English 1213 paper topics, spring 2007


Paper 4

Read every word below carefully, more than once, before starting your essay.

Write an analytical or argumentative research paper on a topic of your own choosing focusing narrowly on some specific aspect of Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein.  Your paper must meet each of the requirements below. Read these requirements carefully.

For details of the physical formatting of your paper on paper—margins, headers, titles, etc.—see the simple stuff page.  For guidelines on quotation and documentation, see the quotes and documentation page. 

Note that you must submit the final draft in both hard copy (printed on paper) and electronic form (on floppy disk or as an email attachment).

blue bulletI encourage you to seek my help with your paper outside of class. If my office hours don't mesh well with your schedule, let me know, and we'll make arrangements for other times.

Paper requirements:

blue bullet800-1200 words (in the body of the essay, excluding headers, name, date, title, works cited entries, etc.).

blue bulletBefore you begin writing the essay, construct a topic sentence outline just as we did for the second writing exercise (recall the question, "How is life difficult for teenagers?"). Begin the outline with the literal question your paper addresses, then give full topic sentences that answer the question directly for each primary point in your paper (i.e. for each body paragraph), just as they will appear in the essay itself, and conclude the outline with the paper's overall thesis, answering the central question directly and combining your essential points from the various topic sentences. On the date of peer response, in addition to bringing a complete draft of the paper to class, you will turn in this topic sentence outline for reading quiz credit. For two sample topic sentence outlines, see this paper proposal page.

bulletHowever, this essay should not raise a literal question in the introduction of the essay itself, but instead the introduction should culminate in a full and complete answer to the unstated question your paper addresses—i.e. a thesis statement.  If your topic is argumentative, even though the introduction presents a thesis statement, you should still explain the opposing viewpoint in one or more body paragraphs before presenting your own views (as in the persuasive format).

blue bulletIn order to "focus narrowly" on the novel, the question you raise in the outline, each topic sentence, and the thesis statement should all mention the novel directly (or the author or some specific aspect of Shelley's novel—a character's name, e.g.).

blue bulletYou must include at least eight quotations from the novel itself, Frankenstein.

blue bullet You must do some research and incorporate quotes from at least two sources of legitimate scholarly criticism into the discussion of the story.  ("Legitimate" means truly scholarly sources, so items from newspapers or the popular press, encyclopedias, and study aids such as Cliff's Notes, SparkNotes, Master Plots, etc., are not acceptable.) No world wide web sources of any sort are valid—only sources available through the RSU library or its subscription databases are acceptable.

blue bulletFor secondary sources, you must turn in photocopies or printouts of each page of the secondary sources from which you take quotes.  Highlight the quoted passages (on the photocopy of the criticism, not in your paper).

Very important note: Papers that do not meet the research requirements—quotations from at least two secondary sources of literary scholarship or criticism, with photocopied pages attached—will automatically receive failing grades.


As announced in class, I am not providing a list of suggested options for this paper, so one major challenge with the assignment is arriving at an appropriate topic on your own, one that is manageable and worthy of exploration in a college-level academic essay. Basically, any significant theme, motif, issue, technique, or aspect of the novel is fair game. If you struggle arriving at a valid topic, see me for help.


Reminders:
blue bulletThe single most important sentence in your essay is the central question you set up in the topic sentence outline: be sure this question sets up a viable topic, one worthy of addressing in a college-level paper. Feel free to email me or call me if you aren't certain about the validity of your central question.
blue bulletEvery body paragraph's topic sentence should answer the central question directly.
blue bulletSweat the details: use the GR, N, SS, QD and WP "handouts" and proofread closely.