Research paper outline due Tuesday, March 3rd

In many ways, you are at the most difficult stage of a research paper. You need to sort through your secondary sources and figure out what they are saying. Then you need to consider how they relate to your primary text and how they may answer your research question. Some of you have found that the sources you have looked at don't answer your question at all. In this situation, there are two ways to proceed. One is to get help from a research librarian and find new sources. The other is to change your focus based on the information you have gotten so far.

Again, this is often the hardest part. It is common to feel frustrated, confused, defeated, to fall into the "dark night of the soul." This, too, is part of the process. Take breaks to clear your head. But also don't neglect to put the necessary time into reading and thinking.

The outline due Tuesday is just an initial sketch. It's your best idea of what the paper will look like based on the evidence and ideas you have now. As I said in class, the format is up to you. I definitely want to see a tentative thesis statement and a basic flow of the argument in the form of the points of the body paragraphs. Literature and Its Writers has some good advice for forming a thesis out of research notes on pages 1629-1631. If you want more examples of outlines, the Owl has some good pages here and here. And the slideshow I presented in class Thursday can be found as a pdf on the class site through MyPortal (look under "files," the name is "MLA-1B-researchpaper2.pdf").

(the image at the top is from Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon)

Reading Response 5

When I wrote the syllabus, I didn't take into account that some people were going to rewrite Essay 2. Because of that, I've decided that we are going to do Reading Response 5 as an in-class exercise. So it is not due for homework Tuesday. Still, look through the poems and annotate them as you read them. Be ready to write on one in class Tuesday.

Essay 2 rewrite

If you plan to rewrite Essay 2, it is due in one week. In other words, hand it in on or before Tuesday, March 3rd. Hand in the rewrite with the original draft and also submit an electronic copy to Turnitin.

Here are some general comments on Essay 2:

• Weak thesis statements. Some of the papers had thesis statements that were more factual than analytical. For instance, many papers were about how characters in the two stories being written about change themselves by the ends of the stories. This is more of a plot point than an analysis. If you look at the actual prompt, it asks you to look at why this happens. How or why questions tend to create deeper thesis statements. If your thesis merely states what happened, it's probably not very analytical. Having a weak thesis tends to lead to many other problems.
• Plot summary. Some papers lost sight of their own thesis statements and devolved into plot summary. This may be due to the point above, not having a very strong thesis. Keep in mind that the goal is not to describe both stories, but to explore a pattern in both stories.
• Organize around your points. Again, I think this problem is due to not having a strong thesis. Anyway, you should organize your paper around the points you wish to make. Don't simply organize your paper around the texts. As a teacher, I can tell that students aren't really analyzing if they can only talk about a story in the order the plot is presented. Analysis requires the breaking apart of the original structure.
• Incorrect MLA. Proper MLA is one of the requirements of this class. There are many resources that can help you, such as our book and the Owl.

Research paper bibliography due Tuesday, February 24th

What I want you to hand in on Tuesday is a list of your bibliographic notes, or working bibliography. See pages 1660-1663 in Literature and Its Writers. Please put the list in proper MLA format, like a works cited list (1671). This will save you time later if you end up actually using any of these sources. Just to be clear, this is not an annotated bibliography. What I mean by that is that you do not have to summarize each source; just list the sources you have found so far. Five are required for the paper, so have at least five by Tuesday. Also, please put the title of the story you are writing about at the top to provide some context.

EWRT1B section 18: meet in ATC 307 Thursday

Now it's section 18's turn for the research orientation. So we'll be meeting in ATC 307 on Thursday, February 19th. You can see the map in the post below.

EWRT1B section 62 - meet in ATC 307 Tuesday

This message is only for section 62, the 6:30-8:45 class.

Remember that Tuesday, February 17th we will be meeting in ATC 307, the Language Arts Lab. ATC stands for Advanced Technology Center and you can see the building on the map below. It's not far from our classroom. Just enter the building and head upstairs. ATC 307 is right across the hall from the Writing and Reading Center.

Research proposal due Tuesday

The instructions for the assignment are on the prompt for Essay 3 (that double-sided green piece of paper I handed out in class). Follow the instructions in our book on pages 1655-56. The Owl also has some good advice (though very similar to what our book says). If you have any questions or problems, e-mail me.

If you missed or lost the prompt for Essay 3, there is a pdf of it on the class site through MyPortal. I know some of you have had trouble downloading things from there. Again, if you have trouble, let me know.

Reading Response 4: Death of a Salesman

Reading Response 4 - Death of a Salesman

Due: Tuesday, February 10

Choose one of the prompts below. Provide specific evidence to support your argument.

1. What is Willy’s narrative about himself? Where does it come from? How does this narrative drive the conflict in the play?

2. Does Linda protect Willy or enable him? What is her role in the play?

3. Contrast Charley and Bernard with Willy and Biff. What does this contrast reveal? Consider character and/or theme.

4. Is Willy Loman responsible for his own suffering, or is someone/something else responsible? Explain and demonstrate with evidence from the play.

5. Explain Biff’s conflict with Willy. What is at the core of the conflict?

6. Based on evidence in the play, what is Biff’s future? What is Happy’s?

7. Choose your own focus for analysis.

Essay 1 rewrite

If you'd like to revise Essay 1, it is due next week. Please submit the new draft with the old one so I can see how you've improved things. Full MLA is still required: in-text and works cited list. Also, be sure to submit the new draft to Turnitin. On Turnitin, you should see an assignment labeled "Essay 1 Revision."

Here are some general comments:

• Organize around your points, not the plot. An essay is an argument.
• Use the elements of fiction to help explain your insights and clarify your thesis.
• Use specific evidence and explain it. Show, don't just tell. Avoid too much summary.
• Consider using an outline to help restructure your essay.

Literature and Its Writers has a section about revision starting on page 1633.

movie versions of our plays

That last scene from A Doll House that we watched can be found here. The entire movie is on Netflix instant, if you have a Netflix account. It's named A Doll's House and was filmed in 1973.

We are going to watch a version of Death of a Salesman in class, the 1966 made for TV one with with Lee Cobb and Mildred Dunnock. There are other versions though, like the 1985 film with Dustin Hoffman and John Malkovich. I personally don't like that version, but it was nominated for a lot of awards when it came out. And there's an old 1951 version that you can watch on YouTube.

And this is done as a joke, but the analysis at the end is actually good with some concrete textual evidence.