Poetry Research Project Guide

1. English I Poetry Research Project Guide

2. DAY 1 – Computer Lab • Using the research databases, find two different sources to use for the biographical section of your paper – You will show me your notes for your daily grade at the end of class. • You may only use the research databases. • Remember your note taking skills as you jot down notes. You do not have to jot down every little detail, but be intentional about what you write.

3. Day 1 - Source Citation • If you like a biographical article, make sure you copy down the source citation • Make sure you click on the “biographies” tab when searching for biographical information • Remember the research databases we recommended for this project • If you finish your biographical notes today, you may move on to find your poems once you show me your notes • I will take a note grade at the end of class

4. Example of Biographical Paragraph(The following example is to show you what you will be writing next week for this section of your paper. This should help guide you in your research today.) • Sample Paragraph: David Henry Thoreau was born on July 12, 1817 in Concord, Massachusetts (Magill 1942). Twenty years after he was born in his grandmother’s farmhouse, Thoreau chose to reverse his given names, to become Henry David, even though this was not legally approved (Miller 12). Thoreau, who then went to Harvard, thought the library “was the finest resource the college had to offer" (Miller 16). Stunned by the amount of knowledge the college had to offer, Thoreau took advantage of it and soon was employed as a teacher, pencil maker, historian, tutor, philosopher and a handyman (Miller 2). Henry David Thoreau and his brother John Thoreau reopened the school they attended as children, The Concord Academy, at which they did a great deal of tutoring (Magill 1944). However, his brother passed away as a result of tuberculosis, and the Concord Academy closed. Later, Thoreau contracted tuberculosis after his social experiment in the woods that is famously known as “At Walden Pond.” This transcendentalist masterpiece “[consists] of his reflections on nature during his daily walks and comments on his readings” (Magill 1951). Other than writing journals, Thoreau fought for the rights of all men. Being an abolitionist, he refused to pay his poll tax in protest of slavery. Therefore, he was jailed for one day, but someone paid his back taxes and Thoreau was released. This experience prompted him to write “Civil Disobedience” where he states “If a law is such nature that it requires you to be the agent of injustice…then, I say, break the law” (“Henry David Thoreau”). His work inspired leaders like Ghandi and Martin Luther King, Jr. Thoreau eventually succumbed to tuberculosis and died in 1862. He not only left behind two published works but a very influential journal (Magill 1954). Post-mortem, his reputation was very strong and his work so rich that he is called “A man for all seasons” (Miller 20).

5. Before we leave… • I will show you some tips for the research databases…

6. Day 2 – Computer Lab • First, you need to finish all of your notes from yesterday for the biographical section of your project • Make sure you have notes from 2 different sources • Objective for today: Find two poems from the research databases and print them out for Monday (in class on Monday you will TPLIT these two poems) • If you do not find your two poems by the end of class today, it will be homework over the weekend • YOU HAVE to have your poems in class because I do not have the computer lab reserved for Monday • I will show you a few tips for finding your poems before we leave…

7. Day 3 – In Class • Today you will TPLIT each poem on your TPLIT sheet. • I expect this to be your best work so please be thorough and write neatly. • Remember to identify at least 5 poetic devices in each poem. • Remember to write a complete sentence for “Literal Meaning” and “Theme”. • Tomorrow: Make sure you have all of your citations with you and access to Google docs for tomorrow’s lesson.

8. Day 4 – Works Cited Page • What is MLA? • It stands for Modern Language Association • Collegiate expectation for documentation of borrowed sources in writings relating to literature, humanities, and language. • Visit the following website: http://www.mla.org/style

9. What is a Works Cited Page? • It is a page that displays all of your sources on one page with correct citations according to MLA format. • Where can I find this information? • What if a source does not have an author? • I will answer these questions and more!

10. What goes on the Works Cited Page? • The Works Cited page… • contains the title, “Works Cited” • includes a list of all sources used to create the actual text of the research paper and they are in alphabetical order

11. Works Cited Format • Double Space the entire page • Make sure you type each citation and then indent if it goes to a second line • Do I cite all of my sources even if I do not end up using one of them? Yes • Do I have to cite where I got my poems from? Yes • Do I still add a citation without an author? Yes

12. Works Cited Page Checklist: • Times New Roman font • 12 point • One inch margins • Entire Page is double spaced • Center align the title: Works Cited (do not bold) • All sources are on this page including where you found your poems • Sources are listed in alphabetical order • Hanging indent as needed • Italicize book titles! Quotation marks around article titles! • Correct punctuation of source entries, as noted on the Citations and Notes Packet • No URL links • Do not forget Web or Print • Do not forget punctuation

13. Notice the citations without authors – they are still in alphabetical order Works Cited “Croatia.” The New Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia. New York: Penguin, 1991. 2:192- 195. Print. Eco, Umberto. Foucault’s Pendulum. San Diego: Harcourt, 1989. Print. Franklin, Benjamin. The Autobiography and Other Writings. Ed. Kenneth Silverman. New York: Penguin, 1986. Print. Harrison, Patricia. Personal Interview. 19 Feb. 1993. Kermode, Frank. “Criticism Without Machinery.” Literary Reflections, by R.W.B. Lewis. New York Times Book Review, 11 July 1993. Print. Leland, John. “The Impolitic: Fashion and its Critics Sell the Same Stereotypes.” Newsweek, 16 June 1996. Print. “The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL)”. Web. 12 Feb. 2008. Notice if you go to a second line in your citation, you should indent the second line Notice the date format above

14. What if I need additional help? To see a list of criteria for an MLA Works Cited page visit: Works Cited Page Notes Link Or The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL)

15. Independent Work • Your turn: Please gather all of your source citations from your notes and begin typing your Works Cited Page • Yes, you can copy and paste the citations from the research databases so you do not have to type all of them out • ALL sources should go on this page, including the sources you got your poems from • If you add more sources from now until the end of our research project, please add them on for your final submission • Make sure your Google docs account is set up and ready to go for this week

16. Homework: THESIS STATEMENTS • You need a focus before we begin the writing process. • What is a thesis? • A thesis statement declares what you intend to prove. A good thesis statement makes the difference between a thoughtful research project and a simple retelling of facts.

17. Thesis Statements Continued • Thesis Statement Example: • Emily Dickinson often reveals parallels of her life through her poetry, combining ambiguity with her creative poetic writing style; she crosses boundaries of diverse punctuation and diction to bring forth many tragic themes through a nonconventional format that left her life a mystery to many. • Do we know the main topic/point of the paper? • Get to the point of your paper, but make it evident to the reader what your paper will be about. Your thesis can be more than one sentence and it needs to be insightful.

18. Thesis Statements Continued • Based off of your research and notes right now, make a claim about your poet and decide what direction you want to go as a writer. • Please use the thesis worksheet provided to create your thesis. You will write your final thesisat the bottom and turn in to me for approval at the end of class. • I’m here to guide you, but remember YOU are the writer and YOU make choices about YOUR paper. I will not write this paper for you – I did not complete research on your author.

19. DAY 5 – Biographical Biographical Section: • Your biographical section should be no more than one - two paragraphs. Include only the most salient (that is, the most important) information. • This section must include information from at least two different sources. You may not simply paraphrase one source, no matter how good it is. Essentially copying the information from another source is a pointless endeavor.

20. Biographical Section • Can I include interesting quotes that my author said? Yes, please do! • Can I include facts that I found interesting? Yes, you are the writer – you make the choices! • Do I use “I believe”, “I concluded” and add my own opinion?Avoid phrases with personal pronouns; however, you can add your own opinion without using personal pronouns – yes, draw conclusions about your author and add your own commentary, but remember it is a formal academic paper, not a personal encounter with the author. Do not refer to your author by their first name – he/she is not your BFF!

21. Could there be a citation at the end of every sentence? • Absolutely! Remember that you completed research and all of your information and ideas came from your research; therefore, even though you combine your own writing with your research notes, you still have to give credit.

22. Example of Citing Sources • Coulthard sees the story written to show our world’s hunger, to execute and “fulfills a deep and horrifying need” (Coulthard 27). While Coulthard argues that the story’s gruesomeness meets our wants, Jennifer Hicks argues that maybe Jackson was “looking into the future of the American society” that is obsessed with reports of “dysfunctional families, dysfunctional individuals, murder and mayhem” (Hicks 5). She feels that “The Lottery” is ahead of its time and that maybe Shirley Jackson was giving us a peek into the future of us not even wincing when we see someone murdered. These are just a couple of examples of critics who view “The Lottery” as a “wake up call” to our society, but there are still several different views of the short story (“The Wisher” ). * Notice this source does not have an author; therefore, the student cited the first two words. She also put the title in quotation marks since it was a short story title.

23. Biographical - Basic rules for proper source citation: •   The first word that should appear in the source citation should correspond to the first word of the corresponding entry as it is on your Works Cited Page.  2.      A page number is required when the corresponding source has page numbers (all books and reference books).  An interview, research database, or web information, for example will not require a page number. 3.      If the first word of the source citation corresponds to the first word of two or more entries on the works cited page, then additional clarifying information is needed.  See me if you have questions – you might include the first word of the book example (Edgar Allan; American). Example #2 (Ralph Waldo; Modern).

24. Giving Credit to Sources • Even if you paraphrase or summarize a source, you must give credit or it is considered plagiarism! • If you copied notes from a source and wrote them word for word, make sure you put quotation marks around them and give credit at the end of the sentence – they are not your words!