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Science Fiction
English 315.02
Spring 2004

Essay 3

Choose an issue explored in either Letter Series 3 or being explored in Letter Series 4 and write an argumentative essay which develops a thesis and supports it with evidence from the text(s). Be careful to avoid a plot summary or a superficial discussion of your topic but rather seek to explain not just the how and the what of your topic but the significance as well. You are strongly encouraged to refer to or quote from posts made by class members and cite them in your essay.

Your essay should follow the general guidelines for written work and be 3-4 pages in length (note: 2-3/4 pages is not 3 full pages).

Your peer review draft should be revised and proofread before being posted to Comment (see the Comment quick start guide as well as the Comment in-help system for uploading documents).

Based upon your peer review, revise your essay at least once. Your essay 1 should be turned in inside a pocket folder (not a 3-ring binder) and include:

• the final draft of your essay, clearly marked as such,
• a printout of your essay, with comments, from Comment
• all earlier drafts of your essay, clearly marked as draft 1, draft 2, etc.,
• any prewriting you may have,
• and a brief cover letter discussing:
  • what changes you made after the peer review and why you made them,
  • and why you believe your final draft successfully fulfills the assignment.
  • Feel free to also include such information as:
    • resources which you drew upon,
    • what you struggled with,
    • what you think you learned,
    • what writing and rhetorical issues you focused upon, etc.
  • This cover letter should be clearly written and well organized.

Alternative Assignment

As an alternative to the standard essay, with my permission, you may submit your own work of science fiction (short story, poem, play, digital video, Web site, art work, etc.). It should be no more than 20 pages of text or take longer than 30 minutes to view. In addition to submitting your creative work, you will need to provide a 2 - 5 page essay that situates your piece within the larger context of science fiction (this means you'll want to draw from our readings and discussions about science fiction and/or discuss influences, etc.). If you are interested in taking this route, please talk to me.

Peer review draft due: 22 April

Final draft due: 29 April

Last Modified: 8 April 2004

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