Summative Hamlet Assignment.
Name: _________________ Period: ___
You have two choices for this summative assignment on Hamlet. Whichever you chose,
it is due on Friday, February 22nd in class. Pay close attention to Rubric Details.
1) Write a 3 page essay in response to Hamlet’s famous monologue, To Be or Not to Be
(page 76 to 78). You must have a minimum of 5 citations (none less than 5 words). The
question you will be responding to is this: How does Hamlet’s famous monologue speak
to his dilemma? You will want to refer to other parts of the play to make this clear.
2) Write a dramatic monologue of your own on the topic of Senioritis, that peculiar
American disorder, and how it affects you (if you do not suffer from this, pretend you
do—remember this is a dramatic monologue). You monologue must be in blank verse
(10 syllables per line, with two exceptions only); must be at least 25 lines long. There
should be some humor or over-the-top emotion described. You must perform/ read it to
the class. If you recite it from memory, without significant mistakes, you will get an
automatic 4.0/ A for the performance piece. The written assessment is separate (see
below):
Option 1:
Essay
EXCEEDS
MEETS
APPROACHES
BEGINNING
Intro Thesis
Statement
Strong Intro with clear
opinionated thesis.
Strong Intro with
clear Thesis
Thesis vague and or not
opinionated.
No thesis statement
evident. No clear intro to
essay.
Text Evidence,
correctly cited,
in fully
developed body
paragraphs.
5 Citations.
Claims supported by
strong text evidence &
properly cited in 3 or
more fully developed
body paragraphs. 5 or
more citations. Essay 3
full pages.
Most claims
backed by strong
evidence and
properly cited in at
least 3 fully
developed
paragraphs.
5 citations. 3 full
pages.
Claims mostly unsupported by
text evidence and or not
properly cited in less than 3
fully developed paragraphs,
and less than 5 citations. Less
than 3 full pages
Few or no claims with little
text evidence and not
properly cited. Body
paragraphs not developed.
Less than 3full pages.
Not merely a rehash of
material. New insight
included which bring
essays to higher level.
Not merely a
rehash of material.
Some new insight
added.
Rehash of material; nothing
new is added.
No conclusion; the essay
merely stops as if the
author abandoned it.
ESSAY 3 FULL
PAGES
Conclusion/
Option 2:
Monologue
EXCEEDS
MEETS
APPROACHES
BEGINNING
Writing:
Argument
with Humor.
25 lines in
Blank Verse.
Argument is compelling,
clever and humorous
without ever being
inappropriate. Blank verse
throughout
Argument is
convincing, attempts at
humor are made. Blank
verse throughout.
Argument is spotty at
best, confused, with
little or no humor.
Blank verse is not
evident.
Little effort apparent;
argument is confused or
not present. Little or no
humor; blank verse is
not evident.
Performance
EXCEEDS
MEETS
APPROACHES
BEGINNING
Clear, confident recital, or
performed from memory
with no more than 2
mistakes.
Clear recital, or from
memory with no more
than 4 mistakes.
Clear voice not evident,
and or from memory
with many mistakes.
Author unprepared.
Many mistakes. Not
clear voice or
confidence. Many
mistakes.
Clear Voice/
and or
Memorized.