Cliffs Notes or Bloom’s

· SOURCES: You must use a minimum of THREE secondary sources. You will cite the work you are analyzing, of course, but it is a primary source. Therefore, you will have a minimum of FOUR sources listed on your Works Cited page. At least ONE of your secondary sources must be an article from a scholarly journal accessed via an LSCS library database. You must not use Cliffs Notes or Bloom’s Notes or the like, basic dictionaries or encyclopedias, or any plot summaries. You should select reputable sources of literary criticism that help you prove your thesis. If, in addition to these minimum source requirements, you would like to briefly cite a source such as The Bible or a specialized dictionary – that is fine. If in doubt about the quality of a source, ask me or a reference librarian. An essay that does not meet the minimum source requirements will earn an automatic F.

· LENGTH: The essay must be 3-4 textual pages (not including the Works Cited page). The essay must follow MLA manuscript form guidelines stated in the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook. The text of the essay must be 3 full textual pages, meaning it will reach the bottom, one-inch margin on the third page of a correctly formatted Word document. An essay that does not meet the minimum length requirements will earn an automatic F. Please do not exceed 4 textual pages. Focus your thesis to conform to the length requirements.

· MLA DOCUMENTATION: This research project should follow all parenthetical documentation / Works Cited guidelines found in the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. You must use in-text parenthetical citations according to MLA form, and they must clearly match up to entires on the Works Cited page, which will be the last page of your paper. Remember, the WC page is in addition to the minimum length requirement of 3 full textual pages. You are being graded on your ability to correctly document your primary and secondary sources. (See Learning Outcome # 7 on your syllabus.)

· THESIS: You should state your carefully crafted thesis at the end of your brief introductory paragraph. A thesis is an assertion that you are making – something that must be proven in the body paragraphs through a close analysis of the literary work. Since this is a short paper, your thesis must be very specific. Students tend to make their thesis statements too general, usually out of the fear that if they are too specific they will run out of things to say. However, students with broad thesis statements fail to fully develop and support the assertion made and, instead, end up writing an essay that touches on ideas without fully analyzing and supporting claims made.

· SUPPORT: You’ll integrate brief quotations and specific details from your primary source. When using secondary sources, you should primarily paraphrase the ideas of the critics. Quote sparingly from your secondary sources. Do not use any long quotations. Regardless of whether you are quoting or paraphrasing from your sources, you must always provided documentation (parenthetical citations matching up to entries on the Works Cited page) following MLA guidelines. Don’t forget that your sources serve to support your analysis. Your body paragraphs should be focused (topic sentences), and they should be developed with an appropriate mix of details from the primary source, your analysis of those details, and secondary support from literary critics.

· ESSAY STRUCTURE and WRITING SKILLS: You are being graded on your ability to write a logical, well-organized, and well-supported analysis of a literary work (see Learning Outcome # 6 on your syllabus). Poor essay organization and poor grammar and syntax will sabotage your hard work, and it may result in a failing grade. The essay must be well-organized and carefully edited. This is a formal essay.

· PLAGIARISM: The penalty for plagiarism is an automatic F in the course. The college subscribes to an anti-plagiarism site called Turnitin.com to which all papers will be submitted. Please read the information about avoiding plagiarism very carefully and ask questions when confused.

· TOPIC IDEAS: One of the most challenging questions in the research process is, “What can I write about?” The answers are as varying as the people who write. People respond so differently to works of literature that it is hard to predict what they – and you – might choose to write about. Of course, this is a very short research paper, so you won’t be able to analyze everything significant in the work. Instead, you’ll limit yourself to some part of it. But which work? Which part? Below, I’ve listed some BROAD topic ideas. You might want to choose a couple of these and do some brainstorming to focus the topic and get at the assertion that you’ll make about its significance. Please feel free to send me your thesis by email prior to starting your research. I’ll give you some feedback and suggestions and let you know whether you are on the right track.

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· Please Note: This is a researched LITERARY ANALYSIS essay. While you might take a historical approach (for example) when analyzing some aspect of the work you’ve chosen, you are NOT writing a history paper. While you might take a psychological approach, you are NOT writing a psychology paper. While you might discuss an issue related to religion, you are NOT writing a theological treatise. Again, it is a literary analysis paper, so please keep your focus on analyzing the work itself.