Reviewer: ____________________ Writer: _______________

Evaluate (Score: 10 .... 1) & Comment Below

1. Does it convey a sense of the topic and the writer's own perspective on it? Is it interesting? It cannot simply repeat the title of someone else's essay or book; avoid clinkers like: "Poetry" or "Shakespeare's Play" or "Faulkner and the South"

 

 

Introduction If successful, it establishes the topic and writer's position on it; be wary of wordy, vague introductions or those designed to "generate suspense."

2. Does the initial paragraph (or two) clearly establish: the theoretical topic to be discussed? the texts to be addressed? and the writer's attitude towards them?

 

 

 

3. Can you identify the thesis statement itself? Do so: _____________________________

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4. Is it too broad, too narrow, or unclear? Is it debatable? It should seem assertive enough that it might provoke disagreement, yet it should also be defensible; often the draft thesis is far too broad.

 

5. Thesis/Body Relationship: Revisit the introduction/thesis statement after you have read the whole essay. Does the body of the essay follow-through with the promise of the introduction? And from the other side, are all the key ideas that are expressed in the body also forecast by the introduction? Very often, the writer discovers a good idea half way through the essay, uses it in the second half, but never revises the introduction and first half to match.

 

 

 

 

Body The analysis of a core literary text, using key concept(s) from theoretical articles, should follow the introductory paragraph(s).

6. Argument vs. summary: Does the essay consistently focus on development of the writer's argument? Or does it lapse into whole paragraphs (pages!) that simply summarize an essay or literary text ? It is acceptable to spend a paragraph summarizing a complex idea, provided that you then use it in your argument.

 

 

 

 

7. Organization: Are ideas developed logically within appropriately sized paragraphs? (4-7 sentences)

 

 

 

8. Transitions: Does the argument flow from one paragraph to the next, utilizing transitional phrases or sentences if necessary? Indicate where transitions are needed. Ex.

In addition to their claims about historical discrimination in English*, feminists such as Deborah Cameron claim that current English usage continues to promote discrimination against women.** [*developed in paragraph above; **topic of this paragraph]

 

 

 

9. Content and Comprehension: Does the writer communicate his/her understanding of the material or seem not to know what she/he is talking about?

 

 

 

10. Conclusion: Does the conclusion bring the argument to a close, gathering up loose ends, and solidifying the claim? If not, what is missing? It should not merely restate the thesis. It may suggest further implications of the argument but it should not start a new one. Wishy-washy conclusions-- "So the feminine gender of certain Spanish words does support negative stereotypes of women, although others might totally disagree with this position. There are many sides to this issue..."--make English professors want to scream.

 

 

Mechanics and Form

11. Are there run-on sentences or sentence fragments?

 

 

12. Has the writer avoided contractions (isn't, it's, etc.), abbreviations (fem., 19th, etc.), and other habits inappropriate to formal writing?

 

 

13. Are the margins 1 inch only, the font a 'normal' 12 point size, and the line double-spaced? (This sheet uses single-spacing).

 

 

14. Has the writer avoided frequent repetitions of "I," "I feel that," and "in my opinion"?

 

 

15. Is the tone academic? (Informal, spoken expressions like: "Bryson is an idiot" or "Cameron is out to lunch, but Lacan knows what's up" do not belong in an academic paper.)

 

 

16. Has the writer avoided use of the passive voice (eg. It is believed that many people do not speak proper English)?

 

 

17. Are other mechanical, spelling, or grammatical mistakes few and minor? (If not, please advise your classmate to stop by the writing center.)

 

 

 

Sources (When permitted or required)

18. Quality of usage: In advancing his/her argument, does the writer incorporate concepts, insights, and quotations from critical texts? (Sources should be cited eg. (Voloshinov 41)) Are they employed effectively or stuck in somewhat randomly?

 

 

 

 

19. Number and form: Does the writer make use of an appropriate number of sources (if assigned)?

 

 

20. Are sources referenced using MLA parenthetical form (Voloshinov 41) in the text and fully cited, in alphabetical order, on the last page? Note that you may have used other forms in other classes; English classes do not utilize footnotes or dates as in APA.

Example:

Not only poetry but all literature manifests a "semiotic rhythm within language" (Kristeva 349). This observation leads Kristeva to develop the idea of the chora from Plato (347).

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Works Cited