English Research Paper (Science Fiction)

The material you incorporate into the paper can take one of a number of forms. It can take the form of essays or books that critically engage in the book or film that you are analyzing. It can take the form of essays or books that critically engage in the genre of science fiction in a way that lets you better understand the book or film. Finally, you can research scientific, historical, or sociological material that can help you critically engage in the materials. For instance, you might want to look at the concept of dystopia in relationship to Parable of the Sower, the history of the U.S-Mexico border in relationship to Sleep Dealer, the cold war in relationship to "Only A Mother", or the history of radical feminism in relationship to “When It Happened”. You also need to evaluate the reliability of these sources, and engage with their arguments substantially and accurately.

The paper should be seven to nine pages, and should include a minimum of five sources. Three of those sources must be academic in nature, and all sources should be referenced in the paper, whether in the form of direct citation, paraphrasing or summary. In addition, the paper should use proper MLA citation structures and should include a page of citations, which should also follow MLA. Writing and Revising: A Portable Guide, Chapter 11 offers a useful guide on how to approach these structures.

Research Paper Rubric

Excellent Work (A Range): An excellent paper will exhibit the following characteristics. It will provide a focused and coherent argument that will be followed throughout the paper. The introduction will provide a focused and coherent introduction to the problems that will be answered in the thesis. That material will be framed by the research undertaken by the writer, and will reflect a strong understanding of the scholarly discussion within that work. It will construct an argument that draws from that material, and uses that material to produce a strong and unique analysis. The essay will provide focused textual evidence to defend that thesis, and will provide logical and easy to follow transitions between paragraphs and major ideas. Also, the essay will contain coherent, and well developed paragraphs. In addition, there will be few grammatical errors that do not impede the reader’s understanding of the essay.

Good Work (B Range): A good paper will exhibit the following characteristics. It will provide a coherent rhetorical argument, although it may lack the focus that is found in the excellent paper. The introduction will set up the important terms of discussion that is found in an excellent paper, although it may lack some of the focus and coherence found in the excellent paper. That material will be framed by the research undertaken by the writer, and will reflect a strong understanding of the scholarly discussion within that work. It will construct an argument that draws from that material, and uses that material to produce a strong and unique analysis, although that analysis make lack the focus found in an excellent paper. It will provide textual evidence, but that evidence may lack some of the focus that is found in the excellent paper, and it may not provide the depth of evidence found in the excellent paper. It will provide logical transitions between paragraphs, and most of those paragraphs will defend the claims in their topic sentences in a coherent manner. In addition, there will be few grammatical errors that do not impede the reader’s understanding of the essay.

Competent Work (C Range): A competent paper will exhibit the following characteristics. It will provide some sort of rhetorical argument that the paper largely focuses on, although it lacks the focus and coherence found in good and excellent papers. The paper may at times drift into summary that doesn’t entirely support the argument, but most of the material will focus on the material. The essay also will bring in academic sources, but may not provide the focused engagement found in good and excellent papers, and may fall into reproducing the claims of the work it’s analyzing, rather than using that material to produce an original analysis. The introductions will set up some of the important terms for the discussion, but may lack some of the focus and coherence that is found in the good and excellent papers. It will provide some textual evidence, although it will lack the focus of the evidence found in excellent and good papers. The paper will include a logical flow of ideas, although it may lack in transitions to create these connections. A good portion of the paragraphs will follow through on topic sentences, but the paper may drift from this expectation occasionally. There may be a number of grammatical errors, but these do not impede the reader’s understanding of the essay.

Work that does not meet expectations (C- or below): A work that does not meet expectations will exhibit the following characteristics. It may not provide an argument engage with the research, or may lack a thesis statement altogether. In addition, the paper will contain a number of the following qualities. The introduction may lack focus and may drift into a series of generalizations that fail to set up a thesis statement. The paper may be dominated by either summary or material that drifts away from the focus of the paper. It may also lack textual evidence and substantially misrepresent the text. Furthermore, it may lack a logical flow of ideas, and the paper may lack transitions that leave the reader wondering why the essay moves from point to point. Finally, the paper may include serious grammatical errors that impede the reader’s understanding of the essay.