Lord of the Flies Essay Requirements

• Use this site's online document 'Areas of Improvement in the Essay' to ensure the essay's accuracy.

• I expect you to create a unique title that relates to the essay's thesis.  Recall also that a well-devised hook not only gains the reader's attention, but relates to the thesis as well.

• A clear thesis statement related to one of the approaches I lectured on must appear in the introductory paragraph.

• The essay must be either five or six paragraphs and include a final 'Works Cited' page.

• Each body paragraph will begin with a topic sentence and end with a concluding sentence.  Remember the work we did with fact vs. opinion statements?  If you do, recall that a topic sentence cannot be a fact; it is the claim that the body paragraph will prove.  As for concluding sentences, they too are opinion, so do not end the paragraph with a fact.

• All direct quotations and paraphrases must have parenthetical documentation and a corresponding 'Works Cited' citation.

• Don't forget to build paragraph and detail-level transitions to add coherence to the essay.

• I will only collect a computer-generated essay; no handwritten essays allowed.  I require you to turn in a final draft.  No outlines or rough drafts will be turned in.

• The essay has a value of 200 points.  You may turn the essay in one day late with a 10% penalty or two days late for a 20% penalty.  After two days late, I will not accept the essay.

• Any form of plagiarism (copying the work of others and then passing it off as your own) will result in the grade of a 'F.'  The severity of the plagiarism will determine the total amount of points lost.

• Be certain to paper clip, not staple, all formal essays.  This conforms with MLA requirements.

• Check for linking verbs and eliminate passive voice constructions.