ENG112 Research Paper
Topic
Write an analytical essay of at least 1500 words (not including the Works Cited page) that presents an argument supported by research concerning one of the following topics. The suggestions following each general topic are merely examples—you have the opportunity to formulate your own research question. If you have an alternative topic you’d like to research, it must be approved by the instructor.
- Literary Analysis: Expand on your Essay #1 by going into more depth and detail, situating your reading of the novel in the critical conversation about Never Let Me Go.
- Bioethics: Explain how the situation portrayed in Never Let Me Go fits into the ongoing academic conversation about the ethics of human cloning.
- Psychology: Discuss how characters from Never Let Me Go display particular psychological tendencies or exhibit specific behaviors that might reflect their psychological makeup.
- Sociology: Explain how the descriptions of the Hailsham experience in Never Let Me Go are or are not consistent with research findings about boarding schools and/or orphanages.
- History: Place the fictional genetic engineering of Never Let Me Go into the context of actual historical attempts to manipulate human genetics.
Purpose and audience
Your purpose is to present an analytical argument about your selected topic that provides supporting evidence from appropriately weighty and credible secondary sources. Your purpose is NOT to simply report on those sources—they are to be used as support for your own thesis. The audience for this essay is the academic community. It might help to think of your essay as your entry into the ongoing academic conversation about your topic, meaning your finished product should be the kind of secondary source that other people writing research papers would cite. Because academic writing should be as objective and impersonal as possible, avoid personal statements (“I,” “me,” “my,” etc.) and uses of the second person (“you”).
Requirements
- You must cite at least six weighty and credible secondary sources. Consult course materials on evaluating sources to make sure a potential source meets the standards, and ask the instructor for approval if you are still unsure.
- At least one source in addition to the novel must be a book (general reference books like encyclopedias and dictionaries do not count).
- At least three sources must be scholarly journal articles.
- Only reliable web sources (such as .gov or .edu websites) may be used unless you obtain the instructor’s approval.
- All sources must be properly documented according to MLA style—consult your handbook and the course materials for information on documentation.
- Failure to complete any of the steps toward the research paper (the proposal, the annotated bibliography, the outline, or the draft) will incur an automatic grading penalty of up to 10 percentage points on the final assignment grade.
Format
The final essay must be at least 1500 words in length (not including the Works Cited page) and must be submitted on the course website as a Microsoft Word document. All essays must follow the conventions of formal academic writing in MLA style: double spacing, a standard font, 12 pt font size, standard margins, in-text citations, a Works Cited page, student’s name and assignment information on the first page, with a running header containing the student’s last name and the page number on all subsequent pages, etc.
Schedule
See the course calendar for specific due dates for the following steps:
Research proposal: Submit a one-page proposal that lays out the topic you plan to cover in your research paper. You aren’t absolutely obligated to the research question you provide at this point, but the more you can nail down your argument, the better off you will be. Do a preliminary search for secondary sources to make sure you’ll be able to find adequate material, and report on the state of the critical mass for your topic.
Annotated bibliography: Submit an annotated bibliography that provides for each source you read during your research 1) a proper MLA Works Cited entry, 2) a summary of the content of the source, and 3) a sentence or two evaluating how the source might (or might not) be useful for your essay. Further instructions will be provided for this component.
Research outline: Submit an outline that provides a full-sentence thesis statement and lays out the overall organization of your essay. Include full-sentence topic sentences for all paragraphs as well as indications of what support you will use to develop those topic sentences.
Peer review: Bring a complete draft of the essay to class on the day(s) scheduled for peer review. Anyone who does not submit a complete draft will incur a penalty for the final essay grade.
Final submission: Submit your final essay electronically by class time. Any papers received after the beginning of class will be penalized for lateness. Essays are docked for each day they are late, and essays more than a week late will not be accepted.
Assessment
The essay is worth 200 points and will be graded using the provided rubric.
Rubric for Research Paper
Content
- An A paper
- fulfills the basic assignment requirements (topic, length, format, etc.)
- appropriately takes the audience into consideration
- puts forth a clear thesis statement that is specific, manageable, and arguable
- lays out a logical argument that adequately develops the thesis statement
- uses appropriately weighty and credible secondary sources to support the argument (without providing the argument)
- considers different perspectives or counterarguments
Organization
- An A paper
- is logically structured, with all supporting points and evidence clearly tied to the main idea
- demonstrates coherence by using transitions and other organizational elements to ensure the logical flow of ideas
- provides a clear introduction that engages the reader and offers a blueprint
- presents a conclusion that does more than just repeat the introduction, leaving the reader with a sense of something new and interesting
Style/Expression
- An A paper
- uses appropriate tone and word choice for the audience
- lays out the argument in an impersonal and objective manner
- expresses ideas in clear, concise sentences
- varies sentence structure to avoid repetition or choppiness
- employs well-constructed sentences that clearly indicate the relationships between the ideas expressed
- incorporates quotations into sentences smoothly and properly
Grammar/Mechanics
- An A paper contains minimal errors in
- spelling
- punctuation
- general grammar
- sentence errors
- agreement
- tense
- quotation
- MLA in-text citations
- MLA Works Cited page
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