Shakespearian Comparison Paper
Pre-AICE Literature
2009/2010
While students are reading and discussing Much Ado About Nothing, they should read an
additional Shakespearian play to compare to a movie adaptation. The paper should focus on
the play and the movie’s attention to the major themes such as love, religion, roles of
women, or the supernatural (or a theme of student’s choosing); as well as the setting of
both works (consider costume and time period).
1.
Students should locate at least one critical review/analysis of either the play or
the movie being read using the Internet. Discuss praise and critiques of the
play/movie within your paper. Be sure to cite the website when you reference it in
order to avoid plagiarism.
2. In preparing for the comparison paper, students should ask themselves…
What are the major themes within the play/movie?
b. How do Shakespeare and the director illustrate these themes?
c. Of what importance are these themes to the overall intent (comedy or
tragedy) of the play/movie?
a.
3. Your comparison paper should include your personal critique (either positive or
negative) of both the play and the movie. You must include adequate support from
both works in order to prove your opinion.
Support may take the form of quotes or examples from within either work.
b. Be sure to cite where the quotes come from (ACT.SCENE.LINE).
a.
4. If you use any additional sources, such as an academic analysis of the play, be sure
to cite where you found the information.
a.
Refer to the OWL Purdue website for information on citing sources:
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
b. A WORKS CITED page must be included with all your resources.
Pre-AICE Literature Comparison Paper
Requirements:
 Title Page
 WORKS CITED Page
 A minimum of three (3) pages of text. The third page must be a full page in order to be counted.
 Normal margins at the top and bottom of each page.
 Normal margins at the left and right of each page.
 Font MUST be no larger than 12 POINT (TIMES NEW ROMAN preferred).
 Double Spaced.
 All quotes from and references to any source must be cited with author’s name and page number.
 Your thesis should be focused and specific rather than broad and all encompassing.
 Paper focus is a Shakespearian play with a comparison and contrast approach to the corresponding film.
You need to compare the different reoccurring themes (love, religion, roles of women, the supernatural,
etc.) within both the play and the movie; as well as the setting (costume and time period). All aspects must
be addressed and proven within the body of your paper.
 CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF YOUR THESIS should be the main focus for this body of work. Retelling
and restating what your sources have already presented would be the equivalent of an 8 th grade book report.
This is a 10th Grade honors course (in six months you may possibly be enrolled in dual enrollment or AICE
courses.) Do NOT summarize the play. You are to EXPLAIN your thesis and defend it using examples
from the play and film; as well as support from your sources.
Grading: Final Draft
Critical Analysis of Thesis
Works Cited page
80 %
20%
Schedule of Due Dates:
Monday 04/13 – Works Cited page is due!
 One internet critique of either the play or the movie.
 Bibliographical information for BOTH the play and the movie.
 Any additional resources (including all websites) for play and movie analysis.
Block Day: 04/16 or 04/17 - Final Draft DUE!
 A complete final draft is due (with title page, works cited page and citations).
ALL DUE DATES ARE NON-NEGOTIABLE REGARDLESS OF ABSENCE. YOUR PAPER NEEDS TO
BE IN MS. CAMP’S HANDS AT THE BEGINNING OF YOUR PERIOD.
Ideas
Organization
Color
Coding
thesis
statement:
2 points
Identifying
comparison
and contrast
2 points
transition
statements:
2 points
Length and
format:
2 points
6
5
4
3
2
1
The thesis is
clear.
Reasoning is
very
convincing
and
informative.
The essay has
a clear
opinion
statement.
Persuasive
reasons
support
opinion.
Organization
presents flow
of ideas and
identifies the
comparison
and contrast.
The opinion
statement is
clear, and
more
reasons
support the
opinion.
The opinion
statement is
clear. More
persuasive
reasons are
needed.
The opinion
statement is
clear.
Persuasive
reasons are
needed.
The opinion
statement,
reasons, and
details are
needed.
Organization
presents
ideas and
identifies the
comparison
and contrast.
Organization
attempts to
present flow
of ideas and
identifies the
comparison
and contrast
Transitional
words and
phrases are
correctly
used yet at a
minimum.
Transitional
words and
phrases are
correctly
used yet
inconsistent.
Organization
of ideas is
choppy and
does not
fully
identify the
comparison
and contrast
The
organization is
unclear and
confusing and
does not
identify the
comparison and
contrast.
Transitional
words and
phrases are
incorrectly
used.
Transitional
words and
phrases are not
used.
The voice is
confident and
persuasive.
The voice is
confident,
but it needs
to be more
persuasive.
Accurate
words create
a message.
More
persuasive
words are
needed.
Varied
sentence
beginnings
are used.
Sentence
variety
would make
the essay
easier to
read.
The voice
needs to be
more
confident and
persuasive.
More precise
and accurate
words are
needed to
create a clear
message.
The voice
rambles on
and lacks
confidence.
The voice
cannot be
heard.
The words
do not make
a clear
message.
Word choice
has not been
considered.
Sentence
fluency has not
been
established.
Ideas do not
flow smoothly.
Grammar
and
punctuation
errors are
seen in a
few
sentences
and are
distracting
where they
appear.
Some errors
cause
confusion.
Most of the
sentences
begin the
same way.
Most
sentences
are simple.
Some
compound
and complex
sentences
are needed.
Frequent
errors make
the essay
difficult to
read.
The
organization
presents a
smooth flow
of ideas and
clearly
identifies the
comparison
and contrast.
Transitional
words and
phrases are
correctly
used.
The voice is
confident,
positive, and
convincing.
Voice
Attentiongetting
introduction:
2 points
Word
Choice
active verbs:
2 points
Precise words
create a clear
message to
engage and
persuade the
audience.
Precise
words create
a clear
message and
fit the
purpose.
Support
Supporting
Details and
In-text
citations
4 points
The sentences
flow
smoothly, and
the variety of
sentences is
enjoyable to
read.
Variety is
seen in both
types of
sentences and
their
beginnings.
Conventions
fewer than
5 errors
(including
bibliography)
4 points
The grammar
and
punctuation
are correct,
and all the
words are
spelled
correctly.
Grammar and
punctuation
errors are few
and are not
distracting.
Transitional
words and
phrases are
somewhat
correctly
used.
Varied
sentence
beginnings
are needed.
Sentence
variety
would make
the essay
more
interesting.
Points
Earned
Nearly every
sentence
contains errors.
GRADE
Comments
MLA Style Guide
Works Cited List
Guidelines:
 You should have a Works Cited list at the end of your paper
 It provides the information necessary for a reader to locate and
read any source you cite in the essay
Format:
 Begin Works Cited list on a separate sheet of paper from the
text
 Label Works Cited or Bibliography – no underlining, “quotes”,
italics, ALL CAPS, etc.
 Make the first line of each entry flush with the margin of your
paper
 The following lines should be indented (this is known as a hanging
indent)
 Double space all entries, no skipped lines between entries
For example:
Works Cited
Camp, Lindsey. How to pass Pre-AICE Literature. Citra: North
Marion High School, 2009.
Hampton, Jon. "Guitar Hero for Classrooms". Guitar Hero Nation.
April 1, 2009 <http://www.guitarheronation@videogames.edu>.
Shakespeare movies are so numerous they form their own sub genre. With over 250 Shakespeare movies
produced, Shakespeare film adaptations such as Baz Luhrman's "Romeo and Juliet", the Shakespeare
inspired "Shakespeare in Love" and the more recent "Hamlet 2000", prove that Shakespeare films
adaptations and movies retain their enduring appeal. Picking an original movie will help you in terms
of originality and set your paper apart from your peers.
Hamlet, (1948). Directed. by Lawrence Olivier.
Othello, (1952). Directed by Orson Welles.
Julius Caesar, (1953). Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz.
Romeo and Juliet, (1954). Directed by Renato Castellani.
Richard III, (1955). Directed by Lawrence Olivier.
Othello, (1956). Directed by Sergei Jutkevitsh.
Forbidden Planet (based on The Tempest), (1956). Directed by Fred M. Wilcox.
Throne of Blood / The Castle of the Spider's Web / Cobweb Castle (1957), (derived from Macbeth). Directed by
Akira Kurosawa.
The Tempest (1960), (TV) starring Richard Burton. Directed by George Schaefer.
Hamlet (1964), starring Richard Burton. Directed by Bill Colleran and John Gielgud.
Hamlet, (1964), directed by Grigori Kozintsev.
The Taming of the Shrew, (1967), starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. Directed by Franco Zeffirelli
Romeo and Juliet, (1968), directed by Franco Zeffirelli.
King Lear, (1970), directed by Peter Brook.
Macbeth, (1972), directed by Roman Polanski (Bitter Moon).
Antony and Cleopatra, (1974), starring Patrick Stewart and Ben Kingsley. Directed by Trevor Nunn and John
Schoffield.
Comedy of Errors (1978), starring Judi Dench and Francesca Annis and directed by Philip Casson and Trevor Nunn.
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, (1980), (BBC-TV) starring Patrick Stewart and directed by Rodney Bennett.
The Tempest, (1982), directed by Paul Mazursky.
Ran (1985), (based on King Lear), directed by Akira Kurosawa.
King Lear, (1987), directed by Jean-Luc Godard.
Henry V, (1989), directed by Kenneth Branagh.
Romeo and Juliet, (1990), starring Francesca Annis, Vanessa Redgrave and Ben Kingsley. Directed by Armando
Acosta II.
Hamlet, (1991), directed by Franco Zeffirelli.
Prospero's Books, (1991), (based on The Tempest), directed by Peter Greeneway.
As You Like It, (1992), directed by Christine Edzard.
Much Ado about Nothing, (1993), directed by Kenneth Branagh.
Othello, (1995), directed by Oliver Parker.
William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, (1996), starring Leonardo Di Caprio and Claire Danes. Directed by Baz
Luhrman.
Hamlet, (1996), starring Kenneth Branagh, Richard Attenborough, Judi Dench, Billy Crystal and Kate Winslet.
Directed by Kenneth Branagh.
Twelfth Night, (1996), starring Helena Bonham Carter, Nigel Hawthorne, Ben Kingsley, Imogen Stubbs and Mel
Smith. Directed by Trevor Nunn.
Looking for Richard, (1996), directed by Al Pacino.
Shakespeare in Love, (1998), starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Geoffrey Rush and Judi Dench. Directed by John Madden,
written by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard. Loosely inspired by Cesario / Viola of Twelfth Night Or What You Will
and Romeo and Juliet.
10 Things I Hate About You, (1999), (based on The Taming of the Shrew), starring Julia Stiles and Heather Ledge.
Directed by Gil Junger.
A Midsummer’s Night's Dream, (1999), starring Calista Flockhart, Michelle Pfiffer. Directed by Michael Hoffman.
Love's Labour’s Lost, (2000), directed by Kenneth Branagh.
Hamlet 2000, starring Ethan Hawke, Julia Stiles, Kyle MacLachlan. Directed by Michael Almereyda
O, (2001), starring Mekhi Phifer, Julia Stiles, and Josh Hartnett. Directed by Tim Blake Nelson
Get Over It, (2001), starring Kirsten Dunst. Directed by Tommy O’Haver
She’s the Man, (2006), starring Amanda Bynes. Directed by Andy Fickman