FIRST QUARTER WRITING RECAP

Honors World Literature

STRENGTHS

PEACE LIKE A RIVER

CONTEMPORARY CONNECTION

LEFT TO TELL

CISNEROS INTRO

NANA WHO

AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT

ORGANIZATION

➤ Pay close attention to paragraphing.

➤ It is best to begin each body paragraph with a topic sentence and end with a transition.

➤ Don’t skimp on your intro and conclusion.

➤ See the writing tips and reminders document on our website for tips on writing better intros/conclusions.

➤ Integrate your quotes

➤ Whenever possible, integrate textual evidence smoothly into your own writing.

COMMA SPLICE

➤ When you write a sentence, you must separate two independent clauses with a semicolon or a comma and a conjunction. You cannot separate two independent clauses with a comma alone.

➤ Incorrect: Sandra Cisneros is a feminist, feminism is shown throughout her writing.

➤ Correct: Sandra Cisneros is a feminist, and this is shown throughout her writing.

➤ Correct: Sandra Cisneros is a feminist; this is shown throughout her writing.

WOMAN VS. WOMEN

➤ Woman is singular.

➤ Women is plural.

➤ Is this an editing error? It drives me crazy!

SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

➤ Singular subjects need singular verbs; plural subjects need plural verbs.

➤ Jeremiah Land prays for his children.

➤ Immaculee and Damascene never see one another again.

➤ The girls play with their barbecued Barbies.

IN-TEXT CITATIONS

➤ In general, your in-text citations should include the author’s last name and the page number of the quote. Punctuation at the end of the quote should be removed, and a period should be added after the citation.

➤ “Sometimes heroism is nothing more than patience, curiosity, and a refusal to panic” (Enger 152).

➤ Exceptions

➤ Quote ending in question mark or exclamation point

➤ Multiple sources from the same author

➤ Citing a play or a poem

QUOTATIONS

➤ Quoting dialogue

➤ When quoting dialogue, use single quotes within double quotes.

➤ “‘Swede,’ Reuben called, ‘Where were you?’” (Enger 22).

➤ Block quote

➤ When your quotes are more than four lines long, delete the quotation marks, indent the entire quote, and move the final period before your in-text citation.

PRONOUN-ANTECEDENT AGREEMENT

➤ A singular pronoun must replace a singular noun; a plural pronoun must replace a plural noun.

➤ The Tutsis suffered terrible losses during the Rwandan genocide; they were murdered with astonishing cruelty.

➤ Oedipus is a tragic hero because a flaw in his character causes his downfall.

TITLES

➤ In an MLA paper, italicize the titles of long works (novels, essays, plays, epic poems, etc.) and put the titles of short works (short stories, news articles, lyric poems, etc.) in quotation marks.

➤ In Peace Like a River, Swede drives the narrative forward.

➤ In “His Story,” Cisneros shares an autobiographical account of life in a patriarchal family.

MLA HEADINGS

➤ Your Name

➤ Teacher Name

➤ Class Name

➤ Date

➤ Also remember to include a header at the top of each page.

➤ Avoid skipping extra lines before/after your title.

➤ Don’t bold or underline your title.

➤ Alphabetize your works cited page.