THE SCARLET LETTER essay
Today, you will either work on finishing Dialectical Journals or beginning your essays on The Scarlet Letter. Essays will be due on Friday, but I will take them the day after Thanksgiving with no penalty. Note, this essays fall into the 25% category and will be your last essay of the semester.
2010. Palestinian American literary theorist and cultural critic Edward Said has written that “Exile is strangely compelling to think about but terrible to experience. It is the unhealable rift forced between a human being and a native place, between the self and its true home: its essential sadness can never be surmounted.” Yet Said has also said that exile can become “a potent, even enriching” experience. Select a novel, play, or epic in which a character experiences such a rift and becomes cut off from “home,” whether that home is the character’s birthplace, family, homeland, or other special place. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the character’s experience with exile is both alienating and enriching, and how this experience illuminates the meaning of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot.
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Nature vs. Human Law
Nature of Evil
Sin vs. Forgiveness or Punishment vs. Forgiveness
Individual vs. Society
Exile
Public Guilt vs. Private Guilt
Civilization vs. Wilderness or Town vs. Woods
Good vs. Evil
Analysis Essay:
Students will need to analysis some aspect of The Scarlet Letter and connected it to a theme. Things that can be explored include symbolism, tone, diction, characters and events. I expect students to use their didactical journals for focus on examples. I also expect all students to choose something small to concentrate on. I would rather you spend three pages examining one paragraph in relation to a theme, than to try and examine something like Pearl’s role as Savior and Chillingworth’s role as the devil (unless you view these roles from looking at one paragraph or one page). This would be too large. You couldn’t examine it in enough detail in three pages. Remember I’m looking for precise thesis statements and evidence that is analyzed.
Remember - thesis statement.
Connect the symbol, character or literary element to a theme. Then present an order of development or list of things you will cover in your essay.
Thesis Statement
Your thesis statement directs all of the ideas, quote selection, and commentary in your essay. Therefore, a muddled or imprecise thesis statement will lead to an unclear or meaningless essay.
A thesis statement is NOT:
1. An abstract concept. For example, “Greed” is not a thesis statement.
2. A general “universal” truth. For example, the following sentence is not a thesis statement: “For thousands of years, man has been greedy.”
A thesis statement IS a statement that provides direction for the analysis of a theme or idea presented by a particular text. Therefore, in order to construct an effective thesis statement, you must first determine what a text is suggesting about an abstract concept (like greed, for example).
Your thesis statement will address an abstract concept PLUS the evaluation of that concept through a particular text.
A thesis statement for “The Pardoner’s Tale” might address the abstract concept of greed as it is handled in the story. The first two examples are NOT thesis statements. The third one is a complete thesis statement:
a. Greed is something that man has struggled with for centuries, as demonstrated in “The Pardoner’s Tale” by Chaucer. (Abstract Concept Only)
b. “The Pardoner’s Tale,” written by Chaucer, is a story about how three men kill one another while looking for Death. (Plot Summary)
c. “The Pardoner’s Tale,” written by Chaucer, suggests that the “deadly” sin of greed is stronger than any oath of friendship, and will ultimately lead those who give into its allure to their own destruction.
EXAMPLES OF POSSIBLE THESIS STATEMENTS:
In the Scarlet Letter, the "A" on Hester's chest represents Hester, herself, and reflect her transformation - from Adulterer to Able to Absolution. The "A" is Hester's soul.
In the Scarlet Letter, Pearl represents the theme of forgiveness. She is the force sent - like a female Christ figure - to allow Hester and Dimmesdale to be saved from their sin.
Analytical Essay Rubric
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4 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
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Thesis, opening paragraph. |
Student takes a clear position on the prompt/topic. Thesis Statement is defensible. Hook and thesis statement link. Order of development is present and sets up how the thesis will be investigated. Thesis connects prompt to the text as a whole. |
Student has a clear and defensible thesis statement.
Thesis connects prompt to the text as a whole.
Essay contains a hook. |
Thesis statement is attempted,
But – maybe not be defendable.
May not be clear. May be wordy.
May not connect to the text as a whole. |
There is no recognizable thesis statement.
Or there may be multiple thesis statements. |
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Use of Evidence |
Evidence is introduced and relevant to the thesis and analysis is thorough makes clear how the evidence connects to and defends the thesis. Evidence is properly cited. (3-4 pieces of evidence per point) |
Evidence is introduced and relevant to the thesis. The analysis makes connection between evidence and thesis, but the quality and/or quantity is inconsistent. Evidence is cited. (2 pieces of evidence per point)
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Evidence is relevant to the thesis and there is some analysis attempted, but the analysis may be taken out of context, misinterpreted, or oversimplified.
(2 pieces of evidence per point) |
Evidence is attempted, but may not defend thesis or there is no connection made between evidence and the thesis.
No direct quotation, or citations. |
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Sophistication of Writing |
Use of prose style that is especially vivid. Student uses rhetorical strategies such as parallel structure. Varied syntax. High level vocabulary. Language consistent for an academic essay. |
Student uses varied syntax. Some high level vocabulary present. Prose style is engaging. Language consistent for an academic essay. |
Student attempts varied syntax. Vocabulary might be simplistic or repetitious. Prose style is sometimes engaging but might be repetitious of ideas. Language may not be consistent for an academic essay |
Wordy, repetitious. Vocabulary might be repetitious or the use of “to be” verbs may be overused. Not engaging. |
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Grammar |
No Errors |
1-3 errors that do not distract from reading. |
More than 3 errors, or the errors present distract from reading. |
Many errors. Errors seriously distract from the reading of the text. |
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Length
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More than 5 pages |
3-5 pages |
Less than 3 pages |
Less than 1 page |
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