Position Paper PLEASE READ DETAILS

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Position Paper Guidelines: Dr. Underwood, English 2111 1.

(World Literature I), choose a major point or position about the readings that you can discuss and critically analyze in 3-5 pages. You get to pick your topics from the readings. Your topic can be on one work or an overall theme you see in multiple works such as manhood, motherhood, the plight of women, children, the elderly, the poor, or anything else. You can describe a trend in a genre’s development, you can compare/contrast two nations/people’s works, or you can analyze what it meant to be living in the time of your chosen work. Your topic choices are endless, but whatever you choose MUST be strongly tied to at least one of the pieces of literature we have read up to the point of the for Paper 2, Weeks 5-8.

2. I am looking for analysis, not summary. I have read these works several times, so you do not have to tell me what happens in them.

a. Summary: Gilgamesh was a cruel ruler who abused his subjects.

b. Analysis: Gilgamesh shows his cruelty by raping the young men and women under his rule. His actions reflect a tyrannical and autocratic mindset that threatens to destroy his country.

3. Papers should be typed based on the formatting guidelines explained and illustrated in the “Formatting Documents in MLA” handout (located under the “English 2111 Important Documents” module, among other places).

4. Your paper should be about the piece of literature or theme or genre you are analyzing, not your personal life, likes, and dislikes. “I” and its variants have no place in these position papers.

5. If you borrow information for the paper from any source, including the volumes of our textbook, the information must be cited according to MLA guidelines. Please see the “MLA” module for help. Your paper will receive an F if it plagiarized. All essays must be submitted via the designated Assignment Dropbox and will go through the originality detection software. What will constitute a plagiarized paper:

a. If the originality score of your paper is higher than 40% (see the

“Originality/Plagiarism Report” module for more information)

b. If you omit the Works Cited page, the highest grade you can get is a D.

c. If you omit the in-text citations, the highest grade you can get is a D.

d. If you omit both, your paper will fail with an F.

e. If your paper consists of many long quotations, even if they are cited.

6. Do not use any type of literature summary Website as sources for your course work. They include but are not limited to:

a. Endnote

b. Sparknotes

c. Cliffnotes

d. Wikipedia

e. Shmoop University

f. Gradesaver.com

g. Enotes.com

h. If you use them, I will deduct two grades. If you use these sources and try to hide the fact, you will receive a 0 for the assignment.

i. Basically, you should avoid .com Websites. Use journal articles and books through libraries and .org, .edu., and .gov Websites only.

7. You MUST use a moderate number of quotations from your chosen work to illustrate/support your points. Cite the textbook volumes as the source of the borrowed information. See the “Citing our Textbooks” handout for help.

8. DEDUCTIONS (deductions and their severity are ultimately up to me. This list is only a courtesy to you and it is not all inclusive):

a. Not giving any analysis, only summary: at least two grades.

b. Not writing on a piece of literature we covered: an automatic F.

c. Not meeting the minimum word requirements: depending on severity, but at least one grade.

d. Incorrect/missing citations: depending on the severity and can lead to a failing paper.

e. Plagiarized papers: automatic F.

f. Using

g. Formatting of the document (margins, header, title, line spacing, font type/size, paragraph indentation): depending on the severity but at least one grade.

h. Overall sloppy appearance of the paper, including several grammar, style, punctuation errors (lack of proofreading): depending on the severity but at least one grade. (PROOFREAD your own work and/or use the Writing Center for help!) Use the Checklist to avoid basic mistakes.

9. Ours is not your first college class, so you know that academic writing is serious writing. If your paper does not reflect the seriousness of our topic and our college level, it has little chance of passing.

10. I am here to help, so ask questions, pick my brain, send me your thesis so we can establish that your point/argument is good and is a solid foundation for your papers.