You will each produce a paper of 7-8 pages in length, typed double spaced, using 12 font, following MLA format for style. For assistance, consult MLA Guidelines for Writing Research Papers which can be accessed online through the Purdue Owl website. Unlike your short papers, this assignment requires you to do research beyond the material we cover in class. As is the case with all of your written work, the Final Paper is designed to challenge you to formulate a clear and precise thesis statement, focus on a specific aspect of a work or works, be it a character, theme, scene, passage, or the narrative style of a text and articulate a clear, well-developed argument based on your own analysis of the material. Additionally, you will find 2 or 3 critical sources to support your argument. Sources can range from essays written in critical anthologies, books and scholarly articles written in print and online journals. You may craft your own prompt based on the material and themes covered within our class. Options range from literary works as well as politics, music and many forms of art. Consider the following: cultural hybridity, colonial subjugation, racial and gender stereotypes, alienation, among many others.
ENGL 300 final
Make sure you state a clear thesis statement in your opening paragraph to guide your reader through your argument and organize your analysis.
Sources can include essays published in anthologies, scholarly articles in print and online journals, and books. You may also bring in a quote from an interview or speech by one of our authors if appropriate but that would only count as an extra source, not one of your primary texts or secondary (research) sources.
Keep in mind that you are not simply listing outside sources or making the work of other writers the foundation of your paper. Your own analysis is the foundation of your work. You are setting yourself up in dialogue with these critics as you engage with the same texts and ideas. It is okay to disagree with your critics. In fact, sometimes this can be a great way to weave them into your paper. Ultimately, you are not using these research sources to inspire your argument and analysis – you are developing your argument and analysis, while simply referencing these critics to offer supporting evidence to enrich your own written work.
While you will use quotes to support your argument and showcase the depth of your analysis – do not overuse quotes! Focus on your discussion of why said quotes are so crucial to your analysis of the work.
Include in-text citations along with a Works Cited Page that adheres to MLA Format.
When searching for articles, make sure you Exclude Dissertations, as these are papers that have yet to be officially published within academia and therefore do not qualify as credible for the purposes of your final assignment.
No online sources, such as websites, as the credibility of said material often cannot be substantiated.
You would be wise to write about material you have not already covered on a past paper. Simply put, start fresh! If you do decide to explore a work you wrote about previously from another angle – you can, but know that you may not simply submit an old paper with the addition of a couple new pages. For your work to be credible, honest and acceptable, the paper must be original to the assignment.
Choose sources that speak directly to the work you cover within your paper. While it can be useful to reference one general source on a particular theme or area of the course [For example: Women in Caribbean Literature], it is best that at least two of your sources address the text itself specifically.
Do not simply offer a summary of the material, as you must write an analysis of the significance of the work you cover.
3 Always know that your analysis is at the core of your argument and your writing. This paper simply requires more development of your close reading. Consider all of the feedback you have received on your past papers, review your guidelines, maintain your commitment to originality and creativity, respect academic honesty and embrace the opportunity to write a deeper exploration of the works and themes we have read and discussed within our course.