honcolguide

What is an "A" paper?

This question is probably the most frequently asked in any literature class. Style, organization, ideas, and grammatical precision all contribute to the grade a paper receives, as does the course level: greater sophistication is expected at the 400-level than at the 200-level. So too for the 200-level in relation to the 100-level.

Any paper is first judged as college-level work. Expectations for college-level work include a paper that follows any format instructions provided by the professor. Misspelled words (especially in the age of spell-check) and grammatical errors do not meet college expectations. Moreover, a college-level paper has evidence of thoughtful inquiry: it uses words as precision instruments and deals with an issue the text clearly raises.

Grammatical errors inevitably reduce a paper's grade. These include run-on sentences, inaccurate pronouns, inaccurate possessives, faulty capitalization, and misplaced modifiers. Stylistically, a paper that lacks sentence variety and precise language earns no grade better than the average, and the average grade, according to university regulations, is a "C."

Even to earn that "C" grade, a paper must have a thesis. A thesis is the paper's "point," what the paper is about, which is more particular than just being "about" the play Arcadia, for instance, or about modernism. A paper without a thesis receives no grade higher than a C-, and it will most likely receive a D or F.

To find your thesis, start with a particularly intriguing, demanding, outrageous, or confusing line of text. Find other parts of the text that comment on, fit, or challenge the original line. Coming up with a thesis means reading, talking with your classmates, talking with me, testing your ideas with your peers in person or through Blackboard discussions. Ask questions about your and others' theses: what in particular are you exploring? What point are you trying to make about your specific area of inquiry?

Don't be surprised if your thesis changes in the course of writing your paper; instead, count on it, and be sure to write rough drafts.

So what makes a "B" paper? A "B" is a very good grade -- it is better than average. Besides correct spelling, good grammar, and a thesis, a "B" paper has several strong points stylistically, organizationally, and in its ideas. Its argument takes clear steps, and its good, cogent evidence ("judicious quotation") and organization reveal the care taken in writing the paper and analyzing the evidence. Its paragraphs make sense as paragraphs--each treats a part of the argument--and the paragraphs follow one another logically, tied together by an implicit structure (the enthymeme). "B" papers require some correction in style, organization, or idea, but they reveal their writers' engagement with the material on more than an average level.

Then there's the "A" paper. An "A" is the grade of true distinction. Besides correct spelling and grammar which require no editing on the part of a reader, an "A" paper's precise evidence and logical organization compel a reader's engagement. The paper might challenge at first, but it holds its own with the reader. There are no holes in its argument: on the contrary, its analysis is sophisticated, complete, and challenging. It's a paper the reader thinks with, where the next idea presented is both precise and intriguing. An "A" paper reads beautifully aloud, and reveals a probing intellect. An "A" paper has some "art" to it.

The most important advice I can give you for writing "A" papers is to write a draft a week ahead of the due date and revise it BEFORE HANDING IT IN. I've found in my own writing that I don't figure out what I'm talking about until the end of writing my first draft. Only when I've written a draft does my thesis become clear. When I rewrite, I use what I've figured out at the end of the writing process to BEGIN my second draft, and VOILA! I have a better paper.

I encourage you to spend the minimum time needed to write a good paper. In general, a 1500-word paper (about five pages) requires at least ten hours of organizing and writing, not including reading and research time.