Research Paper (4-6 pages, double-spaced, 11 or 12pt font, Times New Roman or similar):
Your Research Paper should make an argument about a literary text. If you want to, you can find an artwork (of any kind, any style, and from any time period or location) that resonates in some way with the literary text you’ve chosen. Or,another text from class or beyond related to the text in theme, mood, or style to compare it to. Re-read the literary text(s) and take notes again, noting any major themes, moods, or subjects that jump out at you, as well as literary devices and (if a poem) meter and rhyme scheme. After beginning your own analysis of the text(s), conduct library research to find at least FOUR SCHOLARLY sources that provide either information about or criticism on the author, the literary text, and/or the artwork. Take notes on relevant information and write down specific quotes from these sources, considering how they could either (1) provide background info on the text(s)/author that you could include in an introduction to your paper, (2) support your own argument and/or main points about the text, or (3) provide a counter-argument to your own argument about the text (this could be used in the intro or conclusion to further establish what your argument is). Draft an INTERESTING thesis statement about the text(s). This should be an argument about the text(s) that another reader/critic could disagree with you about. For example: In “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the narrator’s decline into mental illness was caused solely by the fact that the wallpaper in her room was so ugly. (This would be a position that others could disagree with, as many critics have interpreted her illness as coming from her husband, the rest cure, oppressive gender roles in her society, postpartum depression, etc., but you could make the case that it was the wallpaper that pushed her over the edge, for example.) Write down or mark specific quotes from the text(s) that support your thesis statement, and introduce, include, cite (with an in-text citation, MLA style), and explain these quotes as examples in each body paragraph. See the rubric below for further guidelines regarding quotations. I’ll attach the literacy text I chose below along with the rubric.
