English 4203 Fall 2011 MIDTERM ESSAY EXAM Mercer

OUT-OF-CLASS ESSAY (50 points possible)

Purpose

The purpose of this essay is to demonstrate your comprehensive knowledge and understanding of all four (4) assigned Shakespearean romantic comedies.

Assigned Topic

No Shakespearean characters have been more highly praised for their character traits and actions than Shakespeare’s comic heroines, the central female characters in his romantic comedies. Identify at least three (3), preferably more, exemplary character traits and/or behaviors of Shakespeare’s comic heroines, and illustrate each trait and/or behavior with specific references to at least two (2), preferably more, of the assigned romantic comedies. In the essay as a whole, include at least three (3) specific examples, preferably more, from each of the four (4) assigned comedies.

• For the purposes of this essay, the comic heroines in the assigned romantic comedies are Hermia and Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hero and Beatrice in Much Ado about Nothing, Rosalind and Celia in As You Like It, and Viola and Olivia in Twelfth Night. The essay does NOT necessarily need to include specific references to all these characters as long as it includes at least three (3) specific examples from each assigned play.
• If you have read The Taming of the Shrew and/or The Merchant of Venice, you may also include specific examples relating to Katherina and/or Portia. Examples from unassigned plays, however, do NOT count toward minimum requirements.
• Focus only on admirable traits and/or behaviors.
• One or two words may not be enough to clearly identify what you mean by a particular character trait or behavior. In the topic sentence of each body paragraph, clearly explain the trait or behavior.
• Do NOT discuss each heroine or play in a separate body paragraph. Instead, integrate references to at least two (2) assigned plays, or all four (4) if possible, in each body paragraph.

Criteria for Grading Essay

1. The essay must adhere to the assigned topic and instructions, meeting and exceeding minimum requirements such as the following:

a. In the essay as a whole, develop at least three (3) body paragraphs.

b. In the essay as a whole, include specific examples from all four (4) assigned romantic comedies.

c. In the essay as a whole, include at least three (3) specific examples from each assigned comedy.

d. In each body paragraph, include specific examples from at least two (2) assigned comedies.

e. In the essay as a whole, write at least two and one-half (2.5) pages.

To receive a C, the essay must meet all these minimum requirements. To receive an A or B, the essay should exceed minimum requirements in some or all of these areas.

2. The essay must reflect clear, logical, insightful, original thinking about the assigned topic.

3. The essay must demonstrate your comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the assigned plays (by including specific references that are numerous, brief but very specific, and logically relevant). The examples must logically relate to the character traits and/or behaviors they are supposed to exemplify.

4. The essay must be mechanically correct, especially in avoiding serious errors (sentence fragments, comma splices, run-on sentences, and agreement errors), spelling characters’ names correctly, using present-tense verbs consistently, and following the specified form of documentation.

Instructions for Writing Essay

1. OUTSIDE HELP
1. Work independently. This is not a group project; do not collaborate with your classmates. Do not submit an essay that is like a classmate’s in content or organization.
2. This is not a research paper; do NOT consult any sources outside our textbook. If you do use words or ideas from any source other than the assigned plays (such as the editor’s introduction to the play in The Riverside Shakespeare), informally document them in your essay by introducing the source.
3. You may use the help of the tutors in the NSU-BA Writing Center. Since I will be the one grading your essay, however, get help directly from me whenever possible.
4. For best results, get my advance feedback (preferably in person, but if that isn’t possible, by telephone or e-mail) on your thesis and main points and later on a complete draft. The best way to get feedback on a complete draft is to make an appointment to discuss your essay with me during my office hours. The last day to get feedback in my office is Monday, October 3. (Please bring two copies of your draft to your appointment.) The deadline for submitting a complete draft for feedback by e-mail (cut and pasted, NOT by attachment) is Tuesday, October 4, at 12 noon. You may continue to ask questions by e-mail or telephone after that time.

2. MANUSCRIPT FORM
1. Font: Use Times New Roman 12.
2. Spacing: Double-space your entire paper. Do NOT leave additional spaces after the title or between paragraphs. If you are using Word 2007, change the default settings to remove the extra spaces after the title and after each paragraph. (Select “Page Layout” and then “Spacing,” change the “After” setting from 10 pt. to 0 pt., and make this your new default setting.)
3. Alignment of text (justification): Select “align text left” (left justification). Do NOT justify the right margin.
4. Margins: Use one (1)-inch margins on all four sides of the page. The default margins in Word 2003 (and earlier versions) are 1.25 inches; please change your margins to one (1) inch. If you need more room to squeeze your paper onto three (3) pages, the maximum allowed length, you may, however, reduce your margins to one-half (0.5) inch.
5. Paragraph indentation: Indent each paragraph one-half inch (five [5] spaces) from the left margin.
6. Identification: Because I do not want to know whose essay I am grading, do NOT put your name anywhere on the paper. Omit the usual four (4)-line heading from the upper left of the first page. Instead, insert as a header your nine (9)-digit SSN followed by one space and the page number in the upper right of each page, beginning with page 1. To protect the privacy of your SSN, you may change any of the numbers except the last four (4).

3. TITLE
1. Give your essay a title that clearly and specifically reflects the content of the essay and especially of the thesis.
2. Center the title at the top of the first page of the essay.
3. Do NOT underline or italicize the title of your own essay or place it in quotation marks.
4. Capitalize the first letter of the first word, the last word, and all other words in your title EXCEPT for articles (a, an, the), prepositions (throughout, between, to, for, in), coordinate conjunctions (and, but, or), and to when used with infinitives.

4. THESIS
1. Clearly and concisely state the thesis as the only sentence (or possibly two sentences) in a separate opening paragraph.
2. Make sure the thesis clearly responds to the assigned topic, identifying in order and in parallel structure the character traits and/or behaviors you will cover in the body of the essay.
3. Make sure that your thesis reflects what the body of the paper actually supports.
4. No other introduction is desired or necessary. Use your limited space to develop the body of the essay rather than to write an introduction.

5. ORGANIZATION OF BODY
1. Organize the body of the essay into at least three (3) paragraphs (preferably more, but no more than about five [5]).
2. Begin each body paragraph with a topic sentence that

i. identifies one exemplary character trait and/or behavior of Shakespeare’s comic heroines.

ii. covers the entire paragraph. Since each body paragraph must refer to at least two (2) assigned comedies, the topic sentence should NOT refer to only one (1) play or character.

iii. includes a transition that creates a bridge from the previous to the new body paragraph. Place a transition at the beginning rather than the end of each body paragraph.

3. Be sure that the traits and/or behaviors you identify in your thesis and topic sentences do not illogically or unnecessarily overlap each other. For example, in the same paper you would not want to use the traits boldfaced in the topic sentences below because they overlap each other:

i. Shakespeare’s comic heroines display common sense.

ii. The women in Shakespeare’s romantic comedies also behave more sensibly than the other characters around them.

iii. Finally, Shakespeare’s comic heroines are not as silly and extreme as other characters in their actions.

4. It’s fine to refer to the same play and/or character in as many body paragraphs as are relevant.

6. DEVELOPMENT OF BODY PARAGRAPHS
1. In each body paragraph, use logically appropriate references to the assigned plays to support, develop, and illustrate the character trait and/or behavior identified in the topic sentence.
2. Develop each body paragraph with brief but very specific references to as many assigned plays as are relevant (at least two [2] plays per paragraph, preferably more).
3. Refer to the plays in your own words and in very brief quotations introduced and integrated into the paragraph. Although brief quotations can often provide excellent support, every example does NOT need to include a quotation.
4. Do NOT use poetic quotations of more than three (3) lines or prose quotations of more than four (4) typed lines, which would have to be indented within the text of your paper.
5. In the essay as a whole, include at least three (3) specific examples from each of the four (4) assigned comedies.
6. Correctly spell the names of the characters.
7. To save space, you may use and italicize the standard MLA abbreviations for the titles of the plays: MND, Ado, AYL, TN, Shr., and MV. Once you have identified a character as being from a particular play, however, it is not necessary to keep identifying the title every time you mention the character.
8. When you refer in your own words to the plots and characters of the plays (which still exist every time you read or see the plays), use present-tense verbs. When you quote, however, leave verb tense as it is in the text.

7. DOCUMENTATION: Observe the following form (based on the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 7^th ed.) for quotations and parenthetical documentation.
1. Smoothly introduce and integrate all quotations into your essay. Do NOT just begin quoting at the beginning of your sentence. (See examples below.)

2. Always quote accurately. Any changes you make within quotations must be placed inside square brackets, NOT parentheses.

3. Place periods and commas INSIDE, not outside, closing quotation marks.

Like this: In “The Nun’s Priest’s Tale,” Chaucer reveals even more about marriage than in “The Miller’s Tale.”

NOT like this: In “The Nun’s Priest’s Tale”, Chaucer reveals even more about marriage than in “The Miller’s Tale”.

4. Immediately after each brief quotation, use all Arabic numerals to document in parenthesis the act, scene, and line numbers.

Like this: Under the influence of the love potion, Demetrius calls Helena “goddess, nymph, perfect, divine” (3.2.137).

NOT: Under the influence of the love potion, Demetrius calls Helena “goddess, nymph, perfect, divine” (III.ii.137).

5. Do NOT use act, scene, and/or line numbers to introduce quotations.

NOT: In act 3, scene 2, line 137, Demetrius calls Helena “goddess, nymph, perfect, divine.”

6. Usually the context of your paper will mention the title of the play or the names of the characters, thus making clear which play you are quoting. If necessary, however, you may insert the MLA abbreviation of the title of the play (see 6g above) at the beginning of the parenthetical documentation.

Like this: Some pairs of comic heroines are so close that they describe themselves as “[t]wo lovely berries moulded on one stem” (MND 3.2.211) or as “Juno’s swans, / . . . coupled and inseparable” (AYL 1.3.76).

7. When parenthetical documentation immediately follows quotation marks, drop the punctuation mark at the end of the quotation (with the exception of a question mark or exclamation point), and after the parenthetical documentation place the punctuation your own sentence requires.

Like this: Rosalind bluntly advises Phebe,“Sell when you can, you are not for all markets” (3.5.60).

NOT: Rosalind bluntly advises Phebe,“Sell when you can, you are not for all markets.” (3.5.60)

Like this: Feste asks Olivia, “Good madonna, why mourn’st thou?” (1.5.67).

NOT: Feste asks Olivia, “Good madonna, why mourn’st thou” (1.5.67)?

8. Leave one space between closing quotation marks and opening parenthesis.

Like this: Feste asks Olivia,“Good madonna, why mourn’st thou?” (1.5.67).

NOT: Feste asks Olivia, “Good madonna, why mourn’st thou?”(1.5.67).

9. When you quote two (2) or three (3) lines (maximum) of poetry consecutively, place a slash mark (preceded and followed by one space) to show where one line ends and the next line begins. Do NOT use a slash mark, however, between quoted lines of prose.

Like this: Olivia admits that Orsino is “virtuous, . . . noble, / Of great estate, of fresh and stainless youth” (1.5.258-59).

NOT: Olivia admits that Orsino is “virtuous, . . . noble, Of great estate, of fresh and stainless youth” (1.5.258-59).

NOT: Olivia admits that Orsino is “virtuous, . . . noble,/Of great estate, of fresh and stainless youth” (1.5.258-59).

8. CONCLUSION
1. Conclude the essay with a one- or two-sentence paragraph that restates the thesis (in different words).
2. No other conclusion is necessary. Use your limited space to develop the body of the essay.

9. LENGTH
1. The essay should be no shorter than two and one-half (2.5) typed, double-spaced pages and no longer than three (3) pages.
2. Essays shorter than two and one-half pages (2.5) will NOT receive a satisfactory grade.
3. You will probably need the full three (3) pages to write a superior essay.

10. LIST OF PLAYS AND HEROINES
1. On a separate page after the essay, list the abbreviations of the titles of the assigned plays, the names of the heroines discussed in your paper, and the number of specific examples your paper provides for each play and each heroine. (At least three (3) examples for each play are required.)
2. The following list of plays and heroines exceeds the minimum requirement of at least three (3) examples from each assigned play:

MND 3

Hermia 2

Helena 1

Ado 4

Hero 1

Beatrice 3

AYL 4

Rosalind 4

Celia 0

TN 5

Viola 4

Olivia 1

Total 16

11. EDITING AND PROOFREADING
1. Carefully edit the draft of your essay sentence by sentence.
2. Before you print the final version of your essay, carefully proofread and use spell-check.
3. After you have printed the paper, carefully proofread it again. If you can’t reprint, make corrections in black or blue ink.

12. SUBMISSION OF ESSAY

a. To assemble your essay for submission:

i. Staple the pages of your essay.

ii. Separately from the essay, staple the pages of a clean, unmarked copy of this document.

iii. Paper-clip your essay in front of this document.

b. Submit your essay in class at 4:30 p.m. on October 5. Even if your essay is not finished or printed, be sure you are present in class at 4:30 p.m.