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Name: Class:WRITING

Othello Writing Assignment 3

Is this an Honor Killing?

Before you begin work on your third mini essay, read the Shafiaand Price of Honor articles about honor killings. Think about howthis traditional view of the treatment of women might shed light on thestory ofOthello. We know Othello kills Desdemona for a cause. Is thisissue of honor killing what motivates him? Is there anotheror multipleothermotivation(s)?

Your third mini essay will answer the following question:

What motivates Othello to punish Desdemona so severely?

Your general thesis will be your general answer to the question: anger,jealousy, pride, honor, or any other great idea you think this issue and playaddress. Your specific thesis will elaborate on your answer, giving thebecause. Dont forget to include a clear so what? at the end of yourintroduction, and at the end of the body paragraph. In your body paragraph,please use at least one quotation from the play and at least onequotation from one of the articles to support your thesis.

Remember to use 5-paragraph format for your mini essay: Introduction (2-3 sentences): Your general thesis statement and

specific thesis statement; needs to include a SO WHAT? Body Paragraph: Begins with a topic sentence that isargumentative and connected to your thesis. Your quote from the play,your quote from the article, and your thoughts on Othellos motivationwill be your proof. Be sure your commentary shows how the article andthe play are either connected or not connected. Conclusion (2-3 sentences): Your conclusion will restate yourthesis, and then connect to the SO WHAT we learn from what youbelieve to be Othellos motivation.

Your mini-essay must follow all MLA formatting rules.

Rough Draft of Writing Assignment 3 is Due: Day 1, Week of March 18

Final Draft of Writing Assignment 3 is Due: Day 2, Week of March 18

Please see your grading rubric on the back of this page.

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Name: Grading Rubric: Othello Writing Assignment 3

Excellent! GoodRoom for

Improvement

Yikes! Comesee Ms.

Peterson ASAP

OthellosTragic Flaw

Mini-Essaychooses

significant

motivation andmakes compellingconnection to

Othello and histragedy; chooses

compellingquotation fromthe play and

article as proof,commentary issubstantial anddemonstrates

depth of thought,

originality, andsignificance of themotivation to the

plays theme.

Mini-Essaychooses adequate

motivation and

makes connectionto Othello and histragedy; chooses

adequatequotation from theplay and article as

proof,commentary isadequate anddemonstrates

depth of thoughtin some places

about thesignificance of themotivation to the

plays theme.

Mini-Essaychooses

motivation butmay make loose

connection toOthello and his

tragedy; choosesinsufficient

quotation fromthe play and/orarticle as proof,commentary is

rational inthought but may

be superficialand/or not show

enough depthaboutsignificance of

motivation to theplays theme.

Mini-Essayshows little to no

connection to

Othello and/orhis motivation;chooses no or

inadequatequotation fromthe play and/orarticle as proof,

commentarymay not berational in

thought and/orconnection to

play may notshow depth ofthought in toomany areas

Components of the

Mini-Essay

Mini-Essayincludes 3

sentences of acompelling

introduction/thesiswith compellingso what?, topic

sentence that isargumentativeand re-introduces

the example,ample

commentary thatbuilds an overall

argument tosupport the thesis& connect to so

what?, and 3concludingsentences.

Mini-Essayincludes 2-3

sentences of anintroduction/thesiswith adequate so

what?, topicsentence that is

generallyargumentative andre-introduces the

example,adequate

commentary thatbuilds an overall

argument tosupport the thesis& connect to sowhat?, and 2-3

concludingsentences.

Mini-Essayincludes 2

sentences of anintroduction/thes

is withinadequate sowhat?, topic

sentence thatmay not be

argumentativeand/or re-

introduce theexample,

commentarythat may need

to make strongerconnection tothe thesis & sowhat?, and 2concluding

sentences.

Mini-Essay maybe missing oneor more of thefollowing: 1-2

sentences of anintroduction/thes

is, so what?,topic sentence,

commentarythat may need

to makestronger

connection tothe thesis & sowhat?, and 1-2

concludingsentences.

Mechanics Few to no errors informal grammar,

spelling,punctuation, and

capitalization.Quotations

introduced & citedwith correctpunctuation.

Some errors informal grammar,

spelling,punctuation,

and/orcapitalization.Errors are not

distracting to thereader. Quotationsintroduced & citedwith mostly correct

A number oferrors in formal

grammar,spelling,

punctuation,and/or

capitalization.Errors may bedistracting tothe reader at

times.

A number oferrors in formal

grammar,spelling,

punctuation,and/or

capitalization.Errors aretypically

distracting tothe reader.

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punctuation.

Quotations notintroduced or

cited with properpunctuation.

Quotationneither

introduced norcited.

Includes Rough Draft: _____ / 1 point

Attention to MLA Formatting:

Heading order/Left-aligned: ___/ pointTitle: ____/ point

Date: ____/ point

Last Name/Page # in Upper Right: ___/ pointTimes New Roman Font: ___/ point

Double-Spaced: ____/ point

Total: _________ / 16 Writing Points

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Prewriting for Mini Essay 3

Why do the killings in the articles happen? Explain their justification in yourown words.

Regardless of what the articles say, do you believe the killings were justified?Why or why not?

Do you think honor is the only motivations for the killings in the articles? Ifyes, why? If no, why not? What else could it be?

Do you believe Othellos killing is an honor killing?

If yes, why? Where do you see connections to the article?

If no, why not? What other motivations could come into play?

Mini-Essay Planning:Mini Introduction (2-3 sentences):General Thesis:

Specific Thesis (with a good so what? or message for the reader):

Body Paragraph

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Topic Sentence: Restates primary motivation(s) in a claim connected to yourthesis:

Explanation of motivation & how it relates to articles:

Include at least 1 quote from one of the articles:

Include at least 1 quote from the play:

Commentary: How does this primary motivation influence Othello to killDesdemona? How is it connected to the honor killing articles, or how is ittotally different?

Mini Conclusion (2-3 sentences):Restate thesis:

Connect So What? to 2013.

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What to do when you have a first draft in handEDIT!!!

1. Go through your first draft with a highlighter and mark all VERBS TO BE. Thenget rid of at least half of them. (Certainly delete passive voice.)

2. Look specifically for BIG FIVE ERRORS!3. Go through the paper again and delete all unnecessary wordscombine

sentences to make them stronger and more concise. (Get rid of you and your.)4. Correctly delineate titles with quotes, italics, underliningwhichever is

appropriate.PROOF READ your final draft!!!!5. Correctly cite all quotes.

When you submit your final paper, all working drafts must be attached.Be sure tosubmit your paper to turnitin.com.

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