1000 word American History Essay using 3rd person past tense/active voice
You must use the following format for the file name of your submittal
lastname_firstname_Fall_2018.
First page of essay:
1. Top right corner:
Your Name
Name of Journal Article.
2. Begin text of your essay.
______________________________________________________________
Be sure your essay adheres to the writing guidelines:
1. Required structure for Introductory Paragraph
2. Sentences written in 3rd person past tense/Active voice /eliminating unnecessary words.
The Journal Article you selected is the only source for this essay. Ideas or information taken from another source will result in a poor grade. The Journal Articles are located in various Modules.
Assignment:
Each article begins with an italicized review by the editor of the journal, not the author. The reviewers provide their perspective on the Author's assertions/main points/... in the article. 1. You select one of the topics. Take time selecting your topic. Focus on a major theme because there will be more information with which to work. Your essay needs to explain the reasons the Author provided to validate his position. 2. Your conclusion should provide your assessment of the Author's explanation.
Assignment Guidelines:
The Writing Assignment is required to meet the writing requirements for this course. Reviewing and understanding the content of the grammar/essay/ links in the Writing Assignment Module is required. Failure to adhere to those guidelines will result in a failing grade. It is assumed that the essay you submit for grading has been carefully edited and you have eliminated guideline errors. (Passive voice, tense, run on sentences, extra words... .) The essay you submit should be your second or third draft.
This assignment is structured so you focus your time on writing a well crafted essay. No other source than the article gives you more time to edit your final draft The lack of a specific word count gives you time for additional editing. It also helps eliminate adding unnecessary words at the end of sentences. Develop your ideas in a series of concise sentences.
1. Stick to the past tense as much as possible. Do not write about long-past events and long-dead people in the present tense.
2. Do not, however, change the tense of verbs in passages you are quoting.
3. Direct quotations should be used sparingly!!!! Your essay should explain the information in your own words. Stringing quotations will result in a poor grade.
4. Think carefully when you use the passive voice in favor of the active voice. Luther believed that…is better, clearer, and punchier than It was believed by Luther that…, and A.G. Bell invented the telephone is better than The telephone was invented by A.G. Bell, because Luther and Bell were acting rather than being acted upon. Still, people are acted upon as well as act, and events are caused as well as happen on their own accord. When you are attempting to express this, by all means use the passive voice (e.g., Smith had been unemployed during the Depression, or Peasants were removed from their lands during Enclosure).
But, in a history essay, you should almost always use ACTIVE voice and PAST TENSE (history happened)
Basic Structure
1. An essay must have an introductory paragraph that lets your reader know what your thesis is and what the main points of your argument will be. Do not elaborate on any of the main points in your introduction. It is not possible to receive a good grade if your essay begins with a rambling introduction. Too many students treat the Introduction as an afterthought. Think of your introduction as the foundation of your essay. A poor foundation results in a poorly constructed essay, which results in a poor grade.
2. An essay must also have a conclusion (at least a paragraph in length) that sums up its most important arguments. In short, over the course of your essay, you must tell readers what you are going to say, say it, and then tell them what you have said.
3. Paragraphs are the building blocks of an essay. Each paragraph should contain a single general idea or topic, along with accompanying explanations and evidence relevant to it. Each paragraph, moreover, has a topic sentence (usually the first sentence) that tells the reader what the paragraph is about.
4. Do not write one-, two-, or three-sentence paragraphs. Paragraphs have topics, introductory sentences, evidence, and conclusions.
5. Do not write two- or three-page paragraphs. A paragraph generally explores a single idea, rather than a dozen.
6. Before you end a discussion of one major topic and begin another, it is important to summarize your findings and analyze their importance for your thesis. It is also necessary to write a transition to alert your reader that you have begun a new topic.
7. Develop your ideas in a series of concise sentences. The use of run on sentences indicates that you did not take the time to edit your essay.
8. Your essay should be around 1,000 words, doubled spaced and written in 12 point font. I do not count words. More is not necessarily better. The quality of your sentences is far more important than the number of sentences.