A Little Bit O’ Review &a Little More Stuff

Closing in on the Final Paper

Always been literature based The “greatness” of texts Social Status

Reading the “right” texts made you a social elite

Reading literature set you off from a bland, stale, and consumer driven popular culture

Reading literature improved your critical thinking skills

NOW?

English Studies

Called into question everything the English major had been founded upon What is “good” writing? Who really “owns” a text? Can an author control their intended

meanings? How useful is the search for textual meaning at

all?

Postmodernism

While lit studies have had no good answer for these questions, writing studies have stepped in “Good” writing is rhetorically appropriate

writing These uber “rules” of writing are arbitrary and

linked to very outdated modes of thinking Language is beyond our control- it slips, it

slides, it escapes us Meaning is made in the reader not the writer

Writing Studies

We prefer the term “genre expectations”

They Say, I Say

These expectations are open for critique but stand none the less in many ways

Impositions of genre > Universal Givens

Formulaic?

Don’t use “I.” Thesis must be at the end of the first

paragraph Thesis must be only 1 paragraph Essays must be one big block of text (no

sections) Conclusions should just sum up the whole

paper

Stupid Rules

Define Our Terms: Especially after reading this novel, you should

recognize the importance of this White Noise Theoretical Concepts Alternatives to vague words like “good,” “bad,”

“effective,” “important,” “etc.

Things We Do

Have Strong Thesis Statements: Don’t ask questions; take a clear

argumentative stance Make specific claims Explain relevance of these claims

See the novel in a new way? See society/culture in a new way?

Use them as an anchor to tie everything else in the paper back to

Things We Do

Follow Patterns of Integrating Research: Introduce claim/idea Introduce (briefly summarize) supporting

document Paraphrase or quote from document Elaborate or clarify paraphrase/quote and

explain explicit connection to thesis

Things We Do

Make Logical Arguments:

Claim Warrant (connects the claim to the

premise) Premise/Thesis

We write mainly about the warrant; otherwise we risk just giving examples without explaining significance

Things We Do

Have a Purposeful Order to our Points and Make that Order Transparent to the Reader:

Transitions Sum up previous point Preview upcoming point Explain connection between the points

Things We Do

Meta-Commentary: Writing about your own writing within the

paper To clarify potential confusions To emphasize certain points To highlight the importance of a point (or an

organizational decision) To help reader fully understand a potentially

difficult point

Things We Do

Though there is obviously no one way to write a paper, or a process that works for everyone, what follows is my suggestion. It may, of course, be modified to match your own style.

Roadmap to the Final Paper

Start with a clear idea of what you will be arguing.

Make sure it, to some extent, answers the “so what?” question. What’s the significance of your idea?

The actual thesis, as it will appear in the paper, may change in wording. But have the idea firm in your mind.

THESIS

Select which scenes or moments in the novel you will need to discuss in detail.

OFTEN, going deep into a few scenes is more effective than taking a scattershot approach throughout the whole novel See all the samples we’ve read

SCENES

Find essays that have already discussed those scenes

Research any themes or theories related to your thesis

Write summaries of theories to incorporate into your paper

Keep a cut and paste-able document of quotes from your research

RESEARCH

List out what claims you will need to support your thesis.

These will come out of how you’re reading your chosen scenes and what the theory or other pieces of criticism have said

Explore the warrant; i.e.- what do you need to write to move beyond merely showing examples to showing logical significance.

Discover your Claims/Explore Warrants

Depending on number of claims, perhaps each one is a section 2. Babs had a more-traditional affair 3. Jack’s unique infidelity has a basis (emasculation) 4. The specifics of Jack’s emotional infidelities

Group like scenes or examples into a section that explores a claim they share

“Tyrannies of Television” section in Martins: Various lines from TV Watching Babs on TV Jack talking about mass murderer/chess player with Heinrich

Group Claims into Essay Sections

Treat them like mini-essays inside the essay

Need transitions in and out

Use titles smartly to telegraph main idea (not necessary, but helpful and fun)

Sections

Think about Deductive vs Inductive Ways to Introduce Scenes

Deductive:

• Discuss general claim or principle you’re trying to prove in detail.

• Introduce novel scene/research that shows evidence of this point

• Connect to thesis

Inductive:

• Preview claim in brief (much briefer than deductive example)

• Write about novel scene/research

• Full discussion of claim and relevance to thesis.

There is no magic trick here. The key is to order your sections and discussion purposefully.

Order Discussion

• Chronological• General to Specific• Cause and Effect• Spatial (places, people, book

sections)• Common to Uncommon• Accepted to Controversial• Definition to Examples

• Claims of others to rebuttal

• And so many more!

Proofread and Review Constantly as You Write

• Finish sections and re-read them as you write new ones to make sure you’re making connections

• Try to read the essay through someone else’s eyes.• Are there vague pronouns and referents?• Could complicated theory be explained further or more clearly?• Point your finger to a random place in your developing essay.

Can you articulate in your own mind how it’s working to support the thesis?• Next, can you locate the actual written part near this place

where the connection to thesis is articulated to reader• Read out loud.

• There is simply no better way to hear sentences that are grammatically wonky or off.