EN10 Wilson
ANALYZING (CONTENT) CRITERION A

Write on topics prescribed (don’t go off topic)

Provide well developed support for your main points

Develop context/depth in your analysis

Give examples/evidence from text

Analyze the play NOT the movie

Cite minimum 4 direct quotations from text

Use/integrate literary concepts into your analysis

Use literary features/concepts; refer to at least 2 or 3 of the following in your paper: word choice, imagery, motifs, characterization, dialogue

Don’t ‘overwite’ or ‘underwrite’

Provide preliminary/follow-up commentary when using quotations as evidence
ORGANIZING CRITERION B


Create a meaningful title (use the title prescribed)

Clearly identify the author, speaker and text/context
Write on topics prescribed (don’t go off topic; see topics listed below)


Develop a unified introduction, body and conclusion

Write your thesis near the end of your introduction

Use topic sentences for each paragraph
Keep paragraphs focused on ONE main idea

Do not announce your thesis; state it! NO: “This paper will explore how Macbeth bears the greatest responsibility…” YES: “Macbeth bears the greatest…”

Write a unified essay. All paragraphs and points relate/link to thesis (your main point for the essay)

Be coherent. Make sure all points and examples are relevant and logical. Make sure quotations are appropriate and given context (follow-up commentary)

Use transitional words or cues to guide the reader (First, also, however, etc.)

Create a title page (Use MLA Format) http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/

Do parenthetical citations (MLA format): http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/02/

Do a Works Cited and/or Works Consulted page if you cite or use sources beyond out text http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/12/

Lengthy quotations should be been paraphrased or tailored down to draw out the key elements in relation to the subtopic and the thesis. Unnecessary quotations have not been used.

Each quotation has been properly introduced into the paragraph through explaining the context of the quotation.
USING LANGUAGE (STYLE, GRAMMAR, MECHANICS) CRITERION D

Write in a formal academic register

Refer to the viewer, reader, audience when discussing impact of text

Stick to the impersonal third-person voice (register). Avoid personal pronouns (I, me, mine, our, your, you, etc.) outside of quotations. You may use we or one sometimes, but be careful with pronoun agreement. Do not use ‘you’.

EN10 Wilson
 integrate your quotations using grammatically correct and effective techniques (reviewed in class) http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/03/

Know how to use quotation marks http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/owlprint/577/

Use correct terminology

Avoid clichés, slang, colloquialism

Don’t ‘overwite’ or ‘underwrite’

Develop sentence variety

Proofread for errors. Did I say proofread?

Punctuation

Italics for titles of longer texts (newspapers, albums, website names, plays, novels, films); quotations for shorter works (stories, poems, chapters, articles, webpage titles)

Write in simple, direct English

Use of present simple tense when writing about a text

Avoid overusing words and phrases

Words have been chosen because they reflect the most precise meaning within the context of the sentence; word choice is explicit and clear.

Always written in the impersonal third-person voice. No personal pronouns (I, me, mine, our, your, you, etc.) outside of quotations.

Contractions have been avoided.

Lengthy quotations should be been paraphrased or tailored down to draw out the key elements in relation to the subtopic and the thesis. Unnecessary quotations have not been used.

Each quotation has been properly introduced into the paragraph through explaining the context of the quotation.
ESSAY TOPICS/TITLES:
1.
Who bears the greater responsibility for the critical events in the play—Macbeth or Lady
Macbeth? (and how do you know?). Title: An Analysis of the Relative Responsibility of
Macbeth and Lady Macbeth for the Critical Events in Macbeth.
2.
What is the central conflict in Macbeth? (and how do you know?). Title: An Analysis of the
Central Conflict in Macbeth.
3.
What role does the supernatural play in plot and characterization in Macbeth? (and how do you know?). Title: An Analysis of the Role that the Supernatural Plays in Macbeth.
4.
What themes are present in Macbeth? (and how do you know?). Title: An Analysis of Key
Themes in Macbeth.
5.
What are the main considerations a director must take into account when staging Macbeth?
(and how do you know?). Title: An Analysis of the Director’s Dilemmas when Staging
Macbeth.

EN10 Wilson
ADDITIONAL EXPECTATIONS:
Your paper must reference the role of at least two or three of the following literary features: (a) dialogue; (b) word choices; (c) symbolism; (d) motifs; (e) imagery; (f) subtext; and (g) characterization.
Your paper must integrate at least four quotations effectively from the text and cite these using the
MLA parenthetical reference style (see http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/ )
Your paper must demonstrate your growing understanding of academic register.
You must submit your paper to turnitin.com (more on this later)
EN10
The beginning of a well-written essay establishes a solid framework for your discussion. This section of the essay introduces your reader to four essential pieces of information:

The name of the literary work(s) and author(s)

The broad subject under discussion

The limited or “focused” subject the essay will explore

The plan or approach you will use to examine the subject (optional)
In general, your introduction should
 capture the reader's attention
 address or reflect the question or topic selected/assigned
 provide essential context for your topic
 define key terms (these can also be developed in the first body paragraphs as appropriate)
When composing your thesis sentence,


 make sure your thesis reflects the full scope of your argument.
 avoid using a thesis that is too broad to be defended in your paper or too narrow to be a full
 response to the assignment. argue as conceptually rich a position as you can support. Ask yourself How? and Why? questions to deepen your thesis. make sure your reader can easily identify your thesis sentence. do not just reword the initial topic question (if given); claim your own position.
The middle of the essay breaks the limited subject into subtopics. Each subtopic is usually structured and developed in the following way:

A one-sentence opener

A link word or phrase to connect the subtopic with the introduction

Support in the form of examples, quotations or other evidence

EN10 Wilson

A closing sentence
The end of the essay draws a conclusion for the reader, and includes the following features:

A brief summing-up to review the main points in the body

A “clincher” statement that reinforces the thesis in a forceful, memorable way
1.
Use a colon—most abrupt transition between the quotation and the rest of the essay.
2.
Use a comma—eases the transition between your introduction of the quotation and the quotation itself. Usually, a comma is preceded by a transition such as a dialogue descriptor; example: This confusion occurs when Juliet says, “insert quotation here.”
3.
Paraphrase—expresses the key events, images, characterization, or dialogue of a passage from the text in your own words. This still needs to be cited, as you are directly referencing a specific point in the text, although summarizing it in your own words. This format works well for longer passages, or a series of events in the plot that are being linked by your argument.
4.
Integrate—expresses the key events, images, characterization, or dialogue of a passage from the text through combining your own words with the text itself. This is useful when multiple characters are speaking, or to shorten a lengthy passage by taking the necessary ideas from the beginning of the quotation, paraphrasing the context of the middle, and the direct text from the end of the quotation.
5.
Ellipsis Points—indicate deleted text. They are only used in the middle of the quotation; never use them at the beginning or end of a quotation. Be careful using them to modify the quotations in order to change the facts within the text. Take out what may not be necessary to your argument; to manipulate the core ideas will only weaken the logic of your argument.
6.
Square Brackets—useful when the pronouns within the quotations are affecting the flow of the sentence, making the transition between what you have written and the quotation awkward.
Change a personal pronoun (I, me, my, etc.) or an unspecific pronoun (he, she, it) to an impersonal pronoun, or a more specific noun—Example: a quotation spoken by Juliet may begin with “I”, but this may need to be changed to [she] or [Juliet] for added clarity within the context of the paragraph.
Before looking at successful integration of quotations into the body of your essay, it is important to recognize that as a senior level essay, the depth of analysis must go beyond simply explaining the quotation itself. Remember that retelling the quotation’s context is not enough for thoughtful analysis.
It now becomes necessary to extend past the superficial details in order to explain and analyze the
relevance and significance of the primary or secondary sources that are being used to support your thesis.
The passage being examined should be followed by a combination of the following elements:



Discuss what happens in the passage and why it is significant to the work as a whole
Consider what is said, particularly the subtleties of the imagery and the ideas expressed
Assess how it is said, considering word choice, the ordering of ideas, sentence structure, etc. contribute to the meaning of the passage

EN10 Wilson

Explain what it means, tying your analysis of the passage back to the significance of the text as whole
An Example of Analysis that is off-the-mark (from Macbeth):
When Duncan says to Malcolm that “There's no art /To find the mind’s construction in the face:/[The
Thane of Cawdor] was a gentleman on whom I built/An absolute trust“ he is explaining that it is not possible to know what a person is thinking, and that he trusted the Thane of Cawdor completely (1.4.14-
7).
This is good start to analysis, in that it has restated the key ideas of the quotation, but this does not make any connection to the argument of the sub-topic or to the thesis—it is merely descriptive, not analytical or critical.
An Example of Analysis that is more focused:
When Duncan says to Malcolm that “There's no art /To find the mind’s construction in the face:/[The
Thane of Cawdor] was a gentleman on whom I built/An absolute trust“ he is explaining that it is not possible to know what a person is thinking, and that he trusted the Thane of Cawdor completely (1.4.14-
7). This indicates the naivety of Duncan, as well as his inability to accurately judge the character of others; when Duncan trusts Macbeth absolutely, it results in his own assassination and the blame of his murder being cast towards his two sons, Malcolm and Donalbain.
This analysis builds upon the previous statement by examining how the quotation enhances understanding of Duncan’s character, and ultimately making an argument as to how or why this character trait is problematic for Duncan. It has a clearer focus, it links to an idea beyond that of the quotation itself and back to the core center of the argument.