Essay exam preparation and grading criteria


(Preface: Don't let this guide intimidate you. We know this is 9 days to write an essay, and don't expect term-paper quality material. I would think that the student who has been keeping up with the course reading and lectures should be able to complete the assignment in 3-4 hours. We expect competence and thoughtfulness and intelligence, not Aschenbachian perfection).

Paper format. Three to four pages, double spaced, with one-inch margins on all sides of the paper. Writing less than two and two-thirds pages will be penalized. Writing that goes onto a fifth page will be discarded. (Maybe not—but try to be concise and keep in to 4).
Essay prompts will challenge the students to approach the literature with precision, depth, and nuance. We allege that there are social issues and issues of language, of relationships, of psychology, and more, in all the texts we have read together.
Some of the prompts will interrogate a term--The logical requirement for this type of interrogation would be that the student author is quite clear in the ways he or she is employing terms
.
Students should be attentive to style--their own and that of the author in question. Remember, this is a literature class, so strategies authors employ to present their text are important. Valid and clear use of quotes is rewarded. Throwing in quotes that are disconnected to the student's argument is penalized.

The amount of quotes should not exceed one/ eighth of the paper. Quotations should always be in the context of one of your sentences, without breaking syntax. You cannot end a sentence, drop in a quote, and begin another sentence. Penalty points will be taken for this.
Students often expect that essay answers simply reflect "their opinion" and thus "no one has a right to grade them." It is true that many and various readings of the texts will be credited, even some which seem to oppose each other. But the argument or the reading will be considered valid to the degree that the student has clearly thought through their conclusion using relevant data from the text, and composed it in a sensible and logical fashion. Make sure you employ the best items from the text for support. If there are elements in the text that would completely negate your reading, don't simply ignore them--your grader will have read the text and will wonder why you ignore such obvious data. Often it is a good strategy to address potential arguments in the body of your essay.

Stay on track. Three to four pages is not a lot of space. You want to streamline your argument and use as much support in as little space as you can. If you wander, try to revise the essay before handing it in so that each paragraph adds to your thesis
.
The take home format leaves itself open to potential for academic dishonesty. Any suspicion of academic dishonesty will be investigated. Any proof of academic dishonesty will be dealt with in the most severe manner allowed by the university. Don't sacrifice your career for a single grade.
The readings are connected to headnotes. The instructor's manual is on reserve. There are links to websites on the course web site. So, of course you may use sources to back up the argument. Be sure that any references you use are cited, and that you are not using language of other writers to compose your thesis. Your approach to the question at hand should be your own, as should the development of your argument. Sometimes sources are helpful to this end. But again--all use of outside material must be cited in a "works cited" postscript.
You may employ the assistance offered at the undergraduate writing center for help in clarifying your writing.
Academic dishonesty will be considered the use of writers besides yourself to present your argument; the use of un-cited material from the web or written sources to make your argument; the use of purchased papers to respond to the essay prompt; or other violations as determined by the professor.

On a more pleasant note, we hope this assignment will be stimulating, engaging, arduous in the way that worthwhile accomplishments tend to be arduous, and pleasurable.

Short Version of Paper Approaches


Positive Values
--To the point with a logical flow of ideas towards proving your thesis.
--Precise and clear explanation of central terms. (You don't want to spend too much ink on this, so concise as well).
--Stay with the terms of the essay prompt--don't write the essay you want to and simply make a weak nod to the essay prompt.
--Treatment of style, or other literary quality unique to the author being addressed.
--Use of valuable quotes that advance your argument. Don't waste quotation time on commonplaces (ie. "he came into the room") Use quotes to display the masterful language of the literature. Quotes must be in one of your sentences, without breaking syntax.
--A little style on your part goes a long way.

Negative Values
--Papers which go from point to point without any logical connection to each other.
--Papers which take for granted that we all know what "history" or "the artist" or "the hero" is. You might stay away from claiming what it is "we" believe.
--Essays which stray too far, too often, from the terms of the essay prompt.
--Essays which seem as if they might be submitted to a history or sociology class instead of a literary analysis class.
--Inaccurate or unnecessary use of quotes.
--Over-reliance on outside reading for formulating the argument.
--Any use of the word "deconstruction."

My advice--sit down and write out a draft of your responses at one go, with some energy and concentration. Come later to your text to evaluate its strengths and weaknesses. Return (briefly) to the text to be sure you've made the best use of the text for your arguments.
Please be sure you don't find yourself 2 hours before the test is due with nothing written.


“A” papers. Clear, precise, stylistic examinations of the literature through a sound thesis that is maintained throughout the paper. See Positive values.
“B” papers. Demonstrates a lively and full knowledge and understanding of the text under consideration. Writes effectively, but strays from the thesis on occasions and writes around, rather than directly addressing, the thesis.
“C” papers. The thesis is not as strong here. There is too much summary, and not enough analysis. Presentation of ideas is indirect to the point of losing the understanding of the reader. The good things here are primarily the exhibition that the essay writer has read and understood the text in question. We would like the thinking about the literature to be a little more refined, more sophisticated, to award it a better grade.
“D” papers are hastily put together and show some understanding of the text being written about, but may also include points of misunderstanding and maybe some simplistic thinking about the text.
Structurally uninspired. Repetitive.
Papers that merely rehearse events in the story without even trying for a thesis.
“F” papers. Not submitted.
Submitted as your work when it is really the work of someone else.
Work that shows only the most cursory understanding of the texts under consideration.