Distortion vs. Literary Realism Essay English IV HN
Purpose
This assignment will help you begin to make sense of how literature and its authors communicate meaning. You will gain a more thorough understanding of 1984 as well as practice with writing literary essays.
Prompt
In questioning the value of literary realism, Flannery O’Conner has written, “ I am interested in making a good case for distortion because I am coming to believe that it is the only way to make people see.”
Write an essay in which you make a good case for distortion as distinct from literary realism. Base your essay on Orwell’s 1984. Analyze how important elements of this work are distorted and explain how these distortions contribute to the effectiveness of the novel as a whole.
Nuts and Bolts
Your essay should have an introduction, body, and conclusion, and should more-or-less follow the Schaffer format for constructing essays. Using the model as a guide, you will develop your ideas. We will have one peer review session in class on ______. If your model is not complete by this date, you will have an alternative assignment during that portion of class that could potentially turn into extra homework to recover a portion of your peer review grade. (Take it from me: you don’t want to show up on ______without a completed model! J)
Following the peer review session, you will then take the model and turn it into a typed essay in double-spaced Times New Roman 12 pt font. Your margins should be 1”, and you should follow any and all MLA guidelines when composing your final draft. You are not required to consider outside sources for this assignment, but consulting scholarship when working with a topic is always a good idea. (Remember, scholarship means databases like JSTOR and ERIC, not something like Yahoo! Answers.) Any consulted scholarship must be credited in your Works Cited to avoid plagiarism (remember: plagiarism doesn’t just mean borrowing words; it means borrowing ideas as well).
Submission and Evaluation
Your final essay packet will be due at the beginning of class on ______. To be considered for full credit for this assignment, essay packets will consist of the following (in this order): final draft, Works Cited, a completed model worksheet (shaping the essay), and any notes taken or received during the peer review session.
Essays will be evaluated according to the Six Traits for Effective Writing rubric (attached).
Point distribution is as follows:
Final draft (55 points)
Shaping the essay—model (35 points)
Peer Review Session (15 points)
Prewriting (10 points)