ENGLISH 100-004
LITERARY ESSAY
In a well-constructed essay, discuss how Alexander MacLeod prepares the reader for the disturbing ending of “Miracle Mile.” Write from your own understanding of the story rather than using any outside sources. Do make sure, however, to include quotations from the story to illustrate your points. Don’t forget to give your essay an appropriate title.
Read the sample literary essay which I have put on UR Courses, “Miss Emily’s House,” and Chapter 4 (“Writings about Readings”) in Essay Do’s and Don’ts, especially pages 90-105, as preparation for writing this essay. Note how quotations from the story are handled in “Miss Emily’s House.”
Ask yourself the following questions about your essay:
1. Is the title of the essay at least moderately informative and interesting?
2. Is the subject of the essay (author and title) identified early?
3. What is the thesis? Is it stated soon enough and kept in view?
4. Is the organization reasonable? Does each point lead into the next without irrelevancies?
5. Is each paragraph unified by a topic sentence or a topic idea? Are there adequate transitions from one paragraph to the next?
6. Are generalizations supported by appropriate concrete details, especially by brief quotations from the text?
7. Is the opening paragraph interesting and, by its end, focused on the topic? Is the final paragraph conclusive without being repetitive?
8. Are the quotations adequately introduced, and are they accurate? Do they provide evidence and let the reader hear the author’s voice, or do they merely add words to the essay?
9. Is the present tense used to describe the author’s work and the action of the work
(e.g. “Shakespeare shows,” “Hamlet dies”)?
10. Have you proofread the essay?
LENGTH: 750-850 words
DUE DATE: April 7