You will need to devote
significant time in the library and online for conducting research
for this paper.
For your Essay One research, you are required to find these sources related to your topic:
- Close read your primary text.
- NO secondary source required.
- Option: Quote one critic about your primary text.
For your Essay Two research, you are required to find these sources related to your topic:
- two articles from periodicals.
- one or more WWW source.
Searching archives of email lists and newsgroups is also recommended.
In the Essay Two paper itself, you must
- cite at least two of the sources you have found.
- use a mixture of direct quotations and paraphrases.
- use MLA style documentation.
Length of
Paper
There is no set length for
the short analysis papers. Successful papers generally
range from 3-5 pages.
Papers shorter than 3 1/2 pages tend to be underdeveloped, while papers longer
than 5 pages are often broader in scope than necessary.
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