Research Paper to support Annotated Bibliorgraphy

INSTRUCTIONS FOR RESEARCH PAPER

REQUIREMENTS RESEARCH PROJECT

Now it's time to begin (two) major writing assignments: 1) the Focused Annotated Bibliography and 2) the Research Paper assignments. The Focused Annotated Bibliography is the research for the final research paper; therefore, you need to provide a "focus," a purpose statement that will become your thesis for the paper. Make sure you use correct MLA style for both papers. Directions for both assignments are in the course content; I suggest that you read all directions, example, etc. before beginning the bibliography assignment. Also read "How to Write about Literature" and "How to do Research" in the course content.

Requirements Specific directions, guides and examples are in Unit One: “Course Resources & Writing Assignments” in the Content. Read Unit One before beginning this assignment. Due Date: check the course calendar in the Syllabus and Start Items in the course content

Clear focus or thesis that is supported with examples, quotes and paraphrases from both primary and secondary sources.

6-8 pages in length, not counting the Works Cited page

MLA documentation style

Typed and double-spaced, 12 point font such as Times New Roman

Written in Standard English, free of grammatical and spelling errors

Use at least five scholarly sources; the best databases are: JSTOR, MLA, and Literary Reference Center. If an article isn’t available in our library, use interlibrary loan. You can order interlibrary loan articles online on the library’s website. Articles will be delivered to your email address.

Please note that you may or may not use all the sources cited in your Annotated Bibliography, which is part of your preliminary research. Whether you use a source depends on your thesis or purpose.

A word of caution: do not use non-scholarly sources or any online sources, especially Wikipedia or Sparknotes. If you rely on these sources, you will fail the assignment.

If you plagiarize, you will receive a zero for the assignment and may fail the class.

I will only accept Word files; do not use PDF.

Do not use online bibliography help, services that supposedly put your citations in correct MLA style – these sources are not accurate or reliable. You are responsible for understanding and implementing correct MLA style in your citations and in your papers.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR RESEARCH PAPER (PART TWO)

READ & EXTRACTED From UNIT 1

The Research Paper Assignment What is a Research Paper? In this class, the research paper is defined as a literary analysis, (see my handout on how to write a literary analysis in this module), a paper that explains and interprets a specific idea about one of the texts assigned in the course. Remember that you are using the primary source, the text, to support a specific reading – to do this process, you must do a close reading of your text. This involves finding evidence from the primary text to support your argument, your claim or thesis. You are also required to use scholarly evidence, quotes/ paraphrases from critics, to support your claims. But the paper is primarily your own work; therefore, avoid using long quotes from either the primary or secondary sources. General Description of the Assignment: The Final Researched Essay is a literary analysis, an in-depth paper, that interprets a specific idea about one of the texts assigned in the course. The goal of this assignment is to argue a particular point of view that will broaden and deepen an understanding of your selected text. Therefore, your objective is to support a thesis, a focused argument, with evidence. Therefore, you are performing what some call a “close reading” of your primary text. This interpretation or close reading addresses meaning in the work itself, but the research paper must be developed and supported with evidence from the text you have selected, the primary source, and also from secondary sources, scholarly articles and books. Structure of the Essay: Your overall argument or thesis must be presented and fully explained in your introduction, but you do not have to “cram” your thesis into one sentence. You may need a paragraph or more to fully explain your purpose to the reader. The introduction should also identify the primary text’s title and the author and define any relevant terms. I also recommend providing a brief overview of the primary source’s plot before getting into your thesis; this way, your ideas will be in context for the reader. The body of the essay will support the thesis in an organized, cohesive present that follows a logical progression. Do not put anything in the essay that does not relate to your purpose, including background information on the author. You conclusion may be used to sum up your argument, but make sure your conclusion does not simply repeat the introduction. Required Research: You are required to use scholarly research, but most of your research will have been completed with the Annotated Bibliography Assignment. Although you do not have to use all the sources cited in your bibliography, you may want to add new sources, depending on your paper’s final focus. OBJECTIVES At completion of this assignment, you will be able to

Create a debatable focused thesis, an argument based on one or more of the assigned readings in the course.

Develop the focused thesis in an organized essay that flows in a logical presentation.

Support the focused thesis with both the primary source(s) and secondary scholarly sources.

Utilize the scholarly research, completed for the annotated bibliography assignment, to support the focused thesis.

Incorporate and cite scholarly sources using MLA format.

Create a researched essay focused on a one of the course’s assigned texts. Requirements for the Assignment

Your essay will propose a central idea (thesis) that is supported and developed with several body paragraphs that grow systematically out of the central idea. Everything in the essay must be directly related to the central idea and must contribute to the reader’s understanding of that central idea.

Both the primary source, the selected text, and secondary sources are required to support the thesis.

Five to six secondary, scholarly sources are required. Do not use unreliable online sources, such as Wikipedia or Sparknotes. Only scholarly sources are accepted. Your primary source is not one of the sources used in this assignment.

The final paper will be six to eight pages in length, not counting the Works Cited page.

Everything in the paper, including citation and the Works Cited page, must follow current MLA guidelines. For specific information on how to use MLA format, please see The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers and the MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing. The OWL at Purdue, the online writing lab, is another excellent source: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/

The final paper will be typed and double-spaced with one inch margins. Use a 12 point font, such as Times New Roman, and black ink.

Submit your paper as a Word document; do not put your paper in an adobe PDF file. The final paper will be well organized, cohesive, and grammatically/ mechanically correct.

Give your paper a title. The final essay will be graded using the Essay Grading Rubric.

The final essay must be submitted through the course’s dropbox tool. Do not submit a PDF file.

The final essay must be the student’s original work; if you plagiarize, you will receive a zero for this assignment. Check the Originality Report in the dropbox. Checklist for Writing an Effective Research Paper

Is the topic you have chosen to write about manageable for the length of the paper you are writing? Is your focus too broad?

Does your first paragraph introduce your topic, name the writer and the work, and explain your purpose or thesis?

Is your thesis clear? Does it state the central idea of your essay? Do you thoroughly explain your purpose and define all your terms?

Have you used terms, including literary terminology, correctly? Have you defined all the important terms?

Is your paper organized in a way that your reader will be able to follow your argument?

Are your developmental paragraphs unified (everything in the paragraph relates to the topic of the paragraph) and coherent (everything in the paragraph is arranged in a logical order)?

Does your paper flow? Have you used transitional words where necessary within each paragraph? Are there transitions linking all the paragraphs of your essay?

Have you used adequate support for your points, including brief summary, paraphrase, specific details, and direct quotations? Have you explained why you are using them and how they support your central idea?

Do you have enough scholarly sources?

Have you integrated quotations effectively into your paper? Make sure you introduce the quote properly and put it in context. After you put in the quote, explain it to your reader.

Have you used correct grammar and mechanics? Do you have run-ons or fragments? Too many short, choppy sentences? Do you have ambiguous pronouns?

Do you use MLA format properly? Do you have a Works Cited page? Failure to use MLA correctly will result in a low grade.

Have you given your paper an appropriate title? Does your title describe your approach?

Have you used all the correct literary conventions? Did you avoid the use of first person? Did you use present tense?

Southern Lit

April 14, 2016

Annotated Bibliography

Purpose Statement: "Desiree's Baby," a short story by Kate Chopin, explores a racial crisis between a husband and his wife. The purpose of my research into this story, set just before the American Civil War, is to further examine issues regarding race during this Postbellum period. The story portrays earlier periods in which racism bloomed. The text plays with the belief of race as a primary determinant of an individual's traits, and capabilities. The racial difference that Chopin produces in her work scrutinizes the Postbellum belief of inherent superiority of a particular race.

Gobineau, A. De, The Moral and Intellectual Diversity of Races. J.B. Lippincott & Co. Philadelphia. 1856. Print.

In this work Gobineau contributes to Postbellum beliefs of mental and moral characteristics between various races. His work further examines the degree to which they are susceptible of improvement. The author shares that "writers consider all races as merely in different stages of development, and pretend that the lowest savage, or at least his offspring, may, by judicious training, and in course of time, be rendered equal to the civilized man" (17). Similar to the Chopin's work, Gobineau explores the physical diversities of races through external causes. He shares "the absolute equality of all in other respects, refer such differences in character as undeniable" (17). A theory in which Chopin evades.

Benedict, R. Fulton. The races of mankind. Public Affairs Committee. New York. 1900. Print.

Fulton presents the subject of race in a nontechnical sense. He broadens the social aspect of race by means of "appreciation for the fundamental part played by inborn racial quality" (5). The author examines reference to authority through race. He shares, "The disputed claims of environment and heredity become less tangled as we learn to distinguish between character values which must be impressed anew upon each generation, and character values which pass down through the generations virtually unaffected by life's experiences; and we arrive at the important fact that development of the individual is transitory in effect and does not accomplish race development" (6). The author therefore adds significant value to Chopin's theme regarding race.

ERIC. Women in American History: A Series. Book Four. 1979. Print.  This article identifies Chopin's stance regarding race, and her contribution to this issue during the Postbellum period. The author also identifies Chopin as a significant inclusion within the proliferation of women's studies. This is also relevant to the context of my research as women were also gaining significant rights during the time in which Chopin's work was published. This also pushed for Chopin to share her issues regarding race among her peers of similar racial ethnicity.    

Birnbaum, M. " Alien Hands: Kate Chopin and the Colonization of Race." Subjects and Citizens: Nation, Race and Gender from Oroonoko to Anita Hill. Ed. Michael Moon and Cathy N. Davidson. Durham, NC. Duke University Press. 1995. 319-341.Print.

 

This work highlights Chopin's short story as New World Fiction. "Preoccupied with the desire to throw identity away, and live beyond culture." Chopin shows this in the main character's inner response to her child, after considering what others thought. As a significant source in my research Birnbaum's reflection of Chopin fuses with a literary movement, and concept, of expanding beyond a catergory, or stereotype.

Koppelman, S. "The Politics and Ethics of Literary Revival: A Test Case–Shall We, Ought We, Can We Make of Constance Fenimore Woolson a Kate Chopin?" Journal of American Culture 22.3 (1999): 1–9. Print.

The author identifies Kate Chopin as honorable for her insights regarding ethnicity, and racial pride. She shares how Chopin proliferates societal norms of her time in regards to race and the position of women. She writes, "We witness the collapse of the literary dream of gender, race, and class justice for all in literature. Koppelman's views therefore adds a suitable source highlighting not only the existence of racism during the time Chopin's work was drafted, but also the author's stance as a woman, which also reflects her perceptions into the female character Desiree.