"The Black Cat" research paper outline

WRITING A RESEARCH PAPER OUTLINE

HOW TO APPROACH YOUR PLAN: STEP ONE: LOOK AT YOUR SOURCE NOTES

A. For this step, it would be good if you printed your source notes and physically put them beside each other to help you better see your main topics. The next slide shows 3 source notes side by side.

B. Now look at your source notes and find main points that are the same or at least similar. You will put those together in your outline.

C. Each point of your research paper must be supported by: - a minimum of two secondary sources - your primary source

D. If your main points on the separate source notes are not exactly the same, see if at least two topics are similar enough to put together

E. Be careful not to stretch the topics so much that your points don’t really coincide.

F. Now look at your points that are only supported by one source. It’s decision time. You must do one of two things:

- Eliminate the point altogether - Find another source that discusses your topic.

Remember, you have sources that you did not make source notes for. You may need to look at those.

G. You don’t want your sources to say exactly the same thing. You just want them to discuss the same topics.

H. Lets look at the sources on the following slide to see what I might group together.

Source 1: Eberwein

1. Puritan Theology A. based on Calvinist doctrine (20) B. man is depraved (20) C. always seeking atonement (21)

2. Church Membership A. must prove salvation experience

(21) B. true conversion had rewards

(21) C. necessary knowledge came

from catechism (21) D. salvation was the beginning of a

long road of works (21)

3. Brown’s Faith A. marriage of 3 months represents

time of salvation (22) B. going to the forest is his first test

(22) C. never sure of salvation (22)

4. Brown’s Journey A. “allegorical representation” of

the Puritans “necessary self- exploration” (23)

B. Brown is confident (23) C. Diabolical guide (23) D. The consequences affect rest of

life (23) E. Brown fails the test (23)

5. Communion A. provided a reason to leave Faith

(23) B. probably was first communion

(23) C. represented spiritual maturity

(23)

Source 2: Bronwich

1. Influence of Puritanism A. Hawthorne’s family of Puritans (136) B. Everyone was unworthy (136) C. Puritan doctrine allows Brown to

believe others have fallen (138)

2. Salem Witch Trials A. Hawthorne knew of his heritage

(136) B. Women were accused of witchcraft

(138) C. Hawthorne used actual names of

accused witches (139) D. Devil gave witches their power

(138)

3. Brown’s Relationship with the Devil A. Meeting in the forest (137)

unconscious act of following his evil self(137)

B. Shows how naïve Brown is (137)

4. Symbolism A. Good man – Puritans say no man is

good, but can work to be good (140)

B. Falling ribbons from Faith – lost purity (140)

C. Forest is hell (141) D. Indians – another form of witchcraft

(141)

Source 3: Connolly

1. Beginning of Brown’s Journey

A. Meets with Devil then

wants to leave (373)

B. Devil wont be satisfied

until Brown is enticed

(373)

C. Shows how naïve Brown

is (373)

2. Brown’s Mindset

A. Doesn’t want others to

see him there (374)

B. His Puritan upbringing

causes him to pass

judgment on everyone

he sees (374)

C. The Devil uses the other

travelers against

Brown (374)

D. Leads to Brown’s

transformation (375)

3. Symbolism

A. Pink Ribbons – Faith’s

child like nature and

purity (377)

B. Brown’s journey –

everyone’s spiritual

journey (377)

GROUPING LIKE TOPICS • When I look at my source notes, I can easily see

topics that go together.

• From the Eberwein and Connolly sources, I can put the information under “Brown’s Journey” together. This gives me the support from 2 secondary sources.

• Since I have written a source summary from the Eberwein source, I should already have support from the primary source, but you always need to see if more support is needed.

• Other topics that easily go together are the concepts of Puritanism and symbolism

WHAT ABOUT THE OTHER TOPICS/POINTS??

• Now it is time to make decisions.

• Points like Salem Witch Trials, Brown’s Mindset, and Brown’s Faith might seem like they don’t have any other secondary support.

• This is where you have to make some decisions: Do you eliminate the point? or Do you find more secondary support?

• These are all good points, so finding more secondary support is probably the best option.

• Some of these points can be broken up and put with other points.

• For example, under Brown’s Faith, the first point there is that Brown’s 3 month marriage represents how long Brown has been a Christian. So this is symbolic, and I have a topic for symbols. So maybe I just need to move that one point to the symbol topic.

• The other two points can also be moved. These points state that Brown’s journey into the forest is a test because he was not sure of his salvation. That can certainly be combined with Brown’s Journey.

• Continue to combine similar points or find more secondary support.

• Make sure you meet the requirements for every main point: support with 2 secondary sources and the primary source.

• The next slide shows what one topic might look like when you have combined points together.

BROWN’S JOURNEY A. Communion – young convert (Eberwein 23)

B. Brown felt secure in his Christianity (Hawthorne 608)

C. Meeting with the Devil (Connolly 373)

1. able to make himself appear like a relative of Brown (Hawthorne 608)

2. intent is to lure Brown to the witch meeting (Connolly 373; Hawthorne 616)

3. uses his dealings with Brown’s ancestors (Hawthorne 616-17)

4. Brown declares he will stand firm (Hawthorne 612)

5. Brown naive in thinking he can walk with Devil and not give in to him (Connolly 373)

D. stands firm until he hears Faith (Hawthorne 612)

E. his state of mind and indoctrination of the Puritan religion allow him to experience a change in his view of those around him (Connolly 374)

F. Significance of meeting other travelers

1. the minister and Deacon Gookin (Hawthorne 609)

2. Goody Cloyse – taught catechism (Hawthorne 610)

3. Helps to convince Brown of the hypocrisy of those he trusted (Connolly 374)

STEP THREE: ORGANIZE YOUR POINTS a. Once you have all your sub-points together under a main

topic, you can now arrange the main topics into the order you would like to discuss them in your paper.

b. You may want to put each point on a separate piece of paper, and then print these so you can get a visual look at what the outline might look like.

c. By doing this, you can shuffle the main topics around until you have the best format for your outline

d. Keep rearranging or cutting and pasting the entire group of points until you think you have them in the best order that flows most logically.

e. You now have formed the body of what will become your research paper!

STEP FIVE: WRITE THE INTRO & CONCLUSION

A.Once your body is in the appropriate order, add the introduction.

B.Include a plot summary. Do not re-tell the entire story. Give a brief overview of the plot. This can be done in 3-5 sentences.

C.Formulate a thesis that states the title of the short story, the author, and the overall theme or main idea of what we learn from your short story (or stories). Include any other information about the short story that is relevant.

D.Do not include a long biography of the author with all of his or her accomplishments.

E.Finally, add your conclusion.

F.Focus on what we learn about the story. Do not re-state your thesis or re-list your main points. Instead, think about the “take-away” from your stories that we have now learned.

THE FINAL PRODUCT • Take the time to do the outline correctly. It will be worth it to you.

• Include in-text citations with every main point.

• The primary source should not overwhelm your discussions. If it does, you will have plot summary and not analysis.

• Follow MLA format.

• If you have a 2 page outline, you should have enough to meet the page requirement (6-8 pages, not counting the Works Cited page).

• Focus on having too much information, instead of not enough. It is much easier to eliminate than to go digging for more information because you did not have enough to start with.

• Refer to the final outline in the Course Packet for an example of what your outline should look like.