Character Analysis Essay Corrections
MLA
 1-inch margins, all four sides.

Your paper heading should look like:
Jane Doe
English III Block 1B
Dec. 30, 2014
Character Analysis Essay

If printing from Google Docs, you must put your cursor to the left of your name in
the page name and hit return ONE time so that the complete page heading prints.

No contractions; spell out all words.

The first time you use a name in the essay, use the first and second name, and
identify the character’s role (i.e. Mary Warren, the Proctor’s servant and Abigail
Williams’s follower,….). From the second reference on, reference the character by
last name only, unless there is some confusion, such as with John and Elizabeth
Proctor. In that case, use both the first and last name each time.

This is not a “personal” essay, so no first (I, we, me, us, my, our) pronouns unless
part of a quotation from the play, which means it is part of a sentence enclosed in
quotation marks. In addition, you may not use any second person pronouns (you,
your, you’re) unless part of a line from the play that is enclosed in quotation marks.

The title of the play IN THIS SITUATION is in quotation marks – “The Crucible” –
because it is part of an anthology, not a stand-alone piece of a literature (in which
case it would be in italics).

Acts are always capitalized and use Roman numerals (Act I, Act II, Act III, Act IV).
Scenes use Arabic numerals (Scene 1, Scene 2, etc.).
Content
 EVERY quote you use MUST be worked into a sentence with a subject and a verb
outside of the quote itself!
o Wrong: “I’ll not give my wife to vengeance!”
o Wrong: “I’ll not give my wife to vengeance!” – John Proctor
o Right: John Proctor exclaims, “I’ll not give my wife to vengeance!”

You MUST cut down your quotes using the ellipsis so that ONLY the part important
to the point that you are making shows.
o … if cutting the beginning or middle of a line.
o …. If cutting through the end of a sentence

All introductions must START with an attention getter (quotation, statistic,
definition, analogy, anecdote, etc. Do NOT use a question in a formal essay!) and
FINISH with a thesis.
o According to the popular entertainment magazine Variety, only one of
every three plays that makes it to the stage is ever performed on
Broadway, the mecca of American theater (Attention Getter). Thus, it
must be a truly extraordinary play that has a long run on Broadway. Such is
the case with the play “The Crucible,” written by Arthur Miller. This play was
wildly successful largely due to the fact that Miller wrote it as an allegory,
protesting what Senator Joseph McCarthy did to innocent victims in the
Communist hearings he led in the early 1950s. Miller set his tale, though, in
Salem in the 1690s during the accusation of witchcraft, as neighbor turned
on neighbor. In demonstrating man’s inhumanity to man, Miller created a
memorable protagonist in the character of John Proctor. Upon analysis, it is
evident that Miller creates a complex main character who is flawed but
regretful, and as a result, he truly desires to do the right thing (Thesis –
compound sentence).
o If you are listing the three traits in the same sentence, the words must be in
the same format (adj., adj., and adj. or noun, noun, and noun.)
o If you are listing opposite traits, such as in the example above, list negative
together and then use a transition showing a contrast and put the opposite
trait, the positive one (flawed, regretful versus intending to do the right
thing).

Your thesis is only ONE sentence!

Your introduction and conclusion length must be in proportion to the length of your
body paragraphs.
o Introduction: explain who the character is and what role he/she plays in the
drama
o Conclusion: explain what makes your character flat or round; explain what
makes your character static or dynamic. Give examples! Explain, using
details, how the plot would have evolved differently if the character had not
had those traits. Be specific!
 Do not mix up flat/round vs static/dynamic. Keep the appropriate
explanation with the correct term (i.e. don’t say the character is “flat”
and then explain how the character changed.)

Every body paragraph must START with a topic sentence that names the trait, the
character’s name, and the words “analysis” and “trait” or synonyms for those words.

EVERY quotation must cite the author of the quote and the page number.
o Do NOT include the page number in the sentence.
 Wrong: In Act II, page 843, Proctor says,….
 Right: In Act II, Proctor says, “I’ll not give my wife to vengeance!”
(Miller 843).
 Wrong: On page 822, Miller wrote in the narration,….
 Right: In introducing the character of Reverend Parris, Miller
describes him as “…cutting a villainous path through history” (822).
o If you use the author’s name in the sentence, use only the page number in the
parenthetical citation.
o A period must ALWAYS go AFTER the citation.
 Do not put a period inside the quotation mark for the end of the
sentence. ONLY put it after the citation.
 If a quotation ends in a question mark or an exclamation mark, put
that punctuation AND a period after the citation.

If you cite information from any other source, such as in your attention getter, you
must cite the source, even if the information is paraphrased, let alone if it is a direct
quote. You will either state the source, such as in the introduction example above,
and put a page number in quotation marks after the information, if there is a page
number, or put the source and page number after the quote.
o According to the popular entertainment magazine Variety, only one of every
three plays that makes it to the stage is ever performed on Broadway, the
mecca of American theater. (No page number available because it comes
from an electronic source.)
o According to the popular entertainment magazine, only one of every three
plays that makes it to the stage is ever performed on Broadway, the mecca of
American theater (Variety.com).

Every document that has even one parenthetical citation in it MUST have a list of
Works Cited.
o Separate page
o 1-inch margins
o Title
o Page number, continued from last page of paper
o Alphabetical order
o Double spaced
o If using easybib.com, use the “Chapter/Anthology” selection for a piece in our
literature book.
o Your entry for this play should look like this:
Miller, Arthur. "The Crucible." Elements of Literature: Fifth Course. Toronto: Holt,
Rinehart, and Winston, 2000. 830-87. Print.

VARY your sentence structure! The introduction of each quote should not be the
same subject-verb construction. The start of your explanation of each quote should
not be the same!
o Start sentences with:
 - ing phrases
 -ed phrases
 prepositional phrases

You must have 3 or more direct quotes per body paragraph.
o You may not use paraphrased quotes. The only acceptable proof for this
paper comes from lines directly stated in the paper.
Your C’s MUST be 2 or more sentences!


Your D’s may NOT state the trait that is the topic of the next paragraph. It must only
HINT that something more is coming.
Works Cited
 Separate page
 Title – not underlined, etc. –Works Cited (centered)
 Page numbers continue
 1” margins
 INCLUDE the source for ANYTHING you looked up!
Miller, Arthur. “The Crucible.” Elements of Literature: Fifth Course. Holt, Rinehart, and
Winston: Toronto. 2000.