Directions: In selecting one passage from an essay in our Current Issues (2017) reader, formulate a critical reader response close reading argument and show how that passage serves as a microcosm for the macro structure of the entire work. Limit your selection to a short passage of 5-7 lines and explain why you agreed and/or disagreed with the author. What are the central issues in the debate? How does the selected passage unlock the meaning for the argument? You can focus the research and writing on a single essay, but keep in mind that essay contain multiple appeals and arguments. Therefore, it is your observations that are most important in crafting an argumentative response, so read carefully and critically. Please view and read the Sample Papers posted on Canvas Module if you want to read the work of a former English 1A student.
Definition of Close Reading: An explication de texte (Latin for explicare, to unfold, to fold out, or to make clear the meaning of) is a finely detailed, very specific examination of a passage from a longer work. The overriding objective of a reader response close reading is to examine the order of the text, locate its primary focus and/or design, either in its entirety or a particular area or section, so that some conclusions can be made about the arguments presented. To this end, a reader response close reading calls attention to all the dynamic tensions, polarities, or problems in the cultural, political, social, and/or economic sphere presented in the text. Indeed, Coleridge knew about the method when he referred to the germ of a work of literature, insisting that literary works provide readers with limitless opportunities for enlightenment and understanding. A reader response close reading is a subtle yet critical engagement with the text that requires you to think about the connotative and denotative use of words, to look carefully at the linguistic and rhetorical elements, examine and re-examine patterns, historical references or key dates, repetitions, oppositions, and contradictions, and then finally draw some conclusions. Do you agree and/or disagree with the author? Why?
Here is a template/structure for your essay:
Introduction paragraph 1
Hook: mention the author’s and essay title with publishing year in parenthesis and consider a possible hook or opening device: an interesting quote, rhetorical framing question, or relevant moment from the essay
Brief explanation of major points or areas of support that will covered in the essay
Thesis: thesis argument (including statement of specific issues that will be discussed, or where the essays argument will be going)
Historical context paragraph 2
Provide historical background to the issue and essay topic
Relevant social, cultural, and/or political forces that influenced the essay and/or author
Relevant context to understanding essay’s argument, such as genre, unique authors vision, and/or how the essay fits within the history of the issue
Supporting paragraph 3 (repeat for each subsequent paragraph in the body essay)
Topic sentence, a statement a main supporting point
Relevant specific observations and details from essay
Relevant quote(s) with accurate information to support argument
Connections to your own ideas and observations
Transitional sentence, a statement that transitions to next paragraphs topic sentence
Supporting Paragraphs 4, 5, 6, 7, etc.
Conclusion
Propose a solution to the issue (rather than the merely restate main ideas)
Explain how thesis statement has been proved
Consider closing with an interesting or elegant quote, reference to the essay and/or author, relevant anecdote to complete the your argument, or implications for further research
Here’s the rubric checklist:
Must provide blocked passage (5-7 lines), title, and interesting Introductory Paragraph with a “hook” or captivating opening device: an interesting quote or relevant moment from the essay
Must use the present verb tense to argue. Use the past tense for historical information
Must provide historical context to topic and counter-arguments/examples (use 1 critical thinking fallacy)
Must contain solid Thesis Sentence: the thesis sentence must appear at the bottom of the Introductory Paragraph. Keep in mind that a good thesis sentence identifies the topic and assumes a clear ideological position. For example: “Plato’s argument on social and civil justice correctly assumes that the guardians of the state must hold sound moral and ethical codes in order to properly.”
Must include at least 1 footnote and have good grammar, syntax, and punctuation
Must include at least 2 directly citations from the essay
Must cite at least 3 scholarly articles/sources obtained from the library
Must contain solid paragraph development (topic and transitional sentences)
Must avoid contractions and use of pronoun “you” and “yours”
Paper must be 6-8 double-spaced pages long with MLA style and Works Cited page
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