Short story Essay

Signature Assignment Essay
ENGL 2329 Online Course
Assignment Overview:
Write a well-organized, effectively developed, 3-5-page analysis of one of the short stories we read in this
course, except for “The Story of an Hour.” The paper should critically analyze the way the text engages a
significant social issue or how the story addresses issues or problems of social responsibility. You should
anchor the paper’s argument with a clearly articulated thesis statement and use careful analysis of textual
evidence (from the short story) to support your claim (thesis). As you develop your essay, you should think
about how the social issue, or matter of social responsibility you write about, appears in your world. In other
words, is the issue from the story one that might be observed in your own local community, your state, your
nation, or in the larger world? Is the way the issue is portrayed in the story similar to what you observe in your
world? Comment briefly on the similarities and/or differences.
Responsible Integration of Sources:
Students must properly integrate material from two secondary sources into their analysis in a way that gives
credit to the authors whose ideas and language they are incorporating. This is not a research paper or a summary
of the work of literature, but a paper in which you draw on secondary sources to communicate an interpretive
argument about your chosen text through the lens of social issues or responsibility. Since this essay includes the
integration of outside sources; it, therefore, requires you to demonstrate personal responsibility as you use the
words and ideas of other writers in an accurate and ethical manner. (You will use MLA parenthetical in-text
citations to do this.) Citing sources properly isn’t just a matter of mechanics. It’s a question of personal
responsibility (with real consequences for students) and a matter that is clearly covered by the UTA Honor
Code.
Appropriate Secondary Sources:
You should use the two secondary sources to enhance your analysis by allowing them to provide historical
context, to demonstrate how the social issue or question of social responsibility appears in the world around
you, and/or to provide illumination to your analysis of the short story from a literary point of view. Course
material or links to material may not be used as one of your two researched secondary sources. They may be
used in addition to the two sources.
Here is a list of credible sources:
• National newspapers (e.g., New York Times, Washington Post, USA Today, Dallas Morning News, Fort
Worth Star Telegram)
• Print magazines (e.g., The Atlantic, Harper’s, New Yorker, Time, Newsweek)
• Online magazines (e.g., Slate, Salon)
• Scholarly articles (e.g., academic articles published in peer-reviewed journals; you can find citations for
these articles by using the MLA International Bibliography database, JSTOR, or Project Muse—all of
which UTA’s library gives you access to online)
• Scholarly books or book chapters (it’s a good bet a book is scholarly if it’s published by an academic
press, such as Duke University Press; if you’re not sure, ask your instructor)
• Historical documents (e.g., old newspaper articles, letters, speeches, journal entries) from academic
databases (see the History subject guide on the library website for ideas)
Secondary Sources to Avoid:
Wikipedia
Sparknotes, Cliff Notes, or any other “student helping” sites
Papers for sale sites or free essay sites
Google search results other than those listed in the Credible Sources section above
General Webpages, blogs, or fan sites.
Minimum Requirements:
Your essay should be a Word document that is double spaced, with 1-inch margins, in 12-pt., Times New
Roman font. It must have a cover page with your name, MavID, Course Number, and Section Number,
Instructor Name, and Due Date. Neither your name nor any other identifying information should appear on the
following pages of your essay. Follow the MLA’s recommendations for formatting, citation, page numbers, and
style.
In order to receive a passing grade on the signature assignment, students must do the following:
1. Write an essay that is at least 3 pages long, but no more than 5.
2. Integrate two appropriate sources.
3. Have a thesis.
4. Have a title.
5. Incorporate evidence (i.e., quotations) from the literary text.
6. Have parenthetical in-text citations that refer to entries on a Works Cited page.
Writing Help and Resources:
In the final lesson of the course, we will focus on writing strategies and models to assist you as you complete
the last major assignment of the course. Make sure you read the SAMPLE ESSAY and all the information that
will help you successfully complete this assignment.
Review all the requirements and use the rubric as a guide and checklist for your assignment.
Rubric:
Requirement: Outstanding Good Fair Poor Failing
Includes a creative title that forecasts the content of
the paper.
Provides an introduction that clearly articulates
argument or focus for the essay.
Includes a specific, detailed thesis that supports the
argument.
Provides an effective interpretation of the short story.
Develops a coherent and well-organized argument.
Discusses how the issue from the story relates to a
local, regional, national or global issue.
Uses two appropriate and helpful secondary sources.
Incorporates evidence (e.g., quotations) responsibly
from the literary text and from the outside sources by
correctly citing them using MLA formatting.
Has a works cited page, correctly formatted in MLA
style.
Uses sentences that are lively, engaging, and
relatively error free.
Uses correct grammar and mechanics.
Meets the length requirement.
Has a cover page with required information.