Guided Notes: Writing About Literature
Questions that guide students through the opening sections of Perrine's chapter on writing about literature.
ENGLISH 11AP - Language and Literature
Background - Writing About Literature
Name
Read pp. 3-6 (sections I, II, and III.1) in Perrine’s Literature: Structure, Sound, and Sense. Then answer the following questions. Do not simply copy words from the textbook: paraphrase them.
I. Why Write About Literature?
What are the three purposes for writing in English 11AP?
Writing may be divided into four modes: descriptive, narrative, expository, and persuasive. Which mode most clearly defines the purpose of writing about literature?
II. For Whom Do You Write?
In light of the “most crucial question” you may ask about your audience, will your voice in writing this explication, be that of a reviewer or of a scholar?
You will be writing for an audience consisting of your classmates. It will, however, be necessary to use quotations in your explication.
III. Choosing a Topic
Required length: 2-3 pages (Times New Roman, 12-point font)
Manuscript style: MLA
Deadline for submission: 1st draft due on 11/8, 2nd on 11/9, 3rd on 11/10, and final on 11/11
What are the two focuses of an explication?
Essentially, what is an explication?
IV. Proving Your Point
What is the two-fold objective in writing about literature?
What question must an explication answer by providing proof to the reader?
List five approaches to “proof” that are inappropriate to writing an explication.
What do all five of these inappropriate strategies have in common?
In the final analysis, what constitutes “proof” in an explication?
Since literary “proof” is not the same as scientific “proof,” how must you approach the “proof” in your explication?
V. Writing the Paper
What is the first procedure in writing an explication?
What is the second procedure in writing an explication?
What is the third procedure in writing an explication? (It involves at least eight steps; include each. I have provided what should be more than enough bullets.)
What is the fourth procedure in writing an explication?
What will determine the structure of your explication?
What is the fifth procedure in writing an explication?
List five phrases that should never appear in your writing about literature. (In fact, no phrases that even approximate them should appear in your writing.)
What is the sixth procedure in writing an explication?
What is the seventh procedure in writing an explication?
What is the eighth procedure in writing an explication?
VI. Introducing Quotations
What are the two functions of quotations in writing about literature?
What is the upper limit of quoted material that should be included in an essay on literature?
Q1: What is the upper limit of the number of lines of poetry that may be placed directly into the text of your explication?
How is a short quotation to be punctuated – with or without quotation marks?
What is the correct term for a quotation presented in this manner?
Q2: What are the three rules for the presentation of more lines of poetry than that number?
How is a long quotation to be punctuated – with or without quotation marks?
What is the correct term for a quotation presented in this manner?
Q3: When more than one line of verse is quoted, how is/are the point(s) where a line of verse ends indicated in a “run-in” quotation?
How does spacing apply to a virgule?
How is capitalization handled in such a quotation?
Q4: How are commas used in “run-in” quotations?
What punctuation is used to introduce a “set-off” or “block” quotation?
What is the general rule for punctuating quotations in writing about literature?
Q5: Quotations must be part of one of your own sentences. They must not be dropped into a paragraph as though they were sentences all by themselves.
Study the examples in the four boxes that follow Q5. If you fail to observe them, you will receive an “F” for mechanics on your paper.
Q6: What must the introduction to a quotation do?
What grammatical check must you perform as you revise both introduction to the quotation and the quotation itself?
Q7: What rule governs all quotations?
Q8: What must you as a writer do if you wish to make a change in the quotation in order to make it flow smoothly with its introduction?
What is often a better choice than using this method?
Q9: How must omissions in quotations be punctuated?
When is it appropriate to use four spaced periods?
Where are ellipses almost always inappropriate?
Q10: How should you handle quotations within quotations?
When else may you use this punctuation mark?
Q11: Where are commas and periods always placed at the end of a “run-in” quotation?
Where are colons and semicolons always placed at the end of a “run-in” quotation?
Where are question marks and exclamation marks placed at the end of a “run-in” quotation?
Now read pp. 31-34 and give brief paraphrased answers to the following questions.
S1: How should you handle I, me, my, mine and we, us, our, ours in your explication?
Why?
S2: Except for the opening sentence of the paper, what noun should you avoid in writing about literature?
What verb should you avoid?
If your paper does include that verb, what is the best way to handle it in revision?
S3: Cite three reasons for avoiding passive voice constructions.
S4: What type of adverbs should you avoid in writing about literature?
S5: What kind of introductory paragraphing must you avoid?
S6: What consideration must you avoid in the content of papers about literature?