This is an analytical essay assignment. It is NOT a research paper, a reflection, or a report.
? Make sure that each body paragraph has at least one substantial and vivid quotation that you then
analyze (break down) in detail.
? Your essay should be thesis-driven and well-developed. It should respond
to the essay prompt and have an introduction, supporting paragraphs with topic sentences, and a
conclusion.
The introduction should mention three main ideas you will discuss in each body paragraph!
PROMPT:
How do gender and race inform your evaluation of Zora Neale Hurstons Sweat as a feminist
story? Discuss whether and how Delias situation and decisions subvert her station in life. You
should identify and analyze sections and details relating to how Hurston portrays the
characters in the story. Do not provide a plot summary as your answer.
Use This: Final Essay Checklist
INTRODUCTION (make it short; no biographies or summaries)
____Does your introduction include the writers full name?
____Have you named the title of your selected text?
____Does your introduction include your thesis?
____Does your thesis answer the prompt specifically and directly?
____Is your thesis debatable (rather than factual), and can it be supported with evidence from the text?
BODY PARAGRAPHS; EXPLICATION & ANALYSIS
____Does each body paragraph focus on ONE main idea (a subordinate idea) that supports the thesis?
____Does each body paragraph begin with a topic sentence and end with a sentence that connects back to the thesis?
____Does each body paragraph develop the subordinate idea by citing specific details from the
story/play (textual evidence)?
____Is each detail in the quotations (textual evidence) explicated (explained according to elements of
fiction/drama and figurative language) so that the reader is clear about how you have interpreted the
evidence?
___Did you avoid simply summarizing, paraphrasing, or making generalizations about your quoted
evidence?
CONCLUSION (make it short)
____Does your conclusion avoid referencing new (and hence undeveloped) subordinating ideas?
____Does your conclusion summarize your thesis and your argument in a new way?
____Does your conclusion reference the author and the text?
GRAMMAR AND MECHANICS OF WRITING
____Have you proofread your essay at least twice?
____Have you reviewed your sentences to look out for sentence structure errors (check independent and dependent clauses), fragments, comma splices, run-ons, verb/tense errors, and subject-verb agreement?
