English Literature

English 2030 Response Paper

Due: See class schedule for dates. You can submit your essay in the D2L Dropbox

on any one of three deadlines. If you choose the first or second deadline, you will be

eligible to revise your essay if you are not pleased with your original grade. If you

choose the third deadline, you will not be able to revise.

The D2L Dropbox scans each essay for evidence of plagiarism. Be sure to document

your sources if you consult websites or other resources.

Requirements:

 Meet or exceed 500 word (that's about 2 pages) minimum

 Use 12 point font, double-space, standard margins (usually 1-1.25 inches)

 Use MLA or equivalent page format: you should have a heading (your name,

my name, date, class at top left), a title, and page numbers.

 Use MLA parenthetical citation format for quoted and paraphrased material

 Provide Works Cited page with correct MLA entry for the appropriate text(s) in

the Norton Introduction to Literature (does not count toward your word/ page

requirement) and for all other sources (websites, articles, books, etc)

 Your response should reflect your own ideas and your sources (if you consult websites, books, articles, etec) should be properly documented per MLA

guidelines. Essays with evidence of plagiarism (intentional or unintentional)

will receive an F.

 Your response should be supported by specific quotations from the literary text.

 Your essay should be written for a college academic audience and demonstrate evidence of careful editing and proofreading. Essays written like text messages

or with several grammar/ proofreading issues will not receive a passing grade.

Response Essay Topic:

Choose one of your discussion board posts and revise it into a more formal response

paper in which you critically engage the literary text you discussed in your post. In

other words, you will need to move beyond basic plot summary (here’s what

happened in the text) and your reaction to the text (I liked it, I didn’t like it, It

reminded me of my brother, etc.) to a critical analysis. The bulk of your essay should

consist of your own ideas in your own words; this is not a research paper. Your essay

should have a clear thesis (your main point) and evidence from the poem, short-story,

or play to support your point. See the Sample Response Papers in the Norton on pages

50-53, 502-503,794-96.

Review Norton “Writing About Literature” Chapter 17 Paraphrase, Summary,

Description; Chapter 18 The Literature Essay; Chapter 20 Research Essay (note—

you are not writing a research essay but you may find the section on Integrating

Source Material useful if you consult sources); Chapter 21 Quotation, Citation, and

Documentation.

The Dos and Don'ts of Response Papers:

DO NOT: Only summarize plot DO: Analyze the thematic and symbolic significance

of events in the story

DO NOT: Say you didn't like a

character

DO: Explain how a character was unlikable, how that

effects the reading experience, and why that may or

may not have been the author's intent

DO NOT: Generalize and provide vague

reasons behind your text analysis

DO: Use specific examples from the text (including

quotes).

DO NOT: Make superficial, obvious

insights (poor thesis: Doll’s House is

about a bad marriage.)

DO: Think deeply, and look closely into the work.

Notice things that a casual reader would not.

DO NOT: Simply repeat ideas

mentioned in class by the instructor or

by other students.

DO: Build off ideas mentioned in class, adding your

own thoughts and insights to the discussion.