Research Paper

Helpful hints for Writing a Research Paper:
See Topics

See page discussing MLA Format (i.e. using proper header, etc. )

See page listing more general hints for a Critical Response Paper

Again, remember that this is a Critical response paper, NOT a Personal response paper.

It is also an ARGUMENT Paper, not a REPORT Paper. Do not provide a history of the French Revolution or a biography of William Wordsworth. You may, however, analyze specific works by Wordsworth and explain the ways in which they demonstrate characteristics associated with period.

Please!! Avoid making comparisons to Present Day Society !!! Such comparisons almost never have a basis in actual textual analysis !!

Avoid plot summary! Use quotes from only those sections of the text immediately relevant to your discussion!
Use past tense to discuss historical or biographical events, but present tense when discussing literature.

Be very careful when making references to the class textbook. For example, William Wordsworth is the author of The Prelude. Susan Wolfson and Peter Manning are the editors of the text in which The Prelude appears.
Sample Entry:

Wordsworth, William. The Prelude. The Longman Anthology of British Literature. 3rd Ed. Vol. 2A. Eds. Susan Wolfson and Peter Manning. NY: Longman, 2006. 452-516.
(Note: only the first line should be flush with the margin; subsequent lines should be tabbed over. It's called reverse indent, if you want to look it up.)
Do Not Number the Entries in a Works Cited.

When citing verse, use slashes to show line breaks and cite by line (or act.scene.line for plays).
Avoid plagiarism !! See Policy
On a related note, please be very selective about the sources you utilize from the internet. The ideal sources are those found on jstor.org or the Literature Resource Center or MLA Bibliography--essays that have been previously published in journals or books and are now available online.

AVOID the Following Sites!! These are NOT ACCEPTABLE sources (and this is not a complete list, but you should get the idea) !!!

www.wikipedia.org
www.bookrags.com
www.bookwolf.com
www.courseworkbank.co.uk
www.directessays.com
www.english-literature.org
www.enotes.com
www.exampleessays.com
www.free-cliffnotes.com
www.gradesaver.com
www.literatureclassics.com
www.needfreeessays.com
www.netessays.net
www.novelguide.com
www.pinkmonkey.com
www.planetpapers.com
www.sparknotes.com

USE SPELL-CHECK !

Other Mechanical Issues:

DO NOT USE A COVER PAGE !!!!
Use only ONE edition of your primary source. If you wish to refer to an editor's introduction to another edition, cite by the editor's name.

Be sure to use quotation marks for titles of shorter works, such as poems and short stories, and italics for titles of longer works, such as plays, epic poems and novels.

Do not rely too heavily on secondary sources. The number of citations to your primary source should be roughly equivalent to the total number of references to ALL your secondary sources combined.
Do NOT use secondary source material to summarize plot or quote from the primary source.
Make sure it is clear WHOSE ideas you are presenting. If Critic A is quoting Critic B, and you use the quote, your citation should say (Qtd. in Critic A #). The #, of course, refers to the page number in Critic A's text.
Avoid unnecessary changes to quotes. Instead of saying, "Wollstonecraft describes, '[She] felt hopeless' (24)," say, "Wollstonecraft describes that she 'felt hopeless' (24)."
Avoid using direct quotes in either your introduction or conclusion. Discussion in these two paragraphs should be more general.

Do not use quotes as the subjects of sentences: The quote "---------" (29) shows that. . . or "-----------" (87) means that . . .

Don't use "in which" when you mean "that."
Don't use "that" when you mean "who" (i.e. when referring to people)
USE PRESENT TENSE TO DISCUSS LITERATURE !!!!!

Possible Research Paper Topics:

Contrasting Portrayals of Similar Subjects in Blake's Songs of Innocence and Experience
Biblical Imagery in "The Rime of Ancient Mariner"
Physical and Mental Degradation in Mary Prince or Equiano
Abolitionist portrayal of Africans: Equiano, Prince, Wordsworth, Blake, or Southey
Wollstonecraft’s Theories in Wollstonecraft’s Maria, Austen's Pride and Prejudice [or Emma (depending on which text we've read)], Hemans's poems, or Shelley's Frankenstein.
Male and Female Views of Marriage in Pride and Prejudice or Emma (depending on which text we've read)
Comparison of views on French Revolution: Burke, Wollstonecraft, Paine, Godwin
Portrayal of French Revolution in Wordsworth' s poetry
Characteristics of the Lyrical Ballads (as per Preface) in Coleridge's Ancient Mariner or Wordsworth's poems from the collection
Relationship between Human and Nature in Coleridge, Wordsworth, or Blake
The figure of the poet in Wordsworth's Preface to Lyrical Ballads, Byron's Introduction to Don Juan, and Percy Shelley's "Defence of Poetry."
Role of Women in Pride and Prejudice or Emma (depending on which text we've read)
Pride and Prejudice in Pride and Prejudice or Emma (depending on which text we've read)
Primogeniture in Pride and Prejudice or Emma (depending on which text we've read)
Representations of the Gothic in Coleridge or Mary Shelley (See Discussion of Gothic Elements )
Justice in Coleridge's "Ancient Mariner" or Shelley's Frankenstein
Interpersonal Relationships (Parent/Child, Husband/Wife, etc.) in Frankenstein
Dream Imagery in Frankenstein
Doppelgangers in Frankenstein
Isolated Figures: Ancient Mariner, Victor Frankenstein, Frankenstein's Creature
Byronic Heroes in Byron's poetry