This final project will require you to read a primary and secondary source, analyze both, evaluate both, and bring it together to act as support for your writing. All options require strong critical engagement with both the focal primary text(s) and with the required source(s).
General Requirements for the Project:
All submissions must:
use the assigned secondary source(s) in addition to whatever primary texts they discuss (and these sources must be used, actually cited, in the essay, not just listed in the works cited at the end)
be 4-5 pages long (excluding the Works Cited page).
must be original to this class and assignment (no submissions from other courses and or previous forums are allowed)
be in MLA format and use MLA style citations (see The APUS Library MLA Guide for MLA formatting models; most of you sources will probably need to use the “Journal Articles” model)
In addition to the chosen play and assigned corresponding secondary source, you should use one additional peer-reviewed source to back up your persuasive thesis. BE CAREFUL that you do not create a cut and paste essay of information from your various sources; your ideas are to be the focus of the essay, and the research should supplement and support your ideas. Also, take great care not to plagiarize; if in doubt, cite the source.
These projects will be graded using the Research Project Essay rubric .
DISCLAIMER: Originality of attachments will be verified by Turnitin. Both you and your instructor will receive the results.
Topic Choices for the Research Project
Choose one of the following prompts to guide your project.
4) Use MacBeth, Harold Blooms MacBeth in Blooms How to Write about Shakespeares Tragedies, and one other peer-reviewed source to discuss one of the topics listed in Blooms How to Write. Your additional source may be about the play in particular or the Elizabethan era in general.
Writing Format: All essays should be written in Times New Roman 12 point plain font. Essays are double spaced, include indented paragraphs with no extra space between paragraphs, and 1 inch margins on all (4) sides. Essays should be MLA formatted and submitted as MS Word documents/attachments. Write in the third person objective voice, and prove/illustrate points with quotes and paraphrases from your primary and secondary sources, followed by the corresponding in-text and Works Cited citation. Avoid the first person I subjective voice in college level scholarly writing.
Secondary Sources: Use only scholarly articles and books found through databases in the APUS and other research libraries. As a rule, keep quotes to 2-3 lines maximum in these relatively short papers, and no more than 10-15% of the total paper. Focus first on your primary source(s) to prove your thesis and related points, and never allow a secondary source to make your argument for you. Avoid using introductory, encyclopedic, and editorial material as a source.
