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The subject of the sentence is doing the action.  Example: The dog bit the little boy. o Subject: the dog (the dog is doing the action) o Action (verb): bit o Object: the little boy (is being acted upon—in this case, bitten)

 It is not clear who or what is doing the action  This is because the subject is being acted upon o Example: The little boy was bitten by the dog. Subject: the little boy is in the subject position here Action: was bitten (the action is not “being done” by the subject; instead, the subject is being “acted upon”) Object: the dog is put in the object position here

 Active voice is appropriate more often than passive voice. Therefore, whenever you can write something in active voice, you should. o This is especially true of essays/papers in English class.  Why? Active voice is clearer, as well as more direct and purposeful.

Passive voice is appropriate sometimes (again, we’ll get to that later), but it’s often less appropriate than active voice. Why? Let’s find out…

1.It makes writing confusing for the reader. The reader has to do more work to understand the intended meaning of the sentence! – Passive: The fire was set and it ruined the island. Who set the fire? We don’t know because the writer used passive voice here! – Active: Dudley set the fire and it ruined the island. How direct!

2. Passive sentences are often wordier…remember, good writing is clear and concise. – Passive: Harry was given a few pointers by Maude on how to succeed in Hollywood. – Active: Maude gave Harry a few pointers on how to succeed in Hollywood.

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Underline/Italicize  Any longer work  Books  Movies  TV Series  Plays  Newspapers or Magazines  Art Work  Ex: Lord of the Flies Quotation Marks  Any shorter work  Short Stories  Poems  Songs  Articles  Ex: “A Conversation with Philip Zimbardo: Finding Hope in Knowing the Universal Capacity for Evil”

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 Whenever you use a quote in your paper to support a point, it should blend seamlessly into your paper. o Try reading your paper aloud with your quotes. Do you feel like they are abrupt? Do you have to take unnecessary pauses? Are they grammatically correct within the sentence? o You should not “hear” the quotes.  You need to introduce every quote you use. o This means that you should not begin a sentence with a quote! o Begin with something like: Philip Zimbardo, a renowned Psychologist whose 2007 interview with Claudia Dreifus appeared in The New York Times, discussed his famed Stanford Prison Experiment saying, “I knew from our experiment, if you put good apples into a bad situation, you’ll get bad apples” (Dreifus 2).

 Then after you give your quote, you need to give commentary about it. o This does not mean that you need to write down what it means (i.e. don’t just rephrase it!). o It means that you need to explain how it relates back to your topic sentence, and ultimately, to your thesis. o Ex: Philip Zimbardo, a renowned Psychologist whose 2007 interview with Claudia Dreifus appeared in The New York Times, discussed his famed Stanford Prison Experiment saying, “I knew from our experiment, if you put good apples into a bad situation, you’ll get bad apples” (Dreifus 2). Here, Zimbardo is explaining that his study shows how easily people can be influenced to commit bad acts. There are several examples of his theory in Lord of the Flies. Characters like Sam and Eric, who begin as seemingly kind children, are influenced by Jack and his power. Even though they know some of his actions are wrong, they allow him to commit evil acts, and in the end, participate with him. The unusual situation has so affected Sam and Eric that the once “good apples” become “bad apples”. The results of Zimbardo’s psychological study are accurately manifested in Goulding’s fictional story about human nature.

 Since you will be discussing every quote after you state it, it means that you will never end a paragraph with a quote.  Make sure that each quote is cited correctly according to MLA format. o Ex: “This is my quote” (Jones 23).

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Dreifus, Claudia. “Finding Hope in Knowing the Universal Capacity for Evil.” The New York Times. Web. 6 November v.html?_r=0. Zimbardo, Philip. “Philip Zimbardo: The psychology of evil.” TED Talks February. ychology_of_evil.html.

 When you’re writing an essay on literature, you should always use what’s called the “literary present tense.”  This means that when you talk about a poem or book you should discuss it as if it’s happening right now.  For example: o Romeo goes to Juliet’s balcony in order to win her love. o Odysseus’ journey is perilous, but he finds his way home.

 Begin your essay with a clear thesis. o A thesis statement gives the reader a general idea of what your paper will argue (or be about).  Use transition words throughout the paper (not just at the beginning of a paragraph, though you should do that too). o Ex: however, on the other hand, although, likewise, similarly, therefore, thus, as a result, it follows that, in conclusion  Use specific examples and cite evidence.  Do not use an exclamation point unless it is in a quote you’re using.  Do not use smiley faces (or the like) in formal writing.