WRITING #1.0: Comparative Analysis Paper English 1302 Spring 2015 SYNOPSIS OF TASK Americans love independence. It is at the very core of the nation’s foundations. Many of our most cherished ideals come from individuality and the right to choose our own path in life. Rebels and outlaws can become innovators and icons. Despite this, we also share a great love for being a part of something bigger. Americans also have a great desire to fit in and belong. Being outside the norm, in any way, carries with it the possibility being ostracized. It comes as no surprise then, that these conflicting ideals can cause a lot of problems for people. This struggle between conformity and rebellion is a popular topic for writers. The works listed below all discuss this broad topic in one way or another Battle Royal by Ralph Ellison 283-294 The Lottery by Shirley Jackson 415-421 Two Kinds by Amy Tan 636-643 “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost 811 “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy 1023 “We Real Cool” by Gwendolyn Brooks 732 “The Man He Killed” by Thomas Hardy 689 “Dulce et Decorum Est” by Wilfred Owen 909 “The Soldier” by Rupert Brooke 910 “Harlem” by Langston Hughes 762 “The Unknown Citizen” by W. H. Auden (http://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/unknown- citizen) For this assignment, using at least four of the works listed above, you will write a paper that compares what the writers say, and then (briefly) comment on what the writers say in your conclusion. In other words, by your paper will (1) identify and summarize essential points made by the writers and (2) compare/contrast those points, based on what the writers argue. Such analysis of sources is a common practice both in college writing and in the writing of scholars. Your “commenting” will occur in the conclusion, where you can evaluate the strengths and/or weaknesses of the authors’ arguments. You will give no evaluation in the paper prior to this point. The completed paper will be 3-4 pages in length (double spaced and not including the works cited page) SPECIAL FEATURES OF THE TASK. Probably the most difficult part of your task for this paper will be the connections you make among the articles you choose. These primary connections (“themes,” “points,” “ideas”) will, of course, represent what is in the articles, but making such connections is a matter of your input: your accurate, insightful reading, interpretation, and analysis. Although you will need to reproduce accurately what is in the articles, your paper’s real success lies in how insightful your connections are among the four articles. Try to find areas in which the works share a common ground, as well as looking for ways in which they are different from each other. All the works have something to say about rebellion, conformity, or both. No two works say the exact same thing, nor do they say similar things in the exact same w.

1. WRITING #1.0: Comparative Analysis Paper
English 1302
Spring 2015
SYNOPSIS OF TASK
Americans love independence. It is at the very core of the
nation’s foundations. Many of our
most cherished ideals come from individuality and the right to
choose our own path in life.
Rebels and outlaws can become innovators and icons. Despite
this, we also share a great love
for being a part of something bigger. Americans also have a
great desire to fit in and belong.
Being outside the norm, in any way, carries with it the
possibility being ostracized. It comes as
no surprise then, that these conflicting ideals can cause a lot of
problems for people. This
struggle between conformity and rebellion is a popular topic for
writers. The works listed below
all discuss this broad topic in one way or another

2. Battle Royal by Ralph Ellison 283-294
The Lottery by Shirley Jackson 415-421
Two Kinds by Amy Tan 636-643
“The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost 811
“Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy 1023
“We Real Cool” by Gwendolyn Brooks 732
“The Man He Killed” by Thomas Hardy 689
“Dulce et Decorum Est” by Wilfred Owen 909
“The Soldier” by Rupert Brooke 910
“Harlem” by Langston Hughes 762
“The Unknown Citizen” by W. H. Auden
(http://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/unknown-
citizen)

3. For this assignment, using at least four of the works listed
above, you will write a paper that
compares what the writers say, and then (briefly) comment on
what the writers say in your
conclusion.
In other words, by your paper will (1) identify and summarize
essential points made by the
writers and (2) compare/contrast those points, based on what the
writers argue. Such analysis of
sources is a common practice both in college writing and in the
writing of scholars. Your
“commenting” will occur in the conclusion, where you can
evaluate the strengths and/or
weaknesses of the authors’ arguments. You will give no
evaluation in the paper prior to
this point.
The completed paper will be 3-4 pages in length (double spaced
and not including the works
cited page)

4. SPECIAL FEATURES OF THE TASK.
Probably the most difficult part of your task for this paper will
be the connections you make
among the articles you choose. These primary connections
(“themes,” “points,” “ideas”) will, of
course, represent what is in the articles, but making such
connections is a matter of your
input: your accurate, insightful reading, interpretation, and
analysis. Although you will
need to reproduce accurately what is in the articles, your
paper’s real success lies in how
insightful your connections are among the four articles. Try to
find areas in which the works
share a common ground, as well as looking for ways in which
they are different from each
other. All the works have something to say about rebellion,
conformity, or both. No two works
say the exact same thing, nor do they say similar things in the
exact same way. Strong
responses will go beyond merely labeling works as “pro-
rebellion” or “pro-conformity”,
and will differentiate finite and subtle differences.

5. You’ll also be creating a Works Cited page. We’ll review in
class how to organize the page and
the MLA format that’s used to put it all together. A Works
Cited page is a requirement for all
research-based papers in this class and in other courses you’ll
take at TCC.
AUDIENCE.
As for all writings this semester, Writing #1.0 is to be written in
the rhetorical context of the
first-year writing community at TCC: other 1302 students and
teachers. Assume that these
readers have not necessarily read the articles you are writing
about (assume that while
these readers are unfamiliar with the sources you’ll be using,
they will be interested in
following your discussion of your ideas). This means that the
paper will have to background
and clarify each article’s contents as it goes along.
COMPOSING PROCESS.
As you work on this paper, apply the process principles you
learned in English 1301 and then

6. add new ones we have been working on in class: mark the
margins of the articles as it relates
to the assignment; turn your marginal comments and markings
to notes; invent tentative
points; prepare a rough draft; concentrate on constructive
revision; edit and proofread your
final draft before turning it in.
WHAT TO TURN IN: Turn in these items in your folder:
Complete Rough Draft, and
Rough Draft Reading Sheet. The final draft will be submitted
via Blackboard/MyTCC.
EVALUATION CRITERIA.
As I evaluate your paper, I will be asking the following
questions:
1. Does the paper’s thesis clearly indicate what major points
will be discussed within the
paper?
2. How well-developed, complete, and clear are the connections
that the writer makes
among the different pieces?

7. 3. How well are sources referenced: Are quotations used to
support your view of what
each writer is saying about conformity and/or rebellion? Are
they integrated with
surrounding text? Do they function with paraphrases,
summaries, and clarification
materials? Are paraphrases really paraphrases and not
plagiarism?
4. How well is the paper organized: overall? At paragraph
levels? From sentence to
sentence?
5. How clear and fluid is the writer’s style? Is it easy to read?
Are there awkward or
cluttered parts? Is the style appropriate for an academic
audience?
6. How well does the writer control print-mechanics: grammar?
usage? punctuation?
spelling?
7. Is there an appropriate heading or title page for the paper? Is
there a works cited page
written in MLA format?
Content 70 points (Intro 20- Discussion and Support 50)
Excellent Intro: 20( All components present, Clear Thesis, Well
integrated reference, Effective
Lead-In)

8. Strong Intro 15 (All components present, Clear Thesis,
Reference is present but weak, Lead-In
is present but weak)
Average Intro: 10 (All components present, Thesis is present
but is somewhat vague, Reference
is present but poorly integrated or explained, Lead-In may not
be present or does not connect to
the Thesis)
Weak Intro: 0-5 (Components missing, Thesis is not present or
unclear, Reference is not present
or is poorly integrated or unexplained, Lead-In is not present or
does not connect to Thesis)
Excellent Disc and Support: 50 (Strong and clear points, All
points clearly linked back to
thesis, Strong development and explanation of ideas,
Conclusion is on point.)
Strong Disc and Support: 40-45 (Points are strong or clear but
likely not both, Not all points
may be linked back to thesis, Development is weak or lacking in
some areas, Conclusion is
mostly on point but may contain too much summary or wander
off point.

9. Average Disc and Support: 30-35 (Points are fairly clear but
may be vague or difficult to
discern at first, Points may not be directly linked back to thesis,
Development is more average or
weak in areas than in strong paper, One or more sections may
not work well or feel off topic,
Conclusion is primarily summary or is mostly off topic.
Weak Disc and Support: 0-25 (Points are fairly unclear or not
present, No clear link back to
thesis, Development is very weak or non-existent, Paper may be
shorter than minimum
requirement, Paper may be based around unsupported material
or generalizations, Paper may not
be following the assignment sheet instructions.
Organization 15 points (poor: No clear organizational scheme 0,
weak: Some kind of
organization is present, but it is weak 5, average 10: Clear
organization but some topic sentences
are weak or non-existent, strong 15: Clear organization and
strong topic sentences)
Grammar and Mechanics 10 (excessive mistakes 0, moderate
amount 5, low amount 10)
Technical 5 (major technical issues 0, minor or no technical

10. issues 5)
SCHEDULE OF DATES AND ACTIVITIES
Wednesday, Jan 21:. Introduction to class, Hand out and
discuss course syllabus, discuss active
reading and academic writing, go over W 1.0 assignment sheet.
For Friday: In CL read 2-16
and Battle Royal 283-294. Answer Reading Questions on
Blackboard by beginning of class
on Friday.
Friday, Jan 23: Reading Quiz 1. Discuss Battle Royal, Discuss
literary terminology, Begin
notes on W 1.0 organization. For Monday: In CL read The
Lottery 415-421 and Two Kinds
636-643
Monday, Jan 26: Reading Quiz 2, Discuss The Lottery and Two
Kinds, notes over W 1.0
organization.. For Wednesday: In CL read 652-659, 662-665,
and all assigned poetry (Poems
are the works in quotations marks on the reading list)

11. Wednesday, Jan 28: Reading Quiz 3, Discuss poetry, Group
activity. For Friday: Rough
Draft of introduction due. In RFW read 464-479
Friday, Jan 30: Discuss basics of MLA citation, Review
organization of paper, In-class time to
work on paper if time permits. For Monday: One page of rough
draft due, In CL read pages 17-
32 and in RFW read 479-483.
Monday, Feb 2: Check Draft. Quiz over MLA, Discuss basics of
integrating sources, Begin
Class review of readings. For Wednesday: Second group
activity day. Bring one new page of
draft to class.
Wednesday Feb 4: Check Draft. Group activity, Open question
time. For Friday: Bring one
new page of draft or completed rough draft to class.
Friday, Feb 6: Final Review Day. Test 1 For Monday: Rough
Draft Reading. Bring
Completed Rough Draft of paper (Works Cited page optional).
Monday, Feb 9: Rough Draft Reading Day . For Wednesday:
W 1.0 Due
Wednesday, Feb 11: W 1.0 Due. Begin work on W 2.0