Posted: September 13th, 2017

Final ENG

Final ENG

Order Description

Things to look at:
audience To whom, and in what context, for what occasion, are you writing?
thesis Not simply a topic, but a clear statement of what you are trying to claim and to show.
introduction Does it grab? (Or does it simply start, clearing its throat of some verbal phlegm ball?)
conclusion Does it add something new? (Don’t just summarize what you’ve already said.)
paragraphs Break your writing into intelligible units, reflecting transitions of thought.
focus Do you stick to the topic and to your point, within paragraphs and from paragraph
to paragraph and in the paper as a whole?
sequence Does your thinking flow through the paper like the vertebrae of a snake?
transitions Do you make it clear why you move from A to B, B to C, etc.? (Consider at all levels:
[tr.?] between paragraphs, from sentence to sentence, and within sentences.)
concrete language Have you used, where possible, words that let your reader see what you are saying?
evidence/detail Have you indicated what, specifically, leads to you claim what you claim?
plot Avoid mere summary; but consider what details you need to include for this audience.
comparison Consider both similarities and differences (what do we learn by putting these things
together?)
Markings:
awk. Stands for “awkward,” but marks a range of awkward, ungraceful, incoherent, and generally
screwed up sentences. Cf. “unclear.”
unclear Means I don’t get what you’re saying (or even if I do, you don’t deserve that any reader does).
There is no definite line between “unclear” and “awk.” The unclarity (or awkwardness) may
lie in the wording or in the thought or even in a careless typo.
v [a check mark] Means “this is good,” and the bigger the mark the better I liked it.
c.s. comma splice (two clauses merely connected by a comma, their relation left unspecified)
r.o. run-on sentence (no punctuation or conjunction between independent clauses)
frag. fragment, or incomplete sentence used inappropriately
d.m. dangling modifier or other modifier problem (normally an introductory phrase or clause that
implies a different subject than we actually find when we get to the main part of the sentence;
often amusing: “After finishing my homework, the dog was given her dinner”)
ref.? what the marked word refers to (its “antecedent”) is ambiguous
sp. spelling error
[circled] usually indicates some error or problem (what is it?) (perhaps something I’ve marked earlier)
rep. repetitious (you say the same thing twice)
par. parallel grammatical construction would make your point clearer or more graceful
¶ start a new paragraph here (“no ¶” would mean don’t start a new paragraph here)
etc. fix this problem throughout the paper (I probably haven’t marked further occurrences)
title? give your paper a useful title
page #s Put page numbers in the upper righthand corner of every page except the first.
s.n. See these notes.
Other matters:
In addition to having good titles and having page numbers, papers should be double-spaced, have decent
margins (c. 1″), be printed on a single side, and be stapled in the upper left corner. Be sure to put your name
on it (and for safety’s sake, my name, and the course and section number). (Do not use “report folders.”)
punctuation:
commas in a series (always include the comma after the item before the word “and” [in order to
distinguish between series and appositives])
commas in pairs (esp. around “restrictive” and “non-restrictive” phrases and appositive phrases)
placement of quotation marks (incl. outside commas and periods)
the colon to introduce a quotation
the semicolon (esp. with “however”)
Citations and quoting:
Quote accurately.
Note that footnote (and endnote) numbers go outside both commas and periods, as well as outside
quotation marks, if any.
General: Use efficient in-text citation (Ferris 18), based on a list of “Works Cited” on a final page;
in the in-text citation, include only what is needed to make the reference unambiguous; if it’s clear you
are citing Ferris or other normal prose text, a mere page number will do (18). (You don’t need “p.” But
note that “p.” refers to a single page and “pp.” to more than one page.) “Works Cited” pages should
follow either MLA or APA style, depending on your major. (If in doubt, use MLA.)
Using ellipsis: indicate omitted material with three dots, with spaces between, as in . . . that. If you are
quoting a short bit with no internal material omitted, you can normally not use ellipsis at the beginning
or end of the bit (e.g., “feed the dog” rather than “. . . feed the dog . . .” when you are quoting text that
says “He said I should feed the dog when I saw her teeth.”)
Titles: Underline or italicize play, novel, book, and movie titles (instead of using quotation marks). (Do not
italicize “and” in a list of titles.)
Before turning your paper in:
Try to re-read your own paper as if you were seeing it for the first time. Consider asking a friend to
read it and give you advice. Then make appropriate changes.
Proofread your paper. Run a spellcheck, but don’t assume it will catch all problems. (It won’t catch “it’s”
for “its” or “there” for “their” or “he” for “his”