1. I NTRODUCTIONS, T HESIS S TATEMENTS, C ONCLUSIONS, T OPIC S ENTENCES, AND Q UOTE I NTRODUCTIONS (and other tips for writing your paper)

5. I NTRODUCTION Begin with a general statement. Mention titles of works of literature and authors’ names Give a brief (no more than a sentence) overview of the story Provide a thesis statement as the last sentence.

6. S TART WITH GENERAL ; NARROW TO THESIS. General, universal statement More specific—titles and authors, brief overviews of stories Most specific— thesis statement

7. S AMPLE I NTRODUCTION Flood stories are a common archetype in many cultures. The Epic of Gilgamesh, a Sumerian myth, and “Noah and the Flood,” a Hebrew myth, both include an account of a great flood brought to the earth in order to destroy all of humankind. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, a character named Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh about a story of a great flood which he survived by building a boat. From the book of Genesis, “Noah and the Flood” features a religious man selected by God to build an ark in order to survive the great flood. These two stories have many similarities and differences which often reflect the differences between Sumerian and Hebrew culture.

8. T OPIC S ENTENCES The first sentence of each body paragraph should state the main idea of the paragraph. This sentence is the topic sentence. After stating the main idea, give quotes from the text that support your main idea. For this paper, what will be the main idea of your first body paragraph? Second body paragraph?

9. C ONCLUSION Begin by restating the thesis statement in a new way. Restate the main points that supported your thesis statement. This could be a quick list of the evidences you included in the body paragraphs. End with an insightful conclusion or another universal statement. Shoot for six words or less in this sentence.

10. R ECAP THESIS, ARGUMENTS, EVIDENCE ; THEN ADD NEW CONCLUSION OR INSIGHT. Restate thesis statement in a new way. Restate arguments and evidences. End with conclusion or insight NOTE: Never include new evidence in conclusion.

11. I NTRODUCING Q UOTATIONS Never let a quote stand alone in your paper as a complete sentence (or as an incomplete sentence). If your quote is not introduced, it will seem disconnected from your own writing, and it will break up the flow of your sentences. There are three main ways to introduce quotations.

12. 1.I NTRODUCE A QUOTE WITH A COMPLETE SENTENCE AND A COLON. Appropriate when there are no first person pronouns in the quotation. Example Enkidu’s dream reveals the pessimistic afterworld of the Sumerians: “There is the house whose people sit in darkness; dust is their food and clay their meat” (23).

13. 2.I NTRODUCE A QUOTE WITH AN EXPLANATORY PHRASE FOLLOWED BY A COMMA. You must use this method when there are first person pronouns in the quote. You will also use some verb such as “says,” “believes,” “recalls,” etc. You should also use this method if the quote has character as a speaker. Use the explanatory phrase to tell who is speaking, to whom, and in what context.

14. I NTRODUCE A QUOTE WITH AN EXPLANATORY PHRASE FOLLOWED BY A COMMA. Examples After the flood, God says to Noah, “Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood” (174). While trying to convince Gilgamesh to have no mercy, Enkidu says, “The strongest of men will fall to fate if he has no judgment” (21).

15. 3.I NTRODUCE A QUOTATION BY MAKING THE QUOTE PART OF YOUR OWN SENTENCE WITHOUT USING EXTRA PUNCTUATION ( BESIDES QUOTATION MARKS ). After the serpent takes Gilgamesh’s plant, he “sat down and wept” (32). Utnapishtim tells his wife to “bake loaves of bread” to mark the days Gilgamesh sleeps (30). Notice that there is also no comma after “bread” or “wept.”

16. 3. I NTRODUCE A QUOTATION BY MAKING THE QUOTE PART OF YOUR OWN SENTENCE WITHOUT USING EXTRA PUNCTUATION ( BESIDES QUOTATION MARKS ). Utnapishtim tells his wife that “all men are deceivers” (30). Notice that the word “that” makes it unnecessary to use a comma in the quote introduction.

17. O THER PUNCTUATION NOTES ABOUT QUOTATIONS Use ellipses to indicate deletions from quotes. Example Dillard says that the weasel “bites his prey at the neck…and he does not let go.”

18. O THER PUNCTUATION NOTES ABOUT QUOTATIONS Use brackets to indicate additions or slight changes regarding nouns (when pronouns have unclear antecedents) or tense (if you want to keep your writing in present tense). Example Dillard was “stunned into stillness as [the weasel] was emerging from beneath an enormous shaggy wild rose bush four feet away.”

19. M ORE N OTES ABOUT Q UOTATIONS Avoid including very long quotations. Use single quotation marks for a quote within a quote. Never begin or end a paragraph with a quote.

20. F ORBIDDEN P HRASES It says This paper I, you, we, us, our, your (unless in a direct quotation) Quote Excerpt from the text Genesis says The Epic of Gilgamesh says

21. MLA F ORMAT Double-spaced throughout Times New Roman 12 point font 1 inch margins Heading in upper left corner Page numbers and student’s last name in upper right corner Title that is centered but not underlined, in italics, in bold, etc.

22. MLA F ORMAT Heading in upper left corner Student’s first and last name Teacher’s name (Mrs. Peterson) Class name (English II Honors) Due date (1 October 2011)

23. MLA F ORMAT Page numbers in upper right corner Go to View Header and Footer Hit Control R Type your last name and one space Click on the number symbol icon (#). It’s the first icon in the toolbar. Click Close.

24. A FEW MORE TIPS … Use present tense when writing about literature. Literature never dies! Avoid plot summary. Organize material logically, not chronologically. Use transition words to add to logical flow. In topic sentences Between pieces of evidence In first sentence of conclusion