essay
darkheaven
journalistic_essay.docxImplementing the techniques and devices we’ll study in the various modes of literary journalism (as well as the personal essay), you will compose a 7-10- page profile of a person or organization related to your major and/or the professional field you wish to enter. This is NOT to resemble a biography or SWOT analysis; it is to be a work of literary nonfiction—more specifically, a work of reportage (or literary journalism) that, as Lincoln Steffens once wrote of journalism, endeavors to represent its subject “so humanely that the reader will see himself in the other fellow’s place.” Please refer to the Rubrics section of this syllabus for information on how this assignment will be evaluated.
Journalistic Profile
When evaluating the journalistic profile, the instructor will consider the following:
· Introduction: Does the introduction work to engage the reader through the inclusion of interesting/thought-provoking details and ideas? Does it provide critical background to establish context and scope? If there is a thesis in the introduction, is it clear, sufficiently complex, and significant?
· Organization: Does the work endeavor to effect a focused impression of the subject? Is there a logical progression of ideas—and do they support the thesis of the profile (if one exists)? Does the writer transition effectively from one idea to another? Is each idea critical to the development of the profile’s central idea?
· Style and Content: Is the work honest and accurate? Does it employ sufficient research (i.e. has the writer checked his/her facts)? Does it implement the various devices of literary journalism discussed in class, such as interview, dialogue, interior monologue, scene construction, “status life,” etc. Does it earnestly endeavor to effect reader-subject identification?
· Mechanics: Has this piece been carefully reviewed by the writer and outside readers for errors in grammar and syntax? Has it been carefully reviewed by the writer and outside readers for spelling errors? Has it been carefully reviewed by the writer and outside readers for errors in punctuation?
