Essay Instructions:
ASSIGNMENT 4: Research Paper
Instructions: Read “A Soldier’s Home”, and write a literary analysis supported by outside research. Discuss how Harold Krebs has difficulties assimilating back in to civilian life. Use outside sources to support the argument that Harold Krebs is suffering from his military service in World War I.
Follow these instructions.
Length: At least 3 pages, including analyzed quotations from both the story as well as outside research. Expect your support paragraph to be on the longer side. This is normal for this assignment.
*Do not use information from outside sources in the introduction or conclusion paragraphs. In fact, I would prefer that you not use any quotes in the introduction or conclusion paragraphs.
*You must use at least 4 quotes from at least three different outside sources for each support paragraph.
*You must use at least 3 quotes from “A Soldier’s Home” in each support paragraph.
*You must have a total of at least 5 outside sources on your Works Cited page that you have cited from. If you include the story itself, that makes a total of at least 6 sources on the Works Cited page.
Format: You must use the following required 4 paragraph organization.
Paragraph I. Intro – thesis statement (there is no central idea statement in this assignment)
Paragraph II. Explain Harold Krebs difficulty in relating to his family (and how it’s a common problem among returning war veterans.
Paragraph III. Explain Harold Krebs difficulty with religion/God after his experiences in war (and how it’s a common problem among war veterans).
Paragraph IV. Conclusion
The conclusion should summarize what you have discussed in the essay. Do not bring up new information, or offer new ideas of analysis.
DO NOT recycle quotes for support. There are plenty of examples from the story to choose from, so do not reuse any throughout your essay. And quotes from outside sources should prove your claims, not merely restate your claims.
Each support paragraph must begin with a clear TOPIC STATEMENT
A specific CLAIM must come before a quoted example or be integrated with the quoted example.
You must integrate QUOTES into your discussion.
ANALYSIS must follow your quoted example.
You must use the MLA format for documentation and citation.
DO NOT use first person “I” in this essay (ex: I believe…), second person “you” (ex: you see…), and never refer to your essay in third person (ex: “this essay will discuss”, “as mentioned in the previous paragraph”, “this example proves”…). Also avoid terms/phrases like: “for example”, “this shows”, “the author says”, “the second paragraph of the story indicates”, “first”, “second”, “finally”. Also be sure to avoid repetition in your essay. Poor quote integration and/or poor analysis usually results in repetition.
The key to literary analysis is to thoroughly explain your ideas. Quotes do not speak for themselves. They need explanation.
