ENGL 386.001/.002 American Women Writers of Color
-- Paper # 2 Assignment --

Dr. Nick Melczarek | anmelczarek@salisbury.edu | 410-546-6203 (66203)

• Assignment
• What I'll look for in your paper (content-wise, writing mechanics)
• Due dates and activity dates
• Troubleshooting & therapy (where to go for answers to your questions)

List of themes:

women of color placed in confinement or in isolation

women of color's interpellation into a dominant episteme

construction of "women of color" by a dominant gaze

the power of women of color storytelling to create, injure, or heal

»» 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 three distinct 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.
• Pay attention to historical context (don't ascribe events or motives to the wrong time period).
• Get titles correct, and punctuate them correctly. (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,
  whether it is the prospectus or 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
• 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.

• Monday 12/06: in class, submit a detailed prospectus of your paper. The prospectus should include a thesis statement that clearly states your claim or argument, and a detailed outline of your project. The prospectus should include a cover sheet (see above).
• Monday 12/06: in class we'll workshop Paper #2 in groups -- bring in a draft of Paper #2 for peer discussion.
• Tuesday 12/07: Paper #2 conferences
• Wednesday 12/08: in class we'll workshop Paper #2 in groups -- bring in a draft of Paper #2 for peer discussion. Afternoon conferences on Paper #2.
• Thursday 12/09: Paper #2 conferences
• Friday 12/10: in class we'll workshop Paper #2 in groups -- bring in a draft of Paper #2 for peer discussion.
• MONDAY 12/13: PAPER #2 DUE to my office by 2 p.m.

• 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
• then and only then e-mail me or ask for an appointment to see me.