Essay on Joan Didion "Self Respect"

HACC  Summer  2016   ENGL  102   SJSutter     Page  Length        3-­‐4  pages     Due      Rough  draft  for  peer  review  (submit  to  discussion):    Sunday,  September  11   Final  draft  for  instructor  (submit  to  dropbox):  Sunday,  September  18  

    From  the  articles,  essays,  and  videos  we  have  so  far  discussed,  please  choose  

one  with  which  you  will  engage  in  order  to  write  your  own  Personal/Creative  

Nonfiction  essay.  Your  version  will  reflect  a  theme  that  appears  in  the  essay  you  

have  chosen.    For  example,  perhaps  you  choose  to  engage  with  Joan  Didion's  essay  

"On  Self  Respect"  by  writing  your  own  examination  of  that  concept.  You  might  

engage  with  "Once  More  to  the  Lake"  to  describe  a  place  that  represents  a  distinct  

intersection  of  past  and  present.  Or,  perhaps  you  write  a  piece  that  examines  body  

image  in  your  experience  and  in  popular  media,  in  other  words,  a  piece  that  

parallels  Roxane  Gay’s  essay  "My  Body  Is  Wildly  Undisciplined…”  

  While  these  guidelines  are  somewhat  loose,  please  do  your  best  to  freewrite,  

brainstorm,  and  prepare  your  writing  so  that  the  essay  presents  thematically  

focused  and  specific  writing.  While  creative  essays  can  be  fun,  it  may  also  be  

difficult  to  focus.  

  If  appropriate,  reference  the  essay  that  you  have  chosen  to  engage.    

  It  is  required  that  you  conduct  research  around  your  theme,  and  reference  

at  least  three  outside  sources  cited  in  MLA  format.  

  Here  is  a  list  of  the  selections  we  have  studied:   "Mother  Tongue"   "Once  More  to  the  Lake"   "On  Self  Respect"   "Now  We  Are  Five"   "My  Body  Is  Wildly  Undisciplined  And  I  Deny  Myself  Nearly  Everything  I  Desire"   "Barbara  Ehrenreich:  How  Positive  Thinking  Undermines  America"   "Shake  the  Dust"       Please  feel  free  to  send  me  your  thesis  ideas,  and  ask  any  questions.  On  the  

following  page,  you  will  find  a  grading  rubric.

ENG  102  -­  ESSAY  1  GRADING  RUBRIC  -­  S.SUTTER  

   

  Criteria  

  Points  

• Correct formatting: 12 pt. Times New Roman Font, double-spaced, with 1 inch margins, a title, header on first page and page numbers (MLA).

• Mechanics: clear adherence to the conventions of grammar and correctness. Is the writing specific?

1-­‐5  

• Focus and specificity of main theme. • Soundness of essay. Does the essay

clearly represent the author's thinking process? Are paragraphs well organized? Are sentences clear and varying in length?

1-­‐5  

• Effective use of outside material—at least three outside sources—correctly introduced, applied and interpreted.

• Overall integration of research.

1-­‐5  

• A focused and interesting introduction, as well as a thoughtful conclusion. Does the introduction prepare the reader for the content? Is it engaging? Does the conclusion do well to explain why the process is important in addition to summing up the previous content?  

1-­‐5