1. Start Broad Talk about the time period, genre of writing or some other broad category that your author is a part of. In the early 19 th century, a new style of writing began to grip the literary world. Dark Romanticism began in Europe, but it soon made its way to America where it became very popular among readers of the 1800s.

2. Narrow Down Begin to mention your author and story and relate him to the broader topic. Edgar Allan Poe was the best known Dark Romantic writer in America. His short stories and poems fascinated audiences with its tales of the bizarre and macabre. One of his famous pieces is the “Masque of the Red Death.”

3. Narrow Down More Write a clear and concise/brief synopsis or summary of the story In this short story, Prince Prospero attempts to avoid the Red Death that is ravaging his country by barricading himself and his friends in his castle. However, when the prince throws a masquerade party, an uninvited guest appears and inflicts dire consequences on the prince and his friends.

4. Conclude with Thesis The thesis tells the reader what you are trying to prove with your paper and needs to mention both areas of focus – symbolism and mood. The “Masque of the Red Death” is a typical Dark Romantic story based on its eerie and mysterious mood and its use of symbols that represent life and death.

5. Combine In the early 19 th century, a new style of writing began to grip the literary world. Dark Romanticism began in Europe, but it soon made its way to America where it became very popular among readers of the 1800s. Edgar Allan Poe was the best know Dark Romantic writer in America. His short stories and poems fascinated audiences with its tales of the bizarre and macabre. One of his famous pieces is the “Masque of the Red Death.” In this short story, Prince Prospero attempts to avoid the Red Death that is ravaging his country by barricading himself and his friends in his castle. However, when the prince throws a masquerade party, an uninvited guest appears and inflicts dire consequences on the prince and his friends. The “Masque of the Red Death” is a typical Dark Romantic story based on its eerie and mysterious mood and its use of symbols that represent life and death.

6. 8.2 Paragraph The 8 means there will be a total of EIGHT sentences in the paragraph. The.2 means that of those 8 sentences, TWO direct quotes. Here is the breakdown of the entire formula: Topic sentence introducing subject for first body paragraph A direct quotation from the reading that supports (or serves as evidence to) your answer in sentence one. 3 & 4. Sentences three and four are commentary sentences. Commentary is when you make a comment about the quote, clearly explaining to your reader why you selected this quote. It should explain what is significant about the quote and how it connects to your answer in sentence one. You need to have two commentary sentences following a quote.

7. 8.2 Paragraph A second direct quote that supports (or serves as evidence to) your answer in sentence one. 6 & 7. Sentences six and seven are commentary sentences. Commentary is when you make a comment about the quote, clearly explaining to your reader why you selected this quote. It should explain what is significant about the quote and how it connects to your answer in sentence one. You need to have two commentary sentences following a quote. This is your concluding sentence. This is the place where you “wrap it up,” or restate your answer in sentence one in such a way as to emphasize your point.

8. Example The most prominent characteristic of dark romanticism Poe uses in “The Raven” is the demonic figure of the raven itself. The raven, as it appears to the narrator in his chamber, is asked for “what [his] lordly name is on the Night’s Plutonian shore” (314). Plutonian is a direct correlation to the land of the dead in Greek mythology as Pluto is the god of the underworld. Based on the narrator’s assumption that the raven has arrived from hell, the bird is established early on as a demonic symbol. As the poem progresses and the narrator grows more incensed at the raven’s presence he screams, “prophet…thing of evil, prophet still, if bird or devil” in response to the bird’s repetition of “nevermore” (315, 316). The narrator himself refers to the raven as a “devil” and “thing of evil”. This establishes the raven as a demon in the narrator’s mind, creating a sense of doom and oppression that the narrator must endure as the bird sits above his chamber door, never leaving. Based on the references the narrator himself applies to the raven, the bird is established as a demonic, evil symbol throughout the poem.