reaction paper (500 words essay)

ENGL270: Military Literature
Reaction Paper

LENGTH
500-750 words
Papers that do not meet the minimum requirement will receive a failing grade. In addition, your
paper should not exceed the 750 words by much!

GRADE
This reaction paper is worth 80 points (or 8% of your final grade in the course).

MLA FORMAT
All essays must be formatted according to MLA guidelines. While most of your other courses
will use APA, that particular format is not geared to writing about literature and would cause
confusion if we were to use it. MLA is user-friendly and you can search online for the Purdue
OWL website where you can find many helpful recommendations for writing a paper in MLA
format. Please follow these recommendations and ask if you need help with any of these issues.

WORKS CITED
This is the only paper for which you will not need a Works Cited page unless you decide to cite a
source since I am asking you to generate some personal thoughts in reaction to some questions I
am giving you.

PLAGIARISM
Please remember that all work submitted in this class must be your own and written originally
for this class. Be sure that any ideas, quotations, or other kinds of information that you use from
another person or source are correctly documented. The handbook of Norwich Student Rules and
Regulations notes that “the use of words, ideas, concepts, or work of another without proper
acknowledgment, constitutes plagiarism. […] In any case where a student is found to have
used plagiarized material, an academic penalty will be assessed, since even the unintentional use
of plagiarized material violates the standards of acceptable academic performance.” All instances
of plagiarism and other kinds of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Academic Integrity
Committee. If you have any questions about these policies, please ask me in advance; I will be
happy to help you.

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EDWIN
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TOPICS
This paper is the most casual that you will do this semester. What I mean is that this is the only
essay in which you will not be responding to something that we have read together this semester.
Maybe some time has passed since you last wrote an essay. Think of this one as a chance to get
warmed up for the argumentative essays to come. Nevertheless, you should still have strong
organization in this essay, original thinking, and effective writing (that means correct
grammar and spelling and compelling writing).

Look over the topics below. Decide which one you would like to respond to in a brief essay.
These are all questions that we will be considering in one form or another over the course of the
semester so they are all important. Just choose the one that sounds most interesting to you!

Whichever one you choose, be sure that you organize your essay in a logical fashion. Your
introductory paragraph should make clear which topic you have selected and, generally
speaking, what you are going to say about it. The body paragraphs should go into detail about
your topic, looking at different aspects of your selected subject. Each paragraph should make a
different point and keep your discussion moving along. Finally, there should be some kind of
conclusion that demonstrates the ground you covered in the paper and gives it a sense of finality.

1. What do you expect from a book that has been labeled as a war memoir? From a book

labeled as war literature? What kinds of stories do you anticipate reading? What kinds of
issues do you expect will be discussed?

2. There are a lot of books written about war that might not qualify as literature. What
makes a text “literary”?

3. Are there any topics that should NOT be discussed in war literature? If so, what are they
and why?

4. Who has the right to write literature about war? Explain your answer.
5. How can memoirs and novels about war be used? By whom and for what purposes?

MISCELLANEOUS
Here are a few points to keep in mind as you reread your paper:

• This is the only assignment you will write this semester in which you can use “I.” Do
NOT however use “you” in it.

• You should be using appropriate academic language, avoiding slang and familiar
language.

• Writing is a process that takes substantial time and effort. You should never submit a
rough draft of your work to your professor. That means that you should not hand in any
kind of assignment without revising it. Ideally, you will give your paper to someone else
to read. Hopefully, any feedback you get will make your writing stronger.

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EDWIN
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• Remember that you are making a first impression with this paper. It does not have to be
perfect! However, it should be thoughtful and demonstrate that you have put effort into
your writing.

• Please let me know if you have any questions or need assistance!

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• ENGL270: Military Literature Reaction Paper