Drama Reponse – Final Essay (20% of final grade)
Your response to a play will be similar in format to the previous two responses you have
written in this semester. You will need a focused topic regarding either “Trifles” or
“Florence,” or a comparative topic between the two. The narrower your topic, the better
your chances of going into an in depth response. (Choosing a wide or general theme is not a
good idea, because it forces you to state the obvious.) Your paper must have a clear thesis
stated early, evidence and reasoning to support it throughout the body of the essay, and
analysis of the significance of this reading to an understanding of the play. Evidence must
include quotes and paraphrasing from the play with page numbers noted in MLA style.
Include a Works Cited page, listing your two secondary and one primary source, the play, in
MLA style.
A good analysis concentrates on details: you should quote sections of the play to show how
the text supports your thesis. Then you should offer comments and analysis that show how the
portion you’re interpreting contributes to the work as a whole. As a general rule, “say more
about less”: limit your focus to a small enough topic so that you can cover it in detail in this
brief paper. Make sure you refer to the Thesis Statement and In-Text citation handout when
you work on your drafts. Following are the major guidelines. Refer to the rubric for a detailed
breakdown of how the grading will work.
Major Guidelines:
 4-5 pages, double-spaced, Times New Roman (not counting Works Cited page)
 Uses two scholarly sources
 Has a strong thesis statement
 Provides backing for the thesis statement in the body paragraphs
 Uses direct quotes from the play(s) to support the main argument (avoid block quotes)
 Uses direct quotes from the scholarly sources (avoid long or block quotes)
 Uses MLA citation
What to bring to one-on-one conferences (April 24, April 29, May 1, 2014)
Follow this format for rough drafts for conference:
1) Introduction/Thesis Statement
2) Bullet points of paragraphs that follow with at least
one sample quote using MLA format.
Due date: May 5, 2014, by midnight via Turn It In