Analyzing September 1918 - A Study on Genre and Themes

Clear Thesis Statement and Topic Sentences

You will be expected to write at least four-five paragraphs in response to the prompt below. Your essay should have a clear, identifiable thesis statement and paragraphs that contain topic sentences and 2-3 main points. You MUST quote from your chosen text at least twice and cite the quotes within your paper in MLA formatting. You will NOT need a Works Cited page. Your essay should contain a formal heading in MLA formatting and should be double-spaced and typed in Times New Roman 12-point font. Here is the essay question/prompt you should consider:

The title of  the poem is September 1918, read the poem on the last page below

What are the main messages and themes inherent in this text?

What particular genre/technique does this work represent (Realism, Local Color, Naturalism, African American Literature of the Late 19th/Early 20th Century, Early Twentieth Century Poetry, Imagism or Symbolism)?

What elements let you know that this particular text serves as an example of its specific genre/technique?

Be sure NOT to use first or second person in your writing unless these words are part of a quote. Your writing should be appropriate for a formal academic paper. Use “one” or “one’s” instead or restructure your sentence to avoid the need of this type of wording.

Your essay should contain a formal heading on page one (your name, my name, the course name and the date in MLA formatting) in the upper left hand corner, and your last name and a page number in the upper right hand corner of any remaining pages. Please see the examples below:

The author masterfully presents a seemingly naïve young man who poses as a Bible salesman: “Well, lady, I’ll tell you the truth—not many people want to buy [a Bible] nowadays and besides, I know I’m real simple. I don’t know how to say a thing but to say it. I’m just a country boy” (O’Connor 362).

Remember that in poetry, you will place the line number in the in-text citation—not the page number. You should also use diagonals to indicate the line breaks, placing a space both before and after the diagonal mark. The first time you quote from poetry, include a comma and the word “line” or “lines” after the author’s last name in the in-text citation as follows: Amy Lowell uses Imagism masterfully as she speaks of an autumn afternoon: “The trees glittered with the tumbling of leaves / The sidewalks shone like alleys of dropped maple leaves” After you quote from a poem for the first time in your paper, it is no longer necessary to include the word “line” or “lines” in subsequent in-text citations. Simply cite as follows: Remember, too, That Any Quote That Appears As A Sentence By Itself Is A Dropped Quote, causing point deductions.)