Essay Do’s and Don’ts The Crucible Character Analysis Essay

No No’s  Do NOT use first or second person in your essays.  No ‘You’ ‘Your’ ‘I’ ‘Me’ ‘Us’ or ‘We’ Wrong: I really think that John Proctor changes a lot in The Crucible. Right: John Proctor’s character changes greatly in Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible.

No No’s  Do NOT use slang. Wrong: Abigail Williams is a ratchet whore who totally ruined everyone’s life. Right: Abigail Williams, a compulsive liar and harlot, ruined many lives by accusing innocent people of witchcraft.

No-No’s  Don’t (I mean do not) use contractions.  Wrong: Abigail isn’t interested in the well-being of others.  Right: Abigail is not interested in the well-being of others.

 Do not use past or future tense  Present tense ONLY!  Wrong: In “The Crucible” John Proctor wanted his wife’s forgiveness.  Right: In “The Crucible” John Proctor wants his wife’s forgiveness.

No No’s  Do NOT use Plagiarize.  When you quote, paraphrase, or summarize a section of the play, you MUST give Arthur Miller credit.  Right: In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, John Proctor exclaims, “Because it is my name!” (211).  Right: During John Proctor’s confession in Act IV, he states, “I speak my own sins’ I cannot judge another” (Miller 211).

No No’s  For more information on how to use parenthetical citation, look at the PPT titled In-Text Citations on My website.  It has trouble opening on cell phones, so only use a computer.

No No’s  Do NOT Plagiarize.  You MUST have a Work Cited Page. Bibliographical Information: Miller, Arthur. "The Crucible." Holt McDougal Literature: Grade 11. [s.l.]: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Print.

Do’s  Use Present Tense through out your paper! Wrong: Reverend Hale left Salem at the end of Act III because he was angry that John and Elizabeth Procter were accused and arrested. He came back to try and save the innocent in Act IV. Right: Reverend Hale leaves Salem when John and Elizabeth Proctor are accused and arrested. He comes back to try and save them and the other innocent people after living with his guilt for 3 months.

Do’s!  Do use MLA format through out your paper.  Head your paper like we’ve been practicing. Don’t for get your last name and page number in the upper right corner! (This is called a Header.)  Double space the whole essay!  Make sure there is a 1 inch margin around all edges of your paper.

MLA Youtube tutorials  For Microsoft Word: =22CPQoLE4U0 =22CPQoLE4U0