Warm-Up for Literary Research

Imagine that you needed to find out about the homework assignment for a class you missed. Where would you go for the information? Would you trust what you overheard from two strangers in the hall? Would you trust what a friend says who also missed the class? Would you trust the word of an A-student that you don't like? How about your teacher's class page (if it is regularly updated)?

Obviously, information is only as good as its source. Every day, you sift through dozens of sources: You remember what you heard from your instructors in different classes, what you saw on SnapChat, what you read on Google News, what you heard at the lunch table. You draw all of those different pieces of information together to make a single, mostly consistent "story" for your day.

A literary research paper does the same thing, drawing information from a variety of sources about one or more pieces of literature. By assembling the information and tracking the sources, you create a consistent story to help your reader understand the literature.

What Is a Literary Research Paper?

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A literary research paper is a response to literature that analyzes one or more literary works by drawing on a variety of sources. An effective research paper uses evidence to create new insights about the literature. It also cites sources so that interested readers can explore the same ideas and make up their own minds.

Every reliable article on the Internet and in the news is a thoroughly researched, correct, accurate, and up-to-date account of some event or topic. We rely on research to sift real news from fake news, fact from fiction. Indeed, our very concept of reality is only as good as the information we choose to accept. That's why research is now more important than ever. This unit will help you create effective research about literature, and you can start by thinking about reliable and unreliable sources.

Thinking About Sources of Information

Some people are trustworthy sources of information, and others are not. You can trust a friend more than an enemy. You can trust a well-informed person more than an ignorant one. You can trust someone who is involved in a situation more than someone who is not involved. Trustworthiness comes in many forms. A chart like the one that follows can help you rate the trustworthiness of a specific person about a specific topic.

Editing for Pronoun Agreement

A pronoun is a word that stands in the place of a noun or another pronoun (its antecedent). The most familiar pronouns are I, me, my; we, us, our, ours; you, your, yours; he, she, it, they, their, theirs. A pronoun needs to agree with its antecedent. That means both need to have the same person (first, second, or third), the same number (singular or plural), and the same gender (masculine, feminine, neuter, or indeterminate).

Revising to Elaborate Ideas

When ideas feel thin, you can elaborate by imagining what questions a reader would ask. Then you can answer the reader’s main questions using a variety of details at a variety of levels. The writer of “Equity Matters” imagined the following interview, answering the reader’s questions in a number of different ways.

Combining Argument and Narrative

Follow these steps to blend your two separate essays into a narrative argument. As you work through the steps, remember that you can add, cut, rewrite, and rearrange parts of both original pieces as needed.

1. Make your original argument essay the base of your paper.
2. Read over both pieces one more time.
3. Decide what portions of your narrative support your argument.
4. Experiment with different combinations of narration and argumentation. Here are three common ways to organize a narrative argument:
   • One-After-Another: Start with your full narrative and transition to your full argument or vice versa.
   • Start-and-End: Start with a portion of your narrative, transition to your argument, and then return to your narrative.
   • Back-and-Forth: Start with your narrative or argument and transition back and forth multiple times between both pieces.

5. Evaluate the results. Which pattern most effectively strengthens the argument? Which pattern is easiest to follow? Which pattern will most likely get readers to empathize with your position?
6. Choose a pattern.
7. Add parts (or all) of your narrative to your argument essay. If you are working in a word-processing program, you can simply copy and paste the parts. Reword sections as needed to improve the flow.

Writing the Narrative Beginning

The beginning of your narrative has a number of jobs:

• Catch the reader's attention.
• Introduce the main character (person of focus).
• Describe the setting (time and place).
• Create conflict.

1. Start in the middle of the action.

   Flush with determination, I stepped up to the podium. I had a strong speech. I had a strong message. I was ready to fight for equal rights. So how did I know it was all doomed?

2. Use interesting dialogue.

   "There goes Drama Jess again. Making something out of nothing." Girls with an opinion get that a lot in high school.

3. Pose a fascinating question.

   What does justice mean to you?

4. Set up the conflict.

   I’m a sports fanatic. I’m also a girl. I thought by now my gender wouldn't be an issue, but last school year showed it still is.

Writing the Argument Beginning

The beginning first needs to grab the reader's attention. Then it should introduce your topic and provide background leading up to your position statement. To get started with your beginning paragraph, you can experiment with different lead-writing strategies.

1. Ask a provocative question.

   Why is gender such a taboo subject in high school?

2. Provide a fascinating quotation.

   "True equality means holding everyone accountable in the same way, regardless of race, gender, faith, ethnicity, or political ideology."
   ― Monica Crowley

3. Provide a surprising fact.

   Did you know more than half of female students in grades 7-12 report experiencing some form of sexual harassment?

4. Directly address the issue.

   Recently a wave of women's empowerment has swept across the country, but it hasn't seemed to reach high schools.

Writing the Middle Paragraphs

Develop a middle paragraph for each reason that supports your position statement. Organize these paragraphs using your outline (for a receptive audience) or follow a pattern for a resistant audience.