Short Paper Assignment Sheet English 2322 For the short paper, you will be required to write an explication of a portion of the text—a scene, a section, some feature of a character, some feature of setting, words or language used, for example. An explication is a close reading that focuses on a small bit of text rather than on the entire piece. For example, in a discussion of Beowulf as a heroic figure, an explication would focus on one scene that shows, in your opinion, the best example of his heroic qualities. You would not try to show how he is a hero throughout the entire long poem (though you may refer to other events earlier or later than your scene). Do not do any research for this paper. Use only the poem itself for supporting evidence. Begin your introduction by giving title of the work, author, and genre. Follow this with a summary of the poem of no more than two sentences. Then give the context for the part of the poem you will be discussing. For example, if the focus in your paper is the story about Heremod, you would need to briefly tell when and why Hrothgar tells the story. Then transition smoothly to your thesis. This will be a formal paper. Observe the following conventions: Due: Standard essay organization and development: full introduction paragraph with thesis statement, body paragraphs with clear topic sentences, quotations within the body paragraphs to support your assertions, and a conclusion which avoids a mere restatement of your thesis. Do not begin body paragraphs with quotations. Quotations should be used to support points, not to make them. To quote fewer than four lines of a poem, put a slash mark where a line ends and indicate the line numbers in parentheses: “Then the earls’ defender furnished the hero / with twelve treasures and told him to set out,” (1866-1867). For four or more lines, use a block quotation, type the lines exactly as they appear in the text with no quotation marks or slashes at ends of lines, and line numbers in parentheses at the end. Only one block quotation of only four lines allowed in this paper. Do not use first person or second person. Use third person only. Do not use contractions. Use MLA paper format. Proofread carefully for errors. Use spell check and grammar check. Length—2 ½ to 3 pages. Work cited at end (no need to place on separate page if there is space for it on last page of your paper). Submit to turnitin.com. No hard copy required. Papers will be graded online. __________________________________________________ An important note about plagiarism: The strictest rules about plagiarism will apply. Any of the following will result in an “F” grade for the short paper. Direct word-for-word plagiarism identified by turnitin.com. Any “paper mill” Website listed in your turnitin.com originality report. Examples of these kinds of Websites are SparkNotes, Shmoop, gradesaver, enotes, 123helpme, or Websites that require students to pay for papers, essays, or research papers. Any Website that will not allow instructors to access it, or that requires a fee to access.