Final Draft Length: 5 pages plus a Works Cited Page and a minimum of 5 sources.
Primary and secondary sources: In this essay, you will analyze and write about one of the plays we read and discussed in class. You can use two or even three plays and compare and contrast them. You can even compare and contrast the play with a story or poem we read in class. But you must use at least one play. You can draw connections among the themes or characters or other literary devices. Your sources shape your argument and vice versa. In your essay, you will use some secondary sources (which are critical articles about the primary sources) from Gale, JStore, or CCM Library Online Databases. Make sure your sources are credible. ***Avoid such websites as Cliffnotes.com, Shmoop.com, Sparknotes.com, Enotes.com, Litchart.com, … that come up in Google search! They do not have clear authors; therefore, they are not reliable. No one is responsible for the accuracy of the information they share. They usually provide a summary and some opinions but not analysis or interpretation. ***
This assignment has 3 parts: proposal, rough draft, and final draft.
Proposal: The proposal can be about ½ page. It should include the title of the primary source/s and one secondary source. It should include a thesis statement and a plan of some of the ideas that you will develop or discuss in your research essay. It is OK if you ask a question instead of a thesis statement if your thesis is to be determined later in your rough draft. (Submitted on Discussions)
Rough draft: It can be about 1/3 or 1/2 of the essay. The purpose is to show me the process of your research writing or drafting. In your rough drafts, I want to see your Works Cited page with a list of the primary and secondary sources. I also want to see sample paragraphs with quotations and in-text citations. (Submitted in Assessments).
Final draft: It will be a minimum of 5 pages plus 1 Works Cited page.
In your introduction: Mention the title of the drama/s and the name of the playwright/s. You can briefly mention one or two of your main secondary sources. Provide a context or background for your essay. Provide a thesis statement, or pose a question. Provide a plan of ideas.
In body paragraphs: Develop one idea per paragraph. In every paragraph, you should have a topic sentence that introduces the main idea of the paragraph. You need to use a few quotations from the primary and the secondary sources as evidence to your argument to support the idea of the paragraph. You should provide an interpretation for every quotation, and support it with extra details and examples. Personal examples and connections to the idea and topic of the essay is a plus! You should have an in-text citation for every quote and also give the full citation at the end of the paper on the Works Cited page. Remember, you should have citations even for your indirect quotes or paraphrases when you quote somebody else’s ideas in your own words.
In your conclusion: You can use one or more of the techniques: rephrase your thesis statement, summarize your essay, answer so what, look into the future, make some recommendations, etc.
Avoid biographical information about the playwright unless it is relevant to the analysis. Avoid summarizing what the play is about.