Short analysis essay

Write an argumentative essay of two to three pages. Essays shorter than two full pages or longer than four pages will be returned unread and ungraded.

Your essay must use the Times New Roman font, 12-point in size. There must be one inch (2.5 cm) margins on all four sides of the essay. The essay must have double-spaced lineation. The essay must include a separate page for a Works Cited list (which is not included in the page count). The essay should not have a title page. Your essay must follow the Modern Language Association (MLA) bibliographic, citation, and presentation guidelines.

Your essay must be an analysis of one of the dramatic monologues we will study in the course. You may choose to write on the short story “Salsa Madre” if you wish. The paper must treat a dramatic monologue that has not yet been discussed in class; as such, the paper must be handed in no later that the beginning of class on the day the poem the paper treats is discussed in class. No paper about a dramatic monologue will be accepted after the beginning of class on which we discuss that monologue.

If you choose a dramatic monologue (or the short story) that is scheduled to be discussed in class after November 7th, the paper will be due on November 7th. Late papers willl be accepted until the start of class during which we are scheduled to discuss your chosen dramatic monologue. In this case, the lateness penalty is 2% each day the paper is late, including weekend days and public holidays.

The approach you adopt for this assignment is open; however, your essay must be an argumentative essay. You should propose a theory (or thesis) and argue for it. You may write only about the text you choose, especially with a close reading/analysis; you may compare the poem to other poems on our course (while focussing on the poem you have chosen); you may discuss the poem in the context of a critical essay or a theory of the genre; or you may choose another viable approach. No research or secondary sources are required, though they are permitted.

As with any essay, value will be awarded based on the depth of the analysis, the complexity of the discussion, the solidity of the writing, and the thoroughness of the support to the thesis.