The Essay (French verb, which means to explore).
Some general descriptions of a good essay.
Create explicitly or implicitly an argument in your thesis statement. Avoid simply presenting a complex rending of a plot detail that everyone can agree upon.
Make connections. Parts to whole is the phrase that I will often repeat in class. Connect your specific (original: try to reflect on strong evidence that other people will not consider) evidence to the larger issues of the text.
Be clear and accurate with your literary terms. Display your expertise. Also appreciate our classroom phrase: write like a reader and read like a writer. How did the author exploit a literary device to communicate an idea effectively and artfully?
Style issues: be clear and concise; use active voice often for clarity's sake. Strunk and White's Elements of Style explains this and other advice well: http://www.bartleby.com/141/strunk5.html#11
Priorities that I hope you internalize when you act as an editor:
When you write a draft, you should imagine yourself in the mode where you write exam essays. Then you can take a moment to collect yourself, and revise your draft with a mindset for editing. Here is a list of priorities to help guide you through a typical peer-editing conference. Use the following questions to help shape your own personal revision or a peer editing conference:
Does the writer understand the question of the assignment?
Has the writer been able to formulate a thesis?
To what degree does the paper have topic sentences?
Is there topic development in the body paragraphs?
What major usage issues are there to address?
What minor usage issues are there to address?
Do all the parts of the paper create a unified argument?
How is the tone of the paper?
Essay Ingredients:
Golden rule of peer editing: write unto other rough drafts what you would want written upon your opus.
Introduction paragraph:
Introduce your topic in a general manner (this is a place to hook your reader with a compelling angle or aspect of your topic); Author and title (italics for works; quotation marks for short stories) must be incorporated in this paragraph; Thesis statement. This sentence evolves from our work in class with the literature. Strive to use active voice verbs. For more information from the Owl Purdue Writing Center, click here: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/545/01/ Here is another link to how a model MLA format essay: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/13/
Body paragraphs:
Topic sentence (relate back to your thesis; use active voice verbs); Examine and explain a quotation; as we say in class, be sure you unpack your quotation and explains its value to the argument in your thesis. Also remember that quote is a verb and quotation is a noun; Use block quotations rules for long passages. Conclusion or clincher sentence (confine your insight to the scope of your body paragraph).
Conclusion:
Restate your thesis in an interesting way;
Reflect on the power of your thesis: ask the question why is your thesis important? So often students run out of energy by the end of the essay writing experience. Nevertheless, invest quality energy and effort here so that you can distinguish your essay by closing your argument insightfully.
College ready conclusion? Your professors will hope to observe you make a significant stance on your topic by the close of your paper. Running out of steam or gas is a high school phenomenon that will not be tolerated at the college level. This is the moment to distinguish your argument and demonstrate your learning in the course. How are you progressing on this front?