A Rose for Emily Writing About Short Stories Your essay should focus on ONE of the following ideas: Plot, Theme, Characters, Point of View, Setting, Structure, Tone and Style, or Symbolism and Allegory.
Essay 2 ñ Writing About Short Stories
Prompt: Write a 1200-1500 word essay on ONE of the following short stories:
Ï ìA & Pî
Ï ìWhere Are You Going, Where Have You Been?î
Ï ìTwo Kindsî
Ï ìThe Cask of Amontilladoî
ï ìA Rose for Emilyî
ï ìThe Story of an Hourî
ï ìThe Lotteryî
ï ìThe Lessonî
Your essay should focus on ONE of the following ideas: Plot, Theme, Characters, Point of View, Setting, Structure, Tone, and Style, or Symbolism and Allegory.
Ï See LIT: Chs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8. There are examples of students papers that should help you think about how you want to set up your ideas.
Ï Your thesis statement should reflect what you will be arguing about in your essay. It should be specific and narrow in focus and clearly tell the reader the purpose of your essay as well as include a unifying element(s), which you will argue throughout your essay.
Ï You should use specific textual references and provide commentary and analysis of the ideas you present in support of your thesis argument.
Ï You do not need outside sources for this paper, nor do you need to cite from the texts we are reading other than the short story you are analyzing.
Ï Be careful to avoid summary. Assume the reader has read the story, so you do not need to summarize story points.
Ï Do set up your quotes with a brief phrase that sets up the context of the quote. (see handout)
Ï Do provide insightful analysis as to how the author expresses his ideas through one of the elements of fiction listed above.
Minimum Criteria (to earn a C or higher): (Essay worth 100 points)
? Minimum word count: 1200 words ñ essays not meeting the word count will automatically receive a D or lower. Please write your word count on the bottom of the paper.
? Post on Canvas and turn in hardcopy on the due date
? Thesis statement. This should be a statement that clearly offers some argument regarding specifically what you will address (theme, character, symbolism, or allegory. Your thesis should come at the end of the introductory paragraph. Make sure to move beyond the ìlist thesisî (the listing of topics that will be discussed) with this essay.
? Well organized argument with . . .
O Clear and logical paragraphing. This includes how the ideas are divided into paragraphs, the order of the ideas, the correct use of topic sentences and transitions. Each paragraph should focus on just one idea, and the line of thought should be easy for a reader to follow. (Review LIT: pgs. 19-57 )
O Clearly focused topic sentences that are argumentative, clearly identify the main point of the paragraph, and in some way argue the thesis.
O Supporting quotes from the story
? Error Free sentences. At this stage in your writing, your sentences should be free from errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Make sure you leave enough time to proofread for typos as well.
? Correct MLA in-text citation & document formatting ñ Note: This paper does not require outside research, so you do not need works cited page.
