Final Draft

Make sure the Final Draft is in essay form and not outline form.

Paper 1 is autobiographical. In 4 pages, you will describe your life using either one of the suggested metaphors, or your own metaphor if you like. Ask yourself this: How does the metaphor define you? What aspects of it are similar to you? How does it describe you, or what does it say about you? You can tell stories if you like. You can let me know a lot about you, or just a little about you. The vast majority of this paper is up to you.

Remember that your goal with this paper is to define yourself, but also explain your choice. With that in mind, all of your body paragraphs should support your decision. That is, every body paragraph should tell me another way in which you resemble your chosen metaphor, or at least support another body paragraph’s claims toward that end.

You can choose from one of the offered metaphors, or create one of your own. The paper will be graded on grammatical correctness and on your ability to support your points through your body paragraphs.

This paper aligns with the 2nd, 4th, and 5th SLO’s.

Possible metaphors:

A first-water diamond,

An empty spool,

Bits of broken glass,

Lengths of string,

A key to a door long since crumbled away,

A rusty knife-blade,

Old shoes saved for a road that never was and never will be,

A nail bent under the weight of things too heavy for any nail,

A dried flower or two still a little fragrant ,

A cloud drifting on the wind,

A Flower growing in concrete,

An Iceberg adrift in the sea,

Sunglasses on a blind person,

A broken backspace key,

An empty bed,

A shattered vase,

A dollhouse,

A sunflower, looking at the sky,

A circular ladder,

Kanye West.

A jar of jelly-beans

A compass

A tiny dancer spinning in a music box

A pretty doll on a shelf

A songbird in a cage

An old purse with new money

A loaf of bread rising with yeast

A shadow

An ant

An original Volkswagon Bug

Here’s the rubric:

A This paper demonstrates mastery of argumentation. It displays the author’s ability to persuade an unbiased but rhetorically educated audience through very effective use of rhetorical elements. The paper was turned in on time, was of full length, includes a Works Cited page, conforms to standard MLA formatting, and includes only minimal formatting or grammatical issues. The sources used exist only to further the author’s argument, and are properly cited and sparsely quoted. The author displays a strong understanding of how to appeal to Ethos, Pathos, Logos, and Kairos, as well as the Rhetorical Strategies necessary to evoke them. In short, the student has written a rhetorically effective argument,

B This paper, while effective, may have shortcomings keeping it from an A. Formatting or grammatical errors may be keeping this from an A grade. If the paper is no more than half-a-page too short, is missing a Works Cited page, has regular formatting or grammatical issues, or was turned in late, it cannot receive a higher grade than a B. Multiple errors in the aforementioned regards may take the grade down even further. Overuse of sources to pad out a paper, or relying on the arguments of one’s sources rather than one’s own arguments may also hurt the grade. Additionally, a failure to effectively construct proper Syllogisms that force the reader to accept each point can keep the aper from receiving an A.

C This paper has presented an ineffective argument. A weakness in Ethos, Pathos, Logos, or Kairos (based on either a failed Rhetorical Strategy or a complete lack of appeal) would make a rhetorically educated audience not want to (or be required to) agree with the author’s main claim. Additionally, while a paper could present an effective argument, other issues could keep it from receiving a higher grade. If the paper is less than a full page short but greater than half-a-page, or was turned in more than a day late, it cannot receive a grade higher than a C. Lastly, if the paper has multiple examples of the following—is missing a Works Cited page, or has significant formatting or grammatical issues, or does not conform to standard MLA formatting—it cannot receive a grade higher than a C.

D The paper is entirely summary, is greater than a page too short, or includes many-to-all of the issues mentioned in the previous entries: formatting and grammatical issues, missing a Works Cited page, late, and not conforming to MLA format. If the paper was turned in more than two days after the cut-off point, it cannot receive a higher grade than a D.

F The paper is less than half the length required, or was not turned in within four days of the cut-off point. This could also be applied to a paper that has evidence of plagiarism or academic dishonesty in general. This could also be applied to a paper that is unrelated to the actual prompt.