ENGLISH 281

Draft Workshop Questions for Essay Two in Wikis

Steps:

1. Post your draft to your appointed Wiki area by Sunday, April 5 by midnight.
2. Review drafts attached to your Wiki area and provide feedback using the below questions, pasting the answers in to the Wiki area and making it clear who the answers are for/whose draft you are commenting on and that you are the writer.

For example, you could paste in something like the following:

Susan, here are my thoughts/feedback on your draft posted so far:

#1. [Provide feedback using the criteria below]
#2 [Provide feedback using the criteria below]
#3 on [Repeat above]

You are expected to complete these steps for at least one draft posted to your group’s Wiki by Monday, April 6 by midnight for possible five points credit. Be sure to answer the “Specific Questions” below the first ten questions here depending on which essay prompt you are reading for a draft.

1. Does the author/student have all of the “front matter” needed in the draft? (i.e, Does it give an author tag with the title of the poem in quotes or name of book in italics and name of film in italics being worked with in the essay, for example and the author(s) name of text being discussed in the first one or two sentences of introduction)? If this is information is missing, let the author know here and also provide an example please of how it could be better.

2. Are the introductory sentences attention-grabbing? If they are not attention-grabbing, please point out this to the author here and provide any suggestions. What is the issue being discussed? Do you understand immediately what the issue is about to be explored? Does it get your attention in the opening lines? Could an interesting question or quote be used? If this is information is missing, let the author know here and also provide an example please of how it could be better.

3. Does the introduction start by tying in texts and/or authors and/or films to the general topic and thesis of the essay—how? (Remember that generalities about the general subject matter are not sufficient.) If this area needs improvement, please point out this to the author here and provide any suggestions.

4. In your own words, what is the main purpose in the thesis that will be explored? (This is generally expressed toward the end of the introduction). Are there 2-3 main supporting points that will be explored in the essay clearly presented in the introduction that support the thesis just after or very near the thesis statement? If this is challenging to determine, let the author know here and also provide an example please of how it could be better.

Note: Ideally, an essay prompt is not like answering an equation, so a thesis is not a laundry list of the points that will follow. Also, just a general statement or teaser is not a thesis, either. Rather one’s interpretation of the material needs to be tied together with the prompt selected in a thesis with a direct and explicit statement. If this is challenging to determine, let the author know here and also provide an example please of how it could be better.

5. Read all the transitions between paragraphs: the ends (last 2 sentences) and the beginnings (first 2 sentences) of paragraphs. Is there easy flow between them? If there is not, let the author know here and also provide an example please of how it could be better and in what section.

6. Do the body paragraphs have sufficient support (direct quotes or paraphrases in MLA format – but not more than one quote generally per paragraph) to support points presented in topic sentence areas? Is there too much of a quote or quotes being used? (Quotes should not be more than about two lines of a paragraph at most as this gives the appearance of “filler” in the essay – ellipses dots (…) can be used to remove parts of a quote to reduce it as needed). If edits are needed in this area, please let the author know here and in what sections of the draft, and also provide an example please of how the use of quotations needs to be more aptly applied better and in what sections of the draft.

7. Is the citation format correct throughout? See the Purdue Owl links and additional MLA links in the Module Nine help area. If there are errors, let the author know here and also provide an example please of how citations could be better and in what sections of the draft.

8. Discussing literature should be in the present tense despite the publishing and narration being in the past. Where does the essay leave the present tense? If there are errors, let the author know here and also provide an example please of how tenses need to be improved and in what sections of the draft.

10. Do you think that there is material that should be added or deleted from the draft, remembering that paragraphs should be approximately 4-7 sentences at most and the final essay is a three-page maximum? If there are areas that you think could be eliminated or need to be elaborated on better, let the author know what sections of the draft where these revisions need to occur.

Specific Questions to Answer If Draft You Are Reading Is Essay One Choice:

1. Is the writer using the Elements of Poetry handout or the Elements of Fiction handout attached in the Module Nine area (key terms to use in aptly discussing poetry which is necessary if working on this choice or is the discussion generally discussing the poems and fiction without using specific poetry terms and/or fiction terms as necessary? Is there too much generality in discussing the fiction and/or poetry? If edits are needed in this area, please let the author know here and in what sections of the draft.

2. Does the draft have a thesis that states clearly the main similarities (generally 2-3 would be a good number) on how marriage has been treated similarly using two or three authors that we’ve worked with that will be discussed in the draft? If edits are needed in this area, please let the author know here and provide an example of how it could be improved.

3. Does each topic sentence in body paragraphs clearly state what similarity will be presented in the body paragraph? If edits are needed in this area, please let the author know here and in which paragraphs in the draft and provide an example of how it could be improved.

4. Does the essay discuss concepts in generalities and plot summary or does it specifically draw similarities on the treatment of marriage as two or three authors depict in their writing? If edits are needed in this area, please let the author know here and in which paragraphs in the draft and provide an example of how it could be improved.

Specific Questions to Answer If Draft You Are Reading Is Essay Two Choice:

1. Does the draft have a thesis that states clearly both the main similarities and differences (generally 2-3 would be a good number) of the novels of either Jane Eyre or Frankenstein or Emma and a film version of the text regarding the portrayal of women or is this not clearly stated (remember comparisons means similarities and contrasts are differences)? If revisions are needed in this area, please let the author know here and provide an example of how it could be improved.

2. Does each topic sentence in body paragraphs clearly state what similarity or difference will be presented in the body paragraph between the text and the film regarding the portrayal of female characters (both should not be discussed at once in a paragraph)? If edits are needed in this area, please let the author know and where in the draft and provide an example of how it could be improved.

3. Does the essay discuss concepts in generalities and plot summary or does it specifically draw similarities and differences on the portrayal of female characters with one of the texts of Jane Eyre, Frankenstein, or Emma and a film version? depict in their writing (this is what needs to happen)? If edits are needed in this area, please let the author know here and in which paragraphs in the draft and provide an example of how it could be improved.

Specific Questions to Answer If Draft You Are Reading Is Essay Three Choice:

1. Does the draft have a thesis that states clearly which author will be worked with regarding texts we have reviewed and a work by her we have not reviewed in the course, stating also what the main theme is that will be discussed in the draft that we have discussed already or that the writer is adding in that that we have not discussed yet, or is this not clearly stated (one theme is all that should be presented)? If revisions are needed in this area, please let the author know here and provide an example of how it could be improved.

2. Does each topic sentence in body paragraphs clearly state what aspect of the theme the writer is working with for the selected writer in the body paragraph? If edits are needed in this area, please let the author know and where in the draft and provide an example of how it could be improved.

3. Does the writer clearly incorporate both texts they are working with in the body of the essay, using direct quotes where appropriate (about one quote per paragraph) with MLA in-text citations, or is this missing? If revisions are needed in this area, please let the author know and where in the draft and provide an example of how it could be improved.

4. If the writer uses a text that is not part of the reading as the second source required for this topic choice for the essay, do they provide a correctly formatted MLA Works Cited page at the end of the draft with the two texts used since one is an outside text? If revisions are needed in this area, please let the author know.