ENG 240: Introduction to Fiction Prairie State College Due September 24, at 3pm Up to 250 points Essay Exam

1: Literary Argument The purpose of this examination is to evaluate your ability to make a supported argument about the texts you read. In your reading journals, you are asked to response by sharing observation. For this exam, you must go a step further by posing an argument, taking a position, and supporting it with evidence from your chosen texts. The focus of this exam will be short fiction assigned during Modules 2 and 3. Exam Guidelines: Compose a three to four page literary argument for three or more assigned stories. For this assignment, you must focus on a specific commonality that your chosen stories have and make a clear argument about how these commonalities are present. As you compose your exam, ensure that you maintain your dominant voice while integrating supporting evidence from the literary texts. You are expected to use only the texts and your own analysis in order to support your argument. I am only interested in your interpretations of and observations about the texts, so researched sources may not be used for this exam. Students who use outside sources, whether primary or secondary, will receive a failing grade on the exam. Although you are not allowed to use sources other than the assigned reading, you must use correctly-formatted parenthetical (in-text) citations in the body of your essay exam and create a correctly-formatted Works Cited page listing the assigned reading. The examination should be prepared in Word and formatted using MLA style [7th edition]. A significant number of points will be deducted from essays that do not display 7th edition MLA style correctly. This assignment must be submitted in the dropbox in Desire2Learn. Exams will not be accepted by email. All essays, essay exams, and the final comprehensive exam in English 240 will be submitted to Turnitin through D2L. Turnitin is an online plagiarism detection service. In accordance with PSC standard for academic honesty, students who plagiarize on an assignment will receive a failing grade on that assignment. More than one instance of plagiarism will result in a failing grade for the course. If you are confused about this policy, ask your professors for help.

In accordance with the late policy, you may submit this assignment up to one week late, but late submissions will be subject to an 11 percent grade deduction penalty.

Suggestions for Content Format: Literary analysis involves interpreting a work and arguing for a particular way of understanding it. Such analysis is frequently called literary criticism. A literary analysis critiques, compares, and judges literary works. An essay of this type includes the following: 1. A focused introduction: Always begin by identifying the work and the author. Several general sentences precede your specific thesis. 2. A coherent thesis and interpretation: Interpretation is the central idea that you are trying to communicate, and it is established in your thesis sentenceoften (but not always) the last sentence in your introduction. It should be extremely clear and should be a statement, not a question. 3. A background and context of the work: It is sometimes necessary to give a brief summary of the work to put it in context for the reader and remind the reader of what the work is about. Writers frequently do this as they go along. For a short paper, however, it may be easier to do so in the paragraph before you begin your interpretation. But remember, you cannot use a quotation without putting it in context. Your reader must know who is speaking and have an understanding of the situation. In addition, it is important to react to the material you cite. Dont leave your reader hanging, waiting for you to draw conclusions. It is the writers job to prove the thesisnot the readers. 4. A reasonable argument supported by the text: Essentially, you are arguing for your interpretation, not so much to persuade your audience to accept your point of view. This argument justifies your way of reading the work by pointing to specific details found in the work and explaining their significance. While you have much freedom with interpretation, you must be able to support your assertions from the text. You should quote from the work, describe it, summarize it, and paraphrase it. This does not mean to retell the plot, but you must give a certain amount of detail to put your assertions in context for the reader. Do more than just refer to specific passages. Always balance your essay. You should use both short and long quotations, paraphrasing, and your own commentary. 5. A clear pattern of organization: Remember that your thesis, if written well, will give your reader an idea of how your essay is organized. But clear organization goes further. Your reader should have no difficulty understanding your interpretation or following your argument throughout your paper. Your writing must be clear and direct, providing effective transition statements and using key words to keep readers oriented throughout the essay. Then revise your sentences. Be as picky as a poet in finding the right word. Read the essay aloud (slowly) to discover potential problems and refer back to the thesis when reviewing every paragraph. Make sure that each paragraph proves or furthers your thesis is some way. 6. A strong, insightful conclusion: The conclusion of your literary analysis should summarize the body. No new points should be introduced. Still, you want your ending to have pizzazz, so try to make a connection between all the content in your paper. If this is too confusing, 2

summarize your points, make a generalization based on what you have written, and end with meaning reflection about the text.