How does Kafka explore the family dynamic in “The Metamorphosis?” How does he show the anger, animosity, and evil lurking beneath the veneer of a loving family? To what ends?

2.  Have you included a title, one that reflects your thesis (i.e. not just GERM 1025/1026 Essay 2)?  As mentioned in previous lectures, if your thesis is your essay boiled down to a single sentence, your title should be your thesis condensed even further.

3.  Does your intro clearly build to your thesis by setting up your topic and setting it up in relation to the story?

4.  Is your thesis a clear, specific, persuasive argument that the rest of the essay then goes on to support?  

5.  Do your paragraphs all have a strong topic sentence (see the essay samples) that set up the central point of the paragraph, which should all serve to support your overall thesis?  

6.  Do your paragraphs have a clear, persuasive, and logical flow that supports your argument and transitions effectively towards your conclusion?  Does each point build on what has come before and prepare the way for what comes next?  

7.  Have you made direct use of the primary text?  Likewise, have you shown how your use of the text supports and strengthens your argument?  As mentioned in lectures, passages that are used as filler rather than as an aid to your argument will appear as such.  It serves as evidence of your overall thesis and illustration for your supporting points, so be sure to consider your passages in light of that.

8.  When it comes to citing the text, be sure to cite the specific story by Kafka that you are writing about.  This would mean that you cite the story, then the book, and that you include the page numbers as well.  For example:

Kafka, Franz.  ‘The Hunger Artist.’  The Metamorphosis and Other Stories.  Trans. Michael Hofmann.  London:  Penguin, 2019.  218-27.  Print.

The in-text citation would look like this, e.g. (Kafka 21).

If, however, you are discussing more than one story, would cite each in the bibliography.  If there are more than one Kafka entry, your in-text citation would like this, e.g. (Kafka, ‘The Hunger Artist’ 21).

9. Note that this citation is for the Penguin edition available in the Dal bookstore that we have been using.  It is fine if you have used another text, but you must use the citation info for that particular text, be it in print or online.  

10.  Some students have asked about whether or not they can cite the lectures for additional info.  That is perfectly fine.  If you do so, the bibliographic entry should look like this, e.g.:

Cameron, John.  Kafka’s ‘The Metamorphosis.  GERM 1025/1026.  5 Nov. 2024.  Dalhousie University, Halifax.  Class lecture.