Writing About Fiction (900 words)

Read "The Flowers" by Alice Walker: http://theliterarylink.com/flowers.html

Write an essay for "The Flowers". Figure out what the underlying situation of the story. You will work on reading the story closely, hunting the text for clues and evidence to what the story means - this is your support for your ideas. Your first draft will be just your own ideas about the story. Based on that analysis, you'll research two sources that link with your ideas and incorporate those sources using MLA style documentation. The second draft will use sources and include a works cited page.

Paraphrases from the source are required!! Use them with correct launching/introduction statements and parenthetical citations.

Direct quotations from the story are required!! Use them to support your interpretation of the story.

You are weaving together your personal voice that is explaining the story with the voices of two sources that will help the reader understand the story.

This essay is NOT a research paper. Use only small portions of your sources in your essay as supplementary information.

The essay will be written in formal academic English - no You's or I's allowed.