RESEARCH PAPER
AGATHA CHRISTIE
MURDER ON THE ORIENT
EXPRESS
1. Introduce of the title of the book and the
author.
2. Establish the thesis statement.
The thesis statement explains the problem or point of view your paper will
explore about the book–
what was the theme of the book? what did it teach the reader about life
and how to live it?.
2. Provide a short summary of the book–emphasis here on short (do not
retell the book).
Give some information about the author’s life as it relates to the
writing of the book.
3. Explain the background of the book and any major issues.
4. Write an analysis of the characters, setting and plot.
5. Discuss any use of figurative language and explain the author’s use of
symbolism, imagery and foreshadowing, etc.
6. Develop any conclusions to the points of your thesis
statement.
Here you will present any of your personal interpretations and any solutions,
final opinions, or impressions.
Be sure you use your research articles to back up your
information. You have to use at
least four sources (which will include the primary source (the
novel itself) and three (3) secondary sources which must
be scholarly articles) in the paper, You can use as many as
you need, but not more than 7. Be sure to use MLA or APA
format with parenthetical
citations in the paper and MLA or APA citations on the Works
Cited Page (be consistent.)
The research paper is a documented prose work resulting
from an organized subject analysis. You are to draw conclusions about the
literary work you have chosen, and your paper will explain and prove your
conclusions. Your thesis statement will be based on these conclusions.
Completing a satisfactory research paper (worthy of an
overall grade of B or above) is one of the requirements for
passing English 102. Careful documentation cannot be stressed
enough.
REQUIREMENTS:
1.
Research papers must be
typed using size 12 Times New Roman font. Computer labs are located
at your home college and local libraries.
2.
LENGTH: A minimum of 1200 words
but not more than 2000 words (double-spaced). In addition, you will include
a Works Cited page.
3.
SOURCES: You must use a minimum of sources (4)
sources, which will include the primary source (the novel itself) and
three (3) secondary sources which must be scholarly articles. Among
your sources, include at least one article from a scholarly journal. Many
sources are available for literary research, and I expect you to use various
sources. Do not use Wikipedia, Sparknotes, etc. Be
sure to cite sources correctly!
Guidelines for sources:
Primary Source (the novel or play that is the focus of your paper)
Secondary Sources (literary criticism of the primary source): Gale
Group, Infotrac, JSTOR, or scholarly Internet Source
UNACCEPTABLE SOURCES****Masterplots, Cliffnotes, SparkNotes, ClassicNotes,
Wikipedia, Grade Saver, etc. Any essay writing OR student study website is not
acceptable as a secondary source.
4.
PROCESS: You will be expected to follow a
guided process in your research and writing. I have designed the course to make
it easier for you to write a research paper step by step. We will discuss how
to do research throughout this entire course.
5.
TEXT: Your paper will examine a
particular writer’s work. It is not a biographical sketch of
the writer; however, you may include biographical information in your
introduction paragraph or in the body if it relates to your
thesis. It is not a plot summary; I can read the book or play
for that. Primarily, you are going to take a position about the work (theme,
symbolism, character analysis, for example) and use specific events or quotes
from the work to support and explain that position. In addition, you are going
to examine what literary critics have to say regarding your primary source.
6.
FORMAT: Your paper will adhere to MLA
format. (You may opt for APA if you are a nursing student or prefer APA
format. Just be consistent). You will be expected to list each of your
sources in proper MLA format (or APA format) on the Works Cited page at the end
of your research paper. You will also use proper parenthetical internal
documentation throughout your paper.
