Unit 1 Assignment
Many Anglo-Saxon riddles work by making familiar things seem strange and uncanny. Where else in literature or popular culture have you seen this practice of estrangement used effectively? What if anything can it teach us about objects and the world? How does the message you identified in the riddles compare to the messages that other texts we’ve read present about objects and the world?
Minimum Requirements:
3 full pages (not including work cited page)
At least 1 library database source AND at least 1 textbook source
Your textbook is one source (even if you use several sections of it), and it is not a library database source.
No plagiarism or self-stealing
No use of unreliable sources such as Wikipedia, Shmoop, SparkNotes, etc.
Analysis and interpretation–not a report
MLA formatting and citations–both on the works cited page and in-text
Polished, grammatical writing
Clear, organized essay structure
Clearly stated thesis which is supported by evidence throughout the paper
In response to one (and only one) of the options listed above. Essays about other topics will not earn credit.
Important Reminders:
Your essay must have a thesis statement. A thesis statement is a declarative sentence, not a question; in answering the questions for whichever prompt you choose, you will be working towards a thesis statement, but it is your job as the writer to craft a clear, arguable thesis around which you will plan your essay.
Your essay must include a works cited page in MLA format, and you must use correct in-text citations which follow MLA guidelines. If either of these are missing, your essay will not earn a passing score.
The critical essay must follow classic essay structure: the introduction with thesis, the body, and the conclusion. The body of the essay must support the thesis by using information and examples from the assigned readings and must include additional, documented information from at least one credible source from the library databases. Your textbook may count as only one source, regardless of the number of literary works that you cite from it. You are required to obtain at least one source from the library’s databases, such as the Literature Resource Center and the History Study Center. Wikipedia, Shmoop, eNotes, Spark Notes, and other such sites are not credible sources for academic writing, and if you use them, they will not count towards the requirements for this assignment.
All paraphrases, summaries, and quotations from your sources, including your textbook, must be documented in strict accordance with MLA eighth-edition standards. The documentation must include attributive phrases and/or in-text citations and a works-cited page.
You must be certain, however, that you have enclosed quoted material in quotation marks and have provided corresponding attributive phrases and/or in-text citations. If paraphrases or other material that is not from a source and is not a quotation is highlighted, this highlighting indicates that the percentage of similarity is too high, and may be cause for concern.
To be graded and to receive credit, your essay must be submitted as a PDF (.pdf) or Microsoft Word document (.doc or .docx) to the correct link. Email submissions will not be accepted.
(Can pick from The dream of the rood, beowulf, judith, the wanderer, wulf and eadwacer, the wife lament, ruin, and riddles for one or both source. The other is your choice)
