Research Writing Examples

Here are the examples we did in class, as promised. Use them as a reference.

Ernest Hemingway, a proponent of bullfighting, has gone on record as seeing the brutal act as something more noble than mere violence. “Bullfighting is the only art in which the artist is in danger of death and in which the degree of brilliance in the performance is left to the fighter’s honor” (Hemingway 90).

Ernest Hemingway, a proponent of bullfighting, has gone on record as seeing the brutal act as “the only art in which the artist is in danger of death and in which the degree of brilliance in the performance is left to the fighter’s honor” (Hemingway 90).

[Note: This next one wouldn't format right for the blog, but just note that it should be indented 1" from the left, as we did in class.]

Ernest Hemingway, a proponent of bullfighting, has gone on record as seeing the brutal act as something more noble than mere violence:
Bullfighting is the only art in which the artist is in danger of death and in which the degree of brilliance in the performance is left to the fighter’s honor. (Hemingway 90)



Ernest Hemingway, a proponent of bullfighting, has gone on record as seeing the brutal act as something more noble than mere violence. His view is that it is a work of art, and a matador’s performance is measured through his level of honor (Hemingway 90).

Ernest Hemingway, a proponent of bullfighting, has gone on record as seeing the brutal act as something more noble than mere violence. Although he sees the reality of the “danger of death” in the sport, he believes that a matador’s “performance is left to the fighter’s honor” (Hemingway 90).

Research Sites Worth Checking Out

Here are the research sites I spoke about in class. It would be wise and very helpful to you to spend a little time looking at their content. Work smarter, not harder.

Digital Research

Bedford Research Tools

The Thesis Statement

The thesis statement is the guiding force of your research paper. It lets the reader know what it is that you are going to be looking at in the essay. Everything in your thesis statement should be covered and supported in the body of your essay, so it is critical that your thesis statement be solid. Below are some links that define and explain how to write a thesis statement.

Purdue Online Writing Center Thesis Statement

University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Thesis Statement

Indiana University Bloomington Thesis Statement

Research Paper Topics

Here are the sites for research topics. You don't have to use topics from these sites, but they are a solid jumping-off point. Remember...be genuinely interested in learning something about a topic you are genuinely interested in...this is what research is all about. Also remember to stay away from the following: Abortion, Death Penalty, Legalizing Marijuana, Gay Marriage, and Assisted Suicide. I've just read far too many research papers on these topics, and there a gazillion other topics out there.
UCF Writing Center

Midway Research Topics

Writing Center Research Topics

"Autumn Begins in Martin's Ferry, Ohio"

Here are some of the good examples of support from your homework assignments. To those who have provided them, a hearty "good job" goes out to you.

Aside from the heat and hard work put forth in a blast furnace, describing the African American's faces as gray emphasizes the formation of ash upon the worker's faces, making them seem as if they are decaying.

The watchman is also described as "ruptured," which implies that some aspect of his life is broken apart and unstable.

Both the blast furnace and the company, Wheeling Steel, deal with the production and shaping of metals. This implies that the men at the football game are stiff, cold, and hard to change, just like the materials they work with.

Writing Samples

As promised, here are the samples we put together in class. Use them as references as you put together your paragraph on the poem.

From 5th hour:

The novel Heart of Darkness and the poem The Hollow Men both include numerous symbols of darkness and evil.
In The Heart of Darkness, Conrad provides an eerie and dark scene early in the novel to foreshadow the darkness that will envelope Marlow once he arrives in Africa. When Marlow goes to sign his contract and get a physical from The Company. He describes two women “guarding the door of Darkness, knitting black wool as for a warm pall.” Conrad capitalized the word “darkness,” which suggests the company’s likeness to Hell. A pall, which is a blanket for a coffin, also suggests darkness. These two, combined with the use of black wool by the women, work to suggest an atmosphere of darkness and evil.

From 4th Hour:

Both The Heart of Darkness and The Hollow Men provide numerous symbols of darkness that help create a somber and foreboding mood. The Hollow Men achieves this mood by providing a number of dreary images. In line 33, Eliot provides an image of a “rat’s coat.” Rats are often associated with sewers and disease, both of which indicate a foreboding mood. The fact that Eliot is providing the coat of the rat implies that the wearer of the coat is wrapped up in this sense of dreariness. The same line also includes “crossed staves,” indicating a crude cross made of two connected and perpendicular sticks. Such crosses are often used for graves found in rural or desolate settings, like the desert setting found in the poem. Eliot also refers to the “dying stars” that are visible in this desolate setting (line 54). The clear reference to death in this image helps to solidify the somber and foreboding mood.

Socratic Question examples

OK, he might not be the most handsome, but he was pretty darn smart.

Here are the examples from class. I will add to them as needed.

World Connection Question:
How would you react if you were to come upon a group of starving, dying slaves? Would you help?
If you were alive in that time period and came across the black men that had been worked to death, would you give them food like Marlow did, or do something else?
If a doctor told you people have never returned from the trip you are about to attend, would you still go?
If you were Marlow watching the chained men walk into slavery how would you react?
If you encountered the starving people Marlow encountered, what would, or wouldn’t, you do to help them out?
Traveling to Africa in the time period of the novel is like traveling to the planet today. What would be your reason to travel to an unknown place?
How would you feel toward a group of people the first time you met them, if you had previously been told they were enemies? Even if you saw them enslaved and weak?
If you come across a group of dying native laborers lying against the trees, would you interact with/help them (like how Marlow gave one native a biscuit)?

Close- Ended Question:
Marlow has a lot of respect for the chief accountant. Do you think his opinion will change toward the end of the novel? Why?
Why is the cliff being blown up if it isn’t even in the way of the railway construction?

Open-Ended Question:
Why do the British Invaders refer to the slaves as savages when they are the ones doing the brutalizing?
Why did Marlow look up to/respect the accountant?
What is the significance of the white necklace?
One of the dying workers Marlow encounters has some sort of white necklace on. What is the possible significance of this?
Why does the manager let the young black boy treat the whites like he does?
Marlow specifically points out the white European yarn tied around a native’s neck. Why is this significant?
Why does Marlow feel the need to explore?
Why does the author utilize Marlow to narrate a story when there was an original narrator in the beginning of the novel?


Universal Theme/Core:
How does the imagery of the devastated natives and landscape show how big business/civilization is horrible?

Literary Analysis Question:
Why did the author choose to have a narrator telling a story about Marlow telling the story?
Why did the author choose to have the story told from a narrator who does not tell the story?
What is the importance of the symbol darkness to the story?

The Dreaded Essay

OK...It has been requested that I post the writing prompt on the blog, so I will do so. Afterwards, I will give some advice to help you write a solid paper. Should you have any questions about writing the paper, please put them on this post...that way I can answer them here for everyone. Therefore, before you ask your question, read through what has already been asked and answered so there are no repeat questions. So, here goes:

Essay Question

Write a 3-4 page paper explaining why you think the novel is considered literature rather than merely a story. This assignment will require you to define what literature is and then give specific examples from the text to support your argument.

I expect a solid introduction and conclusion. Your paper should reflect knowledge of the entire novel and insightful analysis. Show me what you know.

The essay should be typed in 12 point font (Times New Roman or Courier New). It should be double-spaced and have one-inch margins all around. I will be looking at your grammar usage and spelling as part of your grade on this paper, so have someone read it over before you turn it in to me.

Remember, the paper should be 3-4 pages in length…not 4 pages, not 2.5 pages. Be concise and precise.

Again, the paper is due on the first day of class and will act as your pass into my class. You will also have an objective test over the novel on the first day of class.

The paper should also be formatted in the MLA Style. If you don't know what that looks like, consult the OWL at Purdue website (On-Line Writing Lab). Just Google it.

I don't want you to use sources for your paper. I want your own thoughts and insights. You may consult various sources to develop your own definition of literature, but since it is considered common knowledge, you won't have to cite those sources.

Most important: solid thesis statement and solid, specific support from the novel. You only have 3-4 pages, so I don't expect every iota of support you can find. Use the best of what you have. Make sure that your support comes from various parts of the novel, indicating that you have knowledge of the novel as a whole.

Again, all other questions should be posted below.

See you on Tuesday.

Chapter 59: The Ending Controversy

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Read this chapter carefully -- then read the first Connections story, "A Dickens of an Ending." Which ending to the novel do you believe is the ending that fits the story best? Why?

Chapter 58: Homecoming

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What is Pumblechook alluding to when he uses the word "prodigygality"? Is it an apt allusion to Pip's case?

What do you think would have happened if Pip would have told Joe about his "secondly" while they were in London?

Here is the part where it becomes crystal clear that this is a Bildungsroman. In what ways has Pip become a man and a true gentleman?

Chapter 57: Delirious

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Another masterful writing job by Dickens here, as he has Pip drifting in and out of consciousness. What exactly does Dickens do to make this so realistic?

Pip is in deep financial straits. How will he get out of debt without a job? Do you think this will force him to work for Herbert?

Awesome and humorous description her of Joe writing a letter...and note the positive descriptions of their walks and rides.

Joe feels guilty about not being able to stop Mrs. Joe and the tickler, and he feels even more guilty because his attempts to stop her caused Pip to get even worse beatings. Is this guilt justified?

So now we know what "secondly" meant. If you were Biddy, what would you say?

Chapter 56: The Verdict

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Thirty-two people were sentenced to death in one session. Thirty-two! This would be a great argument against the death penalty. What are your thoughts on that punishment? What does Dickens seem to think of it?

What can you point to in the story that made Pip change from wanting to desert Magwitch to never leaving his side until he was forced to?

Why did Pip wait so long to tell Magwitch about Estella?

Chapter 55: A Wedding, but No Funeral

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Why is Pip so concerned that Magwitch should never find out that Pip will never get his inheritance?

When asked to join Herbert in his business, Pip says "secondly." What is this second thought?

Why does Dickens put the wedding of Wemmick here (and by the way, it is a quite amusing trip to the altar, don't you think)?

Chapter 54: Getaway...Almost

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First, I love the description of March in the beginning...Dickens is spot-on here.

Pip tells Magwitch that he knows about enjoying freedom. Magwitch says Pip doesn't know what if feels like compared to him. Is there some similarity in their feelings of freedom? If so, what is the source of that feeling?

Pip says that Magwitch seems despondent. Though Magwitch denies this, what might be the cause of his looking despondent?

The capture scene would make for great movie action. Why was it so easy for Compeyson and the Custom House officials to catch them?

Why is Pip so devoted to Magwitch when he has basically abandoned Joe?

Chapter 53: Whoa! Pip Got Orlicked!

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That's right...I made up a new verb...Orlicked.

Orlick has some legitimate beefs with Pip. Which of these beefs seems to have hurt him the most? Why?

Orlick says Compeyson works for him now. Do you think this is actually the way it is?

What has happened to Orlick? How did he escape -- drunk -- from three able-bodied men?

Who could be Orlick's double?

Chapter 52: Startop? Really?

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We are on Chapter 52, and this is the only good thing Pip has done in his opinion...is that true?

After some thought, I've concluded that I wouldn't want to be in Herbert's shoes -- headed off to Arabia from London...sounds like an exile, not a business opportunity...

Startop? Seems like a pretty random reappearance. Is this a reach by Dickens, or masterful planning?

This is turning into a sort of mystery novel, full of intrigue...who do you think sent Pip the letter that brought him back home?

How long will it be before Pip feels remorse about Joe and Biddy and doesn't just do so in passing?

A note: Remember Miss Havisham's accident and the mention of Gravesend here...they will be part of an allusion in another novel we'll read this year...

Chapter 51: Taking Jaggers by Surprise

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The first paragraph leaves us with the same question that Pip has: What purpose is there for him to be so adamant in his pursuit of the truth behind Estella's parentage?

What is going on in the minds of Wemmick and Jaggers when Pip tells of having been to Wemmick's nice home and of Wemmick having an aged father?

Why do you think Jaggers is so surprised and bothered that Pip knows who Estella's father is?

Although there is "no admission", Jaggers clearly has a heart somewhere in that chest of his, at least where children are concerned. What do you think he means that when he saw Molly's violent nature creeping back in, he asserted "his power over her in the old way"?

Why are Jaggers and (more uncharacteristically) Wemmick so harsh towards Mike in his moment of weakness?

Is Jaggers right in his thoughts about keeping Estella's parentage a secret?

Chapter 50: Tying Up Some Loose Ends

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So...Compeyson jilted Miss Havisham...Molly and Magwitch are the parents of Estella...and Miss Havisham ended up with Estella. In all of this tangled web, who do you think is the biggest victim here?

Notice the craft Dickens uses in this conversation between Herbert and Pip. How does he manage to make this conversation some about in such a natural way? What makes it such a real exchange?

Chapter 49: Atonement

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Miss Havisham conducts the business concerning Herbert with swiftness and in a business-like manner. This transaction tells us several things about her character. What are some of those things?

Why is Miss Havisham crying? Why should she be crying?

What foreshadows Miss Havisham's fiery fate?

Chapter 48: Dinner with Man Hands

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Why does Jaggers bring up the matter of Drummel and Estella's impending marriage? Is it for Pip's sake or for Molly's sake?

Why do you think Jaggers brings up the idea that Drummle will have to beat Estella if he wants the upper hand in the marriage?

Molly is said to have been "tamed" by Jaggers from the moment she goes to work for him. How do you suppose she was "tamed"?