MILLS GUIDE TO FORMAL WRITING ASSIGNMENTS (ADAPTED FROM OWL PURDUE, MLA, & KEABLES). 9/2/15
While there are only two wrong answers in literature: 1) Aliens 2) Pyramids, there are rules for writing.
MLA FORMATTING:
Film = The Birds or The Birds Short Story = “The Birds” Poem = “A Barred Owl” Novel = The Outsiders Song = “Fire”
Album= Thriller Work of art, image, painting, sculpture, photograph Mona Lisa
HEADING Is double-spaced, in the upper left (1st page). RUNNING HEADER = last name and page number in the upper right (all pages).
NO LINE BREAKS between paragraphs. INDENT paragraphs. FONT is Times New Roman 12pt (everything). MARGINS are 1 inch.
Essay TITLEs:
are in (Times New Roman 12pt), are NOT BOLDED, NOT ITALICIZED, NOT UNDERLINED, and do NOT have pictures.
1. Use imagination. An academic paper needs clarity in its title more than creative writing does. However, there is still room for imagination. Try
a metaphor or symbol, or a title that is paradoxical or oxymoronic. You can compromise between fact and imagination by using a subtitle. E.G.,
BORING: The Birds IMAGINATIVE: Hitchcock’s Feathered “Friends” SUBTITLE: Hitchcock’s Feathered “Friends”: An Examination of Suspense in Film
and Literature.
2. Avoid vague titles and one-word titles. Titles like "Relationships between People" offer little idea of the subject. Titles like "War" or "Religion"
give the impression that you plan to say everything about a vast topic. They offer no hint of a stance or attitude. Here are three titles of essays on
the Civil Rights movement:
VAGUE: Change in Society
VAGUE: Prejudice
BETTER: A Divided Nation
BEST: A Divided Nation: American Civil Rights in the 1960s
INTRODUCTION:
avoid mystery openings. Include early in your essay--usually in the opening sentences--a phrase like "in Jane Austen's novel
Pride and Prejudice." Even if your teacher gave everyone the same topic, and your title includes the title of the work, you should indicate your
subject. A good formula is TITLE, AUTHOR, GENRE (TAG)
1. Avoid overused introductory devices. Examples: "In our society today"; "Webster's defines ____ as"; "Since the beginning of time…"
2. Avoid statements of obvious fact: "In the world there are many kinds of people."
3. Build up to your main point. Your first paragraph should lead to its main idea. It should not trail off onto subordinate ideas. The introduction is
not the place for supporting details. The introduction should clearly preview your points in a manner that engages readers.
THESIS:
A thesis is a statement, not a phrase.
WRONG (PHRASE): The failure of gun regulation.
RIGHT (STATEMENT): Attempts to regulate firearms have so far failed to achieve their goals.
A thesis is a judgment, not a fact.
It must be arguable; there must be room for disagreement.
INAPPROPRIATE: AIDS kills many people. (a fact)
INAPPROPRIATE: Animal abuse is wrong. (too widely accepted to need proof)
BETTER: Some common ways of treating dogs amount to unintentional cruelty.
A thesis must be clear and precise.
WRONG (TOO VAGUE): Democracy and communism have similarities and differences.
WRONG (TOO SWEEPING): Gun regulation is a failure.
BETTER: Attempts to regulate firearms have so far failed to achieve their goals.
Theses in essays about literature:
Besides observing the above rules, a good thesis for an essay on literature usually includes two
features: 1. An aspect of the work: a theme, character, part, writing technique, or issue. 2. A statement about the meaning or effect of the
work, usually pertaining to character or theme. Such a statement is often a generalization about life or some abstract idea.
The most common flaw in student writing is the failure to include the second feature. A list of insights (into, say, symbolism in The Great Gatsby or
irony in "A Rose for Emily") is not enough. The thesis must explain why the insights are important and how they advance our understanding of the
work as a whole. Features 1 and 2 appear in the following example:
THESIS: In his poem "To Althea, From Prison," Richard Lovelace defines true freedom as a quality of a person's soul.
ASPECT (A THEME): Lovelace's concept of freedom.
STATEMENT ABOUT MEANING: true freedom, Lovelace feels, is a quality of a person's soul.
FIRST PERSON:
Avoid the irrelevant "I" and "me." Do not write "I feel the poem means . . ." or "When I first read the story. . . ." Readers will
assume that any argument you present is your own, unless you explicitly state otherwise. It is redundant to say, “I feel” or “I believe.”
EXPLICIT DETAILS / BE SPECIFIC:
Avoid writing “it” “this” or “they” too many times. Instead, write what the it is. WEAK: It is difficult
to do this because the author has to… BETTER: It is difficult to show a pause in time because the author has to…
TONE / Author, Director, Poet:
maintain an objective tone. It is just as inappropriate to write "Fitzgerald's profound wisdom and poetic
language make The Great Gatsby a timeless classic," as it is to write "The Great Gatsby is tedious, sentimental hogwash." Your purpose as a literary
critic is to interpret, not to praise or blame. The 1st time you mention the author use his/her full name. After, it is last name or title. You don’t
hang out with Tim Burton. WRONG: Tim has strong command of motifs in his films. BETTER: Burton’s (or the director’s) use of gothic architecture…
VERB TENSE:
When we write about literature, film, music, or visual art, we use the PRESENT TENSE because these works are persistent.
Each time we read Romeo and Juliet Romeo sees Juliet from across the room. Juliet is surprised to learn that Romeo is a Montague.
COLLOUIALISMS:
avoid informal diction, slang, and regional expressions. The diction in the examples below fails to do justice to its
subjects: INFORMAL: Zeus gets mad at guys who get cocky BETTER: Arrogant mortals fall victim to the wrath of Zeus.
INFORMAL: Hitler was really mean. BETTER: Hitler was cruel.
CITING EVIDENCE / QUOTATIONS:
Citing examples in the form of direct quotations is the strongest means by which to prove your thesis.
To indicate short quotations (fewer than four typed lines of prose or three lines of verse) in your text, enclose the quotation within double
quotation marks. Provide the author and specific page citation (in the case of verse, provide line numbers) in the text. Punctuation marks such as
periods, commas, and semicolons should appear after the parenthetical citation. ALWAYS INTRODUCE THE QUOTATION: For example, when
quoting short passages of prose, use the following examples:
According to some, dreams express "profound aspects of personality" (Foulkes 184), though others disagree.
According to Foulkes's study, dreams may express "profound aspects of personality" (184).
Is it possible that dreams may express "profound aspects of personality" (Foulkes 184)?
TRANSITIONS:
Avoid weak, overused phrases: "another example is," "also," "in addition," "secondly." Instead, show the relation of your
ideas. Do not make the last sentence of a paragraph the topic sentence of the next paragraph; save it for the next paragraph and use this formula
(when in doubt): Dependent Clause, Independent Clause. The DC reminds the reader of the topic sentence in the prior paragraph; the IC IS THE
TOPIC SENTENCE for the current paragraph.
CONCLUSIONS:
Don’t just reword your opening paragraph. Avoid overused phrases ("in conclusion," "to sum up," "finally"). Tie your essay
together. Play the “So What” Game. Ask a friend to read it with you. Whenever you make a statement from your conclusion, ask the friend to say,
“So what?” or “Why should anybody care?” Then ponder that question and answer it. Point to broader implications. For example, if your paper
examines the Greensboro sit-ins or another event in the Civil Rights Movement, you could point out its impact on the Civil Rights Movement as a
whole. A paper about the style of writer Virginia Woolf could point to her influence on other writers or on later feminists.