1. Regarding the Final…

2. Read over your comments
1. Look on the close reading
2. Look on the outline
3. Look on the paper and at the end of the paper.
When you are done, answer the following question in your comp book:
Which aspect of your practice commentary worked well? Explain.
Based on the feedback, what will you do differently on the next commentary (the Final)?

3. Markscheme
Thoughts?

4. Close Reading Basis for entire exercise
Patterns you find will help you develop a strong interpretation
If you received comments that your close reading was weak, spend more time here and use your pen to annotate more thoroughly, and consider color marking. Doing these things forces you to engage with and pay attention to the text in a different way.

5. Outlines Should be planning for at least five points
A three point outline will not produce a fully developed commentary
Although I don’t want you spending TOO much time on your outline, I want you spending enough time.
Many of you had no outline; many outlines were 2 point outlines
For the final, plan for 4-5 points (since you only have 90 minutes, not 2 hours and 5 minutes)

6. Length
A fully developed commentary (with 2 hours of time) should be at least 4 pages long.

7. Dominant Effect (Thesis)
No techniques! (Especially tone and mood)
Primary intellectual effect (thought) plus primary emotional effect/emotional resonance (feeling) = dominant effect
Then BUILD YOUR ARGUMENT (stated in the dominant effect) with the points you are making in each paragraph.

8. Structure: Poetry
A poetry commentary MUST include a paragraph discussing structure and its connection to the poem’s meaning. Consider: number and construction of stanzas (same number of lines? Different number? Same line length? Different?); enjambment or end-stopped lines; use of punctuation, use of caesuras (pauses in the middle of lines); rhyme scheme/lack of rhyme scheme.
If you are doing a poetry commentary ALWAYS consider the title and its connection to the rest of the poem.

9. Structure: Prose
You should also consider/pay attention to the structure of prose passages. Better commentaries will bring this into the discussion. (How does the passage develop from beginning to end – how is it organized? What about paragraphs? Are there some very short or very long ones? Other interesting structural aspects you notice? For example, what is interesting about the fact that there are no quotation marks used for dialogue in this passage?)

10. Sample

11. Review: Planning Your Time
How should you plan your time during the final?

12. Prose Practice Read once for understanding.
Read again for understanding.
Now do your close reading, including detailed annotation.
What is the primary intellectual effect of the passage? What is the primary emotional effect/main emotion resonating from the passage?
Put those two ideas together into one sentence to create your dominant effect.

13. Planning the Commentary
Which strategy will you use to organize the commentary? Linear or conceptual?
Which aspects will be important to discuss? (Keep your D.E. in mind here)

14. Introduction
Write a 2-3 sentence summary of the passage. This will begin your introduction.