Paper Writing Rules and Guidelines



Paper Writing Rules and Guidelines

(These are general and for formal papers in English Class)

I. Things that should NOT be in the paper:

A. First and second person pronouns (I, me, mine, and YOU, etc)

B. Passive voice

C. Slang, cute saying, clichés

D. Contractions

E. “In conclusion”

F. “This quote means,” etc.

G. “This” alone as the subject of a sentence

H. Underlining of YOUR OWN title

I. Summary of the plot

J. A first sentence of the paper that states the title and author

K. (For Honors class only: GHs)

II. Things that SHOULD be in the paper:

A. Present tense when discussing literature, past tense for history

B. Novel, play, and book-length poems underlined

C. Active voice: EX. Which is active?

Hamlet is shown to be a procrastinator when he ….

or

Shakespeare illustrates Hamlet’s fear and hypocrisy….

D. Logically developed paragraphs that begin with topic sentences that are analytical and related to the thesis.

Guidelines for Transitions

Transitions belong at the beginning of paragraphs. Ideally, attempt to take the idea from the preceding paragraph and couple it with the main idea of the new paragraph. This becomes your topic sentence.

For example:

Paragraph A, concluding sentence:

The Friar’s worldly lifestyle is definitely not an example

of proper ecclesiastical behavior.

Paragraph B, topic sentence w/transition:

Though the Friar strays from righteous religious

practice, Chaucer’s portrayal of the Pardoner suggests

an even darker side to the Church.

Guidelines for Using Quotations

I. When writing critical/analytical papers, body paragraphs should include direct quotations from the primary source properly integrated, and developed to support topic sentence and thesis.

II. The quotations should be used to support the writer’s ideas and insights, and, therefore, must be dealt with specifically, not just “dropped in.”

III. In general, the writer should create a “sandwich” wherein he/she offers comment in support of topic/thesis and then uses proof from the text to illustrate or define the comment. This is followed by specific elaboration and logical explanation/analysis of how the evidence (quote) suggests what the writer says it does.

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