PopeJohnPaulHigh School

English IV

Senior Research Paper – 2015

Assignment:

In a five-to-seven page literary research paper based upon the American Dream, you will explore the following essential questions along with six additional questions that you will pose:

  • What is the American Dream?
  • How does literature shape or reflect society?
  • What makes American literature American?
  • What is the relationship between literature and place?

Your questions may not be questions that generate yes/no or one-word answers. The questions must be constructed to generate research. See me if you need assistance with construction of your questions.

During the Modernist Period, the American profile included these varied identities and character types:

  • Denizen of the WasteLand: wanderer through a war-wearied landscape, spiritually exhausted, in search of new values, defined by T.S. Eliot
  • Member of the Lost Generation: disillusioned, self-indulgent, escapist, expatriated – embodied by Fitzgerald and Hemingway
  • Triumphant Commoner: believer in the innate strength of those who remain close to the land, led by Faulkner, Welty, and Steinbeck.
  • Poetic Maker: believer in the saving power of art and the imagination, championed by Pound, Stevens, Williams, Cummings, Moore, and Frost.

Tasks:

  1. Choose a time period from between the end of WWI up until WWII and research the Modernist Period in American society and the search for the American Dream. Consider the major social and political events that affected American writers in the first half of the twentieth century. Identify both authors and pieces of literature generated from that time period. Choose to research events, writers, art, music, pastimes such as sports, and literature from one of the following time periods:
  • The Roaring Twenties
  • The Harlem Renaissance
  • The Great Depression
  • The New Deal
  • World War II, the Atomic Bomb, and the Holocaust.
  • You will narrow your topic in order to avoid becoming too overwhelmed with the wealth of material that each era contains. We will discuss how to do this in class.
  1. You will read at least one book from your chosen time period – The following are just some suggestions; see me if you need a copy of any of these books, and I will try to get them for you. You may need to visit your local library:
  • The Great Gatsby
  • As I Lay Dying
  • Of Mice and Men
  • The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid
  • Their Eyes Were Watching God
  • The Awakening
  • The House on Mango Street
  • Song of Solomon
  • The Grapes of Wrath
  1. You will also incorporate research using some of the short stories and poetry we discussed in class along with poetry and short stories you may find that were not discussed in class. Additionally, you may use art, film, essays, articles, and other primary source documents for research. See me for help with this.
  1. All work will be placed on Noodle Tools, including your Research Questions, Thesis Statement, Note Cards, Sources, Formal Outline, Works Cited Page, and the Google Document on which you construct your Research Paper. Your tasks will be completed in the following order. You will have deadline dates for each task.
  • Research Questions – due March Tuesday, March 3
  • Construction of Note Cards / Works Cited Page – Sources will be recorded as you construct your Note Cards on Noodle Tools – at least 30 note cards -Due March 11 – These will be constructed in school and at home for homework. You must have a minimum of five sources for your Works Cited Page.
  • Construction of Thesis Statement – due March 12
  • Construction of a Documented Formal SENTENCE Outline – due March 19 – Refer to the example given in class and on my website. Also follow the Formal Outline Instructions exactly; they appear on my website and you also should have a handout received in class, outlining exactly how you are to create the Formal Outline.
  • Construction of your Research Paper on the Noodle Tools Google Document Page –first draft due March 27. Please type your paper only on the Google Doc that appears on Noodle Tools so that all of your work appears on the Noodle Tools Site. Do not create a separate Google Drive Document that is not attached to the Noodle Tools site.
  • Revised and Edited Research Paper uploaded to Turnitin.com – due April 3.
  • Revision and Editing are the most important parts of the paper, so make sure that you allow yourself sufficient time to complete these two essential pieces of the writing process.
  1. Your research paper should include these elements:
  2. A clear thesis statement: Consider the following examples of weak thesis statements vs. a strong thesis statement:
  • Weak: Anti-slavery pamphlets first appeared in 1704.
  • Weak: Pamphlets were very influential in ending slavery.
  • Strong: Beginning in 1704, anti-slavery pamphlets increasingly used the tools of advertising to persuade readers that slavery was immoral.
  • Factual support from varied approved sources and databases, including primary and secondary sources found in both electronic and print texts.There will be a link to our Library Databases on my website.
  • Wikipedia is a source that is not permitted for this paper.
  • Sources that end with .org, .net, and .gov are considered reliable sources. Avoid Googling to locate sources.
  • Direct quotations and proper citations of sources using MLA Format – we will have a lesson on the proper way to cite researched material.
  • Logical organization, including introduction, body, and conclusion
  • A properly formatted Works Cited Page – this will be the last numbered page of your paper.
  • After completion of the Research Paper on Noodle Tools, you will upload your paper to Turnitin.com.

General Format of the Paper:

Part I: Definition of the American Dream: Begin your paper by introducing a definition of the American Dream. Make sure that your research includes answers to the essential questions posed above as well as answers to additional questions you pose. You will place your thesis statement at the end of this definition paragraph. Your Thesis Statement should make a claim that your paper will support; it must be arguable, and cannot state a simple and obvious fact. See the examples above.

Part II: The Body of your Paper: Each topic sentence should introduce an answer to one of your ten research questions. Each time you introduce a new topic, you begin a new indented paragraph. Your paragraphs should include an equal balance of quoted material, paraphrased material and your own analysis of the quoted and paraphrased material. All quoted and paraphrased material MUST be followed by a parenthetical citation acknowledging your researched source. * You will have many citations in your paper.

  • All quotations must be not only introduced, but you must also analyze the quotations with an explanation of why it supports your thesis. It is never correct to just plop a quotation into a paper without and introduction and an explanation.
  • You must be careful not to use too many quotations or only a few. Make sure you refer to the Model Research Paper Handout as a guide.
  • Also refer to the Research Paper Survival Guide which appears on my website to help you with questions regarding all aspects of the Research Paper, including revising, editing, punctuation, capitalization, formatting, integrating quotations, plagiarism, etc.

Part III: The Conclusion: In the conclusion, you will sum up the main points of your paper (refer to your topic sentences), you will restate your thesis, and you will bring your paper to a satisfactory close with a final analysis statement. See the Model Research Paper for an example of the correct way to conclude your paper.

Part IV: The Works Cited Page: This is the last numbered page of your paper. It must be formatted correctly. Noodle Tools will do this for you after you complete the entering of all source material. See the example in the Model Research Paper.

Remember: Plagiarism will not be tolerated and will result in a zero for the project.

  • Anyone failing to submit work by the deadlines indicated above will be assigned to Academic Detention with Mrs. Graeber as well as to Private Detention with me in order to complete the paper on time. The Administration along with Coaches and Moderators of all teams and activities will be notified with the names of students who are not following the timeline for this Research Paper Project.