Purpose
The research paper assignment for this course is due at the end of week 7. The skills required in the successful completion of this assignment are the concluding step in the GMC ENG 101/ENG 102 sequence, effectively displaying your skills as a writer, researcher, and critical thinker.
Research Paper Instructions
Your research paper should be an argumentative essay that makes a specific claim about some aspect(s) of 2-3 of the literary works assigned in class. The claim should incorporate some specific school of literary theory discussed in class. Support this claim and argument in a coherent, developed, and organized essay of at least 1200-1500 words minimum (not counting the works cited page) and must also successfully use at least 3 critical secondary sources accessed through the relevant GMC Library databases.
The bulleted list below provides general options for paper topics. The entirety of the class reading assignments can be found in the Course Syllabus, under “Course Schedule.” The list below provides general options for paper topics:
- A topic focusing on at least 2 texts (but no more than 3) by different authors. All of the chosen texts must come from class-assigned literature unless given prior approval by the instructor.
- A topic focusing on at least 2 texts (but no more than 3) by the same author. All of the chosen texts must come from class-assigned literature unless given prior approval by the instructor.
Tips and Reminders
Re-read the texts on which you want to base your paper.
Once you have decided on a topic (which will be begun in Week 5), begin doing preliminary research (you will need to do a lot of research for this assignment anyway). Read what other literary critics have said. This will help you to further narrow down your topic, and even to find some of the sources you will end up using in the paper. Remember that you are a literary critic too—this means you should feel free to question and disagree with the interpretations you read.
Make sure your thesis is one that is arguable and requires research to effectively answer or prove. Don’t be afraid to take a leap and put forward a new, creative, and/or unique interpretation, provided you can support that claim with reasonable textual evidence and research. For more information, make sure to review the online learning resources assigned throughout the quarter.
Your paper must incorporate information from outside sources found in the literature databases at GMC Library or relevant resources linked in class. Remember that you have three methods for incorporating outside information into any paper: you can quote (use the source’s exact words), paraphrase (put the source’s words into your own), or summarize (boil down information from a source to a 1-2 sentence summary in your own words). Also remember that each of these methods needs to be cited using correct MLA formatting and documentation; Review grade feedback on past response papers for help with this! Again, research outside of class is restricted to relevant scholarly articles located at GMC Library.
Avoid unnecessary plot summary and/or biographical information. Assume that your reader has already read the work you are discussing– readers don’t need your help understanding what happens in a story; they need your help understanding why these things happened and what they might mean.
Organize your argument to maximize its effectiveness. Your introduction should include a thesis. Each paragraph of your paper should include a topic sentence that references your thesis. Each sentence in each paragraph should directly support that paragraph’s topic sentence.
Finally, don’t forget the little things. Spelling, grammar, and punctuation should be perfect. Edit and revise your work. Manage your time efficiently to allow yourself the opportunity to read and reread your final paper multiple times.
As always, contact your instructor whenever you have questions!
This assignment will be graded using the Research Paper Rubric located in the Grading Rubrics folder in class.