ENGL 386.008/.009 American Women Writers of Color
-- Paper # 1 Assignment --
---Paper #1 Due Date: October 21---
Contents (click to jump to the following sections)
Paper 1 Assignment:
Pick one theme from the list below, and in a paper of about 1,000 words,
compare/contrast how that theme is treated through two different
works, choosing two different genres (genres = poetry, essay, novel,
short story). You must choose from the works we have read for class.
List of themes:
effect of women of color being placed in confinement or in isolation (from each other, from the world, etc.) by racism and/or patriarchy
modes or conventions of "femininity" that don't translate into a new environment
individual or national concepts of "masculinity" that play out through women of color
construction of "women of color" by a dominant gaze (racist, patriarchal, classist, sexist)
the importance of "telling" and speaking/writing (storytelling, personal history, etc.) to connect generations of women of color
Use pertinent critical vocabulary and terms from your class notes to help your discussion.
(back to Contents)
What I'll look for in your paper:
(For extra help, see my Writing Tips page.)
»» Content-wise:
- Be sure that your paper makes an argument or states a claim.
Clearly state this argument or claim in your introductory ¶.
- Make sure that you actually compare and contrast your chosen works --
I will count off if you simply discuss the two works distinctly from each other,
without drawing any relation between them.
- Use analytical concepts/terms and critical vocabulary where pertinent. (See the Terms and Concepts site, as well as your class notes, for reminders.)
- Use those concepts and terms in ways that show you understand what they mean.
- Refer to and quote your primary sources: substantiate your argument and illustrate your claim by quoting the essays, poems, short stories, or novels you choose.
- Quote sparingly but judiciously: pick quotes that actually apply, but do not expect quotations to do your work for you. Use them only to illustrate a point you have already made. No bloc quotations.
- Pay attention to historical context (don't ascribe events or motives to the wrong time period).
- Distinguish when you're discussing a poem, an essay, a
novel, or a short story; these genres are not interchangeable. Get
titles correct, and punctuate them correctly. (Titles of poems, essays, and short
stories go between "quotation marks", while titles of novels are
underlined or set in italics.) Spell author names
correctly; convention dictates that you use the author's full name the
first time you mention her in a body ¶, and then use her
last name in a signal phrase thereafter. Mistakes of author name, work title, and genre of works is
inexcusable, and will fail your paper.
- Never write about a
piece of literature without having that literature and your notes on it open in
front of you.
»»Writing mechanics & technical guidelines:
- Pay attention to spelling,
punctuation, grammar, word usage, basic proofreading and editing.
- Type or computer print anything written outside the classroom.
- Maintain margins at 1" all around
- Type/print on only one side of each page
- Use black ink only, and make sure print is dark and legible
- FONT: use only Times, Times New Roman, or Palatino fonts; maintain font size 12
- Double-space all type
- Use a separate cover sheet, including
the following information, centred on the page:
your paper title,
Paper #1
your name
course and section #
date submitted
- Begin page 1 at the top margin
- No header/number for page 1; every page after page 1 should carry a
header including your last name and the page #, starting with page 2. (For steps on how to do this, see the instructions I wrote for my writing classes.)
- All pages and cover sheet should be stapled, in correct order, BEFORE you come to class; papers submitted with pages in the wrong order will be read in that order and graded accordingly; papers not stapled will be returned unread
- Papers should adhere to MLA format guidelines for in-text citations and for
Works Cited entries. Consult an MLA guide or the MLA section of a writing
handbook for help. Papers that do not adhere to MLA format will be returned
unread, counted late, and penalized.
- Include a properly MLA-formatted Works Cited Page.
(back to Contents)
»» Troubleshooting & therapy:
If you have general technical questions about the assignment,
- reread the assignment first to see if the
answer's there already
- see the syllabus to see if the
answer's there already
- ask others in the class for peer help
- if these don't work, then
e-mail me or see me during my
posted office hours -- I'll happily clarify for you.
If you have content or conceptual questions specific to just your paper, see me during posted office hours -- I'll gladly discuss them with you.
(back to Contents)
Back to ENGL 386 Mainpage