Other important things for your paper

Basics Have a proper double-spaced heading: Your name, AP English 12-hour, teacher’s name, due date Have a header (last name and page number) Don’t know how to do this? Ask! 12 point font, double-spaced, 1” margins, readable font (Times New Roman is standard) Title should be simple and point to thesis directly or indirectly Your paper will have several paragraphs and should be about 3-4 pages long. Include author and title in the introduction; short story titles go in “quotation marks”

Basics of a Topic Sentence: 1. It fits the size of the assignment. 2. It states a single main point or position related to the thesis 3. It is specific. 4. It is an idea you can show, explain, or prove. 5. It is a forceful statement written with confidence.

CEW Claim or Thesis (your topic sentences all go back to proving your thesis: think of these as mini claims): Opinion, not fact Debatable Provable (Reasonable) Evidence: From the text Specific (needs to say something that supports the claim) You must cite your source even if you paraphrase or quote directly you must cite your source (See next slide for ICE) Warrant: Explanation: answers the “so what?” How and why evidence proves the claim (thesis) Ties back to your thesis/theme (the overall meaning of the work) Must explain all the connections in your head. Pretend you are explaining to someone who has never read the book. Key to a good warrant: Re-use key phrases from the claim and evidence. See the next few slides for a basic CEW pattern. This is what you are trying to accomplish in your paragraphs.

What to notice: Claim (topic sentence) In “Meeting at Night” by Robert Browning, his vivid use of visual and auditory imagery evokes the urgency of an important moonlit rendezvous between two young lovers. The visual and auditory imagery helps the reader envision the night as dreamy and the lover as bold. The first two lines of the poem set up what the night looks like: “The gray sea and the long black land;/And the yellow half-moon large and low.” The reader can see the water gleaming under the light of a large harvest moon low on the horizon. And this image helps the reader feel as though they are watching this scene unfold as they themselves are standing on the beach, “the long black land.” These images are important because they are meant to create feelings of secrecy, longing, and romance. The next lines help the reader hear and see the ocean: “And the startled little waves that leap/In fiery ringlets from their sleep.” The reader can see the movement of the waves as they leap, and the word startled connotes that the waves are frightened by something, giving the reader the sense that the waves are short and choppy as they hit the shoreline.

What to notice: Evidence In “Meeting at Night” by Robert Browning, his vivid use of visual and auditory imagery evokes the urgency of an important moonlit rendezvous between two young lovers. The visual and auditory imagery helps the reader envision the night as dreamy and the lover as bold. The first two lines of the poem set up what the night looks like: “The gray sea and the long black land;/And the yellow half-moon large and low.” The reader can see the water gleaming under the light of a large harvest moon low on the horizon. And this image helps the reader feel as though they are watching this scene unfold as they themselves are standing on the beach, “the long black land.” These images are important because they are meant to create feelings of secrecy, longing, and romance. The next lines help the reader hear and see the ocean: “And the startled little waves that leap/In fiery ringlets from their sleep.” The reader can see the movement of the waves as they leap, and the word startled connotes that the waves are frightened by something, giving the reader the sense that the waves are short and choppy as they hit the shoreline.

What to notice: Warrant In “Meeting at Night” by Robert Browning, his vivid use of visual and auditory imagery evokes the urgency of an important moonlit rendezvous between two young lovers. The visual and auditory imagery helps the reader envision the night as dreamy and the lover as bold. The first two lines of the poem set up what the night looks like: “The gray sea and the long black land;/And the yellow half-moon large and low.” The reader can see the water gleaming under the light of a large harvest moon low on the horizon. And this image helps the reader feel as though they are watching this scene unfold as they themselves are standing on the beach, “the long black land.” These images are important because they are meant to create feelings of secrecy, longing, and romance. The next lines help the reader hear and see the ocean: “And the startled little waves that leap/In fiery ringlets from their sleep.” The reader can see the movement of the waves as they leap, and the word startled connotes that the waves are frightened by something, giving the reader the sense that the waves are short and choppy as they hit the shoreline and that the lovers have surprised even the water as they boldly meet at night.

See next slide for more ICE information ICE: How to use evidence (Please note: this is used in conjunction with CEW. This is how to set up your evidence so you aren’t just dropping quotes into your paper.) Introduce, Cite, Explain Introduce the evidence smoothly (see integrating quotes ppt) “According to the author, the night…” Integrate evidence into your OWN sentence. (This is the E in CEW) Never begin a sentence with a quote or paraphrase Explanation = how this piece of evidence helps prove your thesis (This is the W in CEW) Citation depends on piece of writing: AP essays, cite in intro (In paragraph 2, Sanders uses the words…) Research papers, cite in intro or use MLA parenthetical doc. See next slide for more ICE information

ICE Analysis Question\ICE.doc

First, a word about Quoting: Quote: using EXACTLY the words and punctuation in the original text: According to the Batzler foundation, “20% of students have interviewed for a job” within the last two months. Pitfalls Using too often (should be only 2-5 times in paper) Using wrong quotes (lame, long) Quoting wrong (ungrammatical, misspellings) The moral of the story: don’t quote very often.

Paraphrasing You still have to cite your source when you paraphrase! Put in your own words, own voice MUST CHANGE ORDER OF WORDS; any more than 4 of the same words in the same order you must put “quotes” around it. Main ideas and details of original text Same level of detail as original Roughly same length as original (maybe a little shorter)

Other things to consider as you write your paper

Style Don’t show off Take a risk Be critical and analytical Get to the point Don’t moralize Be yourself! Don’t apologize

Grammar Use active voice Use present tense for literature Use strong verbs

Avoid Reader’s response: “I liked” Lists: Writer’s use…,…, and … Fluff Personal discussions Apologies Plot summary Formulaic writing-esp. opening! Creating a title for your essay.