LIT2040 – Midterm Essay, 25% of course grade
Context: We do not have a formal Midterm exam, but this essay is your opportunity to showcase
all that you have learned so far this semester and your mastery of the skills practiced over the last
6 weeks: identifying a variety of dramatic literary elements, analyzing dramatic texts, making
claims about the plays, interpreting evidence to support these claims, and organizing an effective
written formal literary analysis.
Prompt: In a well-developed essay drawing specifically and exclusively from the text of the
plays in the first pairing, analyze a theme connecting A Raisin in the Sun and Clybourne Park.
The response requires a thesis that presents a claim about a significant theme shared by both
plays and body paragraphs that explore how the elements of characterization (how the
playwright has developed the emotional, behavioral, and psychological nature of the character
through action and dialogue) and plot (conflicts within and between characters that drives the
action of the play) work to express this theme. A strong essay will synthesize evidence in the
ody paragraphs; this means that most body paragraphs present a main point and uses evidence
from multiple plays to support the idea. This is preferable to essays where the majority of body
paragraphs ONLY focus on one play at a time. Include a conclusion that attempts to explain
why this interpretation of the element is important for readers to understand, what lessons
can be learned from the way the theme is handled by the playwrights, and how the theme
speaks to the universal human condition.
Thesis Examples:
• A significant theme in both plays is the negative consequences in a ma
iage when
spouses do not meet one another’s needs.
• One of the most prominent themes in these two plays revolves around community and the
often inauthenticity in community relationships.
• Both plays have climactic scenes that involve both overt and subtle racially motivated
conflicts, suggesting a significant theme of the complex legacy su
ounding the shift from
a segregated to integrated society.
Requirements:
• Length Requirement: XXXXXXXXXXwords (4-6 pages, typed, double-spaced). The Works
Cited page does not count toward the word count. Grade deductions should be expected
for essays that are significantly shorter than the required word count. Also note that the
grading criteria prioritizes depth and complexity of the argument, which typically
equires the presentation of more main points, examples, and analysis than is usually
associated with the lower end of the page range. Therefore, students striving to earn the
highest grade should work toward the depth and complexity that a longer paper, on the
upper end of the page range, is more capable of offering. Quantity does not necessarily
mean quality, but substantial depth of analysis of two plays is difficult to achieve in four
pages or less.
• Essays that only summarize the plot and characters without presenting an argument about
the interpretation will not earn a passing grade. Essays will be graded according to the 8
categories listed in the English department LIT criteria (prompt/interpretive argument,
comprehension, complexity, organization, evidence/support, written Standard English,
MLA style/formatting, MLA citation). More information about grading criteria is
available in the Course Files.
• Outside Sources: No outside sources, web or print, are to be used in your essay. This
is strictly between you and the text of the play. This is about your ability to make
meaning from the play and not about synthesizing scholarly sources who have made
their own analyses. Papers incorporating outside sources, even if properly cited,
may be penalized or fail to earn a passing grade depending on the amount of
o
owed material. Final drafts submitted to Turnitin.
• MLA Style and Citation: All papers must conform to cu
ent standards for MLA format:
o Style: double spaced; Times New Roman 12 point font; centered title that reflects
the content of the essay (i.e not Paper 1) on fifth line using title case and does not
old; underline; or enlarge the title; last name and page number in upper right
hand corner – plain text format only; identifying information on first four lines
left aligned (your name, my name, course, date); one inch margins on all sides
(be sure to check – many programs default to 1.25 inch margins). It should look
like this: Sample Paper. Need help formatting according to these guidelines? Have
Word? Click here for a Word tutorial. Using a Mac? Click here for a Pages
tutorial.
o Citation: All quotes or paraphrases must be cited in-text using the parenthetical
system according to MLA guidelines. Note - Dialogue between characters should
e formatted according to MLA guidelines found at this link. A Works Cited page
with a properly formatted entry for the play must be placed on its own page
placed last and numbered chronologically. See this link for help formatting your
entry (Play as a Book).
https:
owl.english.purdue.edu/media/pdf/20090701095636_747.pdf
https:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUvK70XSc9M
https:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_87ve7jq3Q
https:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_87ve7jq3Q
https:
www.monmouth.edu
esources-for-writers/documents/mla-citing-drama.pdf
http:
lib.pstcc.edu/c.php?g=106731&p=693753