LIT 274 Final Essay

Lucy Harkness LIT 274 Final Essay Why Writer’s Write This semester we have read many different authors’ works. We have also learned much about each author. In many instances, you should understand why a certain author wrote a specific work. You should be able to answer the question, “Why did this author write this?” Writers can write about identity, culture, current issues, and politics. And at times all these topics can intersect. Often, writers write to advocate for social change. In your final essay, using examples from this class, write an essay showing how authors have used writing as a way to advocate or fight for social change. Specifically for this course, I want you to show how writers have used their voices to fight for equality for Blacks in this country over the last 100 years. Use specific examples—these should come from the works you choose to use and also, maybe from the author’s life and/or what was going on in the country or world when the piece was written. Requirement: You must use at least 4 examples (pieces of literature) from this class. At least one of those examples must be either Dear Martin or On the Come Up (choose at least ONE of the novels). You may choose the other three sources you use, but they must be a work we covered in this course. Format: MLA format. The essay must have proper Works Cited and in-text citations. I will be adding MLA lecture videos and resources to Week 15’s folder. Please make sure to review how to do MLA correctly—you should have covered this in ENG 110, a prerequisite for this course. Page Length: 3-5 pages. Sources: 5-6 sources are required. You may use up to 8 sources. Reach out with questions! I can’t wait to see what you learned this semester. See the writer’s checklist on the next page. Writer’s Checklist Intro: ______Essay has an introduction ______Introduction starts broadly ______Introduction includes a thesis (this is the author’s thesis) Body: _____ Body explains how writers used their voices to advocate for change. _____Body integrates a specific example, detail or quotes from sources to illustrate the writer’s ideas Conclusion: _____Conclusion starts specifically and ends on a general note _____Conclusion refers to main idea without repeating _____Conclusion leaves reader satisfied and does not end abruptly MLA: _____Paper uses in-text citations for anything that is a direct quote _____Direct quotes have a signal phrase to introduce them, and paper has no dropped quotes _____Writer includes works cited list _____Writer uses MLA format for heading, spacing and margins Mechanics: _____Writer used Standard American English throughout the paper _____Writer begins to show use of a variety of punctuation marks