Assignment Paper: Poetry Explication

Poetry Explication

For this paper, you will be writing an explication of a poem we have read in English II Part 2, and the poem must be at least 5 stanzas in length. A poetry explication is an explanation of what you believe the message of the poem is. The goal of an explication is to illuminate the meaning of the poem for other readers. First read the poem several times. Read it aloud. Notice how it looks on the page, the way the words sound when you read them aloud, and anything the words make you think about. You will probably have to look some words up in the dictionary—remember that the definition you know might not be the only definition there is. Answer the following questions using your answers as a rough draft for your paper.

What does the title contribute to the reader’s understanding?
Who is speaking?
What is the situation?
What is the setting?
What difficult, special, unusual words does the poem contain?
What is the mood of the poem?
What is the meaning of the poem? Look beyond the surface meaning to the actual message the poet is trying to relay.
The Essay

Here is an outline (WORD and PDF) that you can use to help you structure and organize your paper.
To begin, the essay should have an introductory paragraph that states the poem’s title, the author and provides a brief background on the poem. The last sentence in the introduction is your thesis statement. The thesis statement is the cornerstone of the essay. It is the one sentence which can be read in isolation and the reader will know exactly what the essay is going to be about. The easiest way to compose a thesis statement is to combine all of the main ideas from your body paragraph topics into just one sentence. The thesis statement takes your audience and purpose into account, is neither too broad nor too narrow, and is written in firm, confident language.
The body of your paper should focus on the seven questions listed above. As you craft your body paragraphs, be sure to use direct quotes from the text to explain your examples. Recall the honesty statement though and do not exceed 20% of quoted, paraphrased, or summarized content. The majority of the explication should reflect your own original thinking and writing.
Your last paragraph should conclude by memorably wrapping up your entire piece and restating the main ideas of the explication.
Minimum: 3 pages
Below are the poems from the textbook that meet the requirements and can be used for the explication:

“The Poetic Interpretation of the Twist” (page 634-635)
“The Empty Dance Shoes” (page 636-637)
“The Guitar” (page 649)
“The Fish” (page 650-651)
“Danny Deever” (page 652-654)
“Spring & All” (page 665-666)
“The Bridegroom” (page 642-647)
“A Tree Telling of Orpheus” (page 659-663)
“Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night” (page 679)
“The Waking” (page 685)
“The Wind Tapped Like a Tired Man” (page 718-719)
“Glory” (page 720-721)
“Conscientious Objector” (page 726)
“The Weary Blues” (736-737)
Please open and type your paper in this APA template. If you are struggling with APA the following video tutorials might be helpful:

Formatting Your Paper Using APA
Citing Your Sources In-text Using APA
Citing Your Sources on Your Reference Page Using APA
All sources, including your textbook, need to be cited in-text and on your reference page. Please be sure to watch the following tutorials: Characteristics of Scholarly Sources and Locating Academic Sources for Assignment 1.

Be sure that your in-text citations are properly formatted using APA. When citing a poem, you should use (author’s last name, date of publication, line number written with a ln.) Ex. (Jones, 1998, ln. 3-5).
When citing the textbook, you should use this format: Author’s Last Name, Author’s First Initial. (2012). “Title of Work.” Prentice Hall: Literature, Grade 10, Part 2, Common Core Edition. [Bookshelf Online]. (pp. #-#). Retrieved from https://online.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781256493914
When citing a website in your reference list you should use this format: Author’s Last Name, Author’s First Name. (Date of Publication). “Title of Article.” Retrieved from website address.
Be sure that you save your paper as a Word (.doc) assignment. (If you are writing your paper using pages, please follow the directions on this link for directions on how to export your pages document as a Word or PDF document.) Click “add attachments” below to attach and submit your essayand academic integrity statement.

Before you submit, check the following:

1. Have I read the rubric?
2. Does my paper fully address the prompt, and do I have a clear thesis statement in my introduction?
3. Are my paper and sources in APA format?

Plagiarism

Your paper will be screened for plagiarism. If you’d like help in this area, please email your teacher, visit our online library (the Learning Resource Center), or feel free to book a one-on-one appointment with a writing coach in the writing lab: BOOK HERE

Click HERE to access the JMHS Plagiarism Policy.

Attachments
APA Template Paper RTF.rtf (48.6 KB)
Assignment 1 Outline PDF.pdf (184.1 KB)
Assignment 1 Outline.docx (96.93 KB)
Hide Rubrics
Rubric Name: EN062 Assignment 1
Criteria Exemplary
20 points Proficient
15 points Emerging
10 points Developing
5 points Unsatisfactory
0 points
Ideas
•The thesis is clear and focused and reveals an in-depth understanding of the poem.

• Three or more direct quotes are seamlessly incorporated into the essay to support the main ideas of the paper, and writer explains how and why lines from the poem are significant the meaning of the poem.

• The writer clearly and fully addresses all seven questions in the assignment prompt.

• The thesis is clear and reveals a solid understanding of the poem.

• At least three direct quotes are used to support the main ideas, and the writer explains how and why lines from the poem are significant the meaning of the poem.

• The writer partially answers all seven questions from the assignment prompt.

• The thesis is identifiable and shows a basic understanding of the poem.

• Two direct quotes are used, but may not be relevant or fully explained, and the writer vaguely alludes to how and why lines from the poem are significant the meaning of the poem.

• The writer vaguely answers some of the questions from the assignment prompt.

• The thesis is unclear and shows an incomplete understanding of the poem.

• Less than two direct quotes are used, and they are not relevant or fully explained, and the writer does not explain how and why lines from the poem are significant the meaning of the poem.

• The writer does not answer all of the questions from the assignment prompt.

• The thesis is missing and shows no understanding of the poem.

• Direct quotes are either irrelevant or missing, and the writer does not explain how and why lines from the poem are significant the meaning of the poem.

• The writer does not address the questions from the assignment prompt.

Organization
• The introduction is thoughtful and clearly presents the response to the poem using a strong specific thesis statement and provides background information on the author.

• The main body elaborates on the thesis and provides support via direct quotes by fully addressing the assignment prompt.

• The conclusion summarizes the response and draws a conclusion or offers an enlightening observation on the poem.

• The introduction is satisfactory and presents the response to the poem using a thesis statement and provides a background on the author.

• The main body clearly explains reasons that support the thesis and addresses the majority assignment prompt in clear, specific details.

• The conclusion summarizes the response but only restates what has been said.

• The introduction does not clearly present the response to the poem using a thesis statement.

• The main body gives some reasons that support the thesis, but they are overly general, and some portions of the assignment prompt are addressed.

• The conclusion summarizes some of the ideas from the essay.

• The introduction does not present a response to the poem, and there is no thesis present.

• The main body gives no reasons that support the thesis, or the reasons are irrelevant, and the majority of the assignment prompt is not addressed.

• The conclusion is identifiable but skeletal.

• The essay is missing an introduction.

• The main body does not provide support for the thesis, and assignment prompt is not addressed.

• The essay lacks an identifiable conclusion.

Word Choice and Voice
• Words are lively, precise, and colorful.

• The tone and voice are stylistically sophisticated and clearly appropriate to purpose and audience.

• No personal pronouns are used in the paper.

• Words are specific and precise.

• The tone and voice are acceptable but not strongly individual or direct.

• There are one to two instances where personal pronouns are used.

• Words are adequate and mostly correct

• The tone and voice are occasionally inappropriate and are not individual or direct.

• There are three instances where personal pronouns are used.

• Words are often inadequate and often incorrect.

• The voice lacks individuality and is not concerned with or not matched to the audience.

• There are four instances where personal pronouns are used.

• Vague words, limited vocabulary, and frequent mistakes impair understanding.

• The tone and voice are completely inappropriate for the audience.

• There are more than five instances where personal pronouns are used.

Conventions
• Spelling, capitalization, and punctuation are uniformly correct.

• Grammar and usage are correct.

• Paragraphing is correct and reinforces the organization.

• Spelling, capitalization, and punctuation are generally correct.

• Grammar and usage have some minor errors.

• Paragraphing is generally correct and reinforces organization.

• Spelling, capitalization, and punctuation are sometimes uneven, and some fragments and run-on sentences are present.

• Grammar and usage are at times incorrect but do not distract from meaning.

• Paragraphing is attempted but is not always sound.

• Spelling, capitalization, and punctuation are uneven. Sentence fragments and run-on sentences make the writing difficult to follow.

• Grammar and usage are often incorrect and distort meaning.

• Paragraphing is irregular or too frequent.

• Spelling, capitalization, and punctuation are frequently incorrect. Sentence fragments and run-on sentences make the writing impossible to follow.

• Grammar and usage mistakes are frequent and distort meaning.

• Paragraphing is missing.

Formatting
• Paper is correctly formatted using APA.

• In-text citations and reference page follows proper APA formatting.

• Paper is generally formatted correctly using APA

• In-text citations and reference page are generally formatted correctly.

• APA formatting is inconsistent throughout the paper.

• In-text citations and reference page are sometimes incorrect.

• APA formatting is incorrect.

• In-text citations or reference page are missing.

• There is no attempt to follow APA formatting.

•There is not an attempt to cite sources in-text or on a reference page.

Overall Score A
90 or more B
80 or more C
70 or more D
60 or more F
0 or more
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