English 1120 Comparative Analysis: Thoreau & Solnit

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ENGLISH 1120
ESSAY 1 GRADING RUBRIC
• Format & Mechanics—is the essay at least 4 pages in length? Does it properly cite/format quotes? Does it regularly bookend quotes with one’s own thoughts and analysis—i.e. making use of “the quote sandwich”?  Do the grammar, sentence structure, and diction prove adequate for an academic essay?
• Opening—do the essay’s opening paragraphs grab your attention?  Do they hold some semblance of a compelling thesis?  Do they succeed in getting the author’s foot in the door, establishing a relevant and convincing point of view on the governing ideas of Thoreau and Solnit?  Do they attempt some wider claims or do they feel too narrow?
• Thoreau & Solnit—does the essay do a good job dealing with the central texts? Does it pull in relevant quotes and properly elaborate/analyze them?  Does the essay show a reasonably sophisticated understanding of the texts? Is the analysis too vague or general?  Does it address common misconceptions of Thoreau, and Solnit’s arguments in favor of his relevance today?
• The Personal and the Collective—does the essay make a convincing argument for why any of this matters—both to the writer (the essay’s “I”) and the general reader?  Does the essay engage the real world with its writing, or does it read merely like a class assignment? Does the speaker offer compelling thoughts for why 21st century readers should pay attention to Thoreau and what he might have to offer us?  Does this “bigger picture” feel fully integrated into the essay or merely tacked on in the intro and conclusion?
• Tone, Structure & Organization—Does the overall tone of the essay feel too stuffy or too casual?  Does the tone toward Thoreau and Solnit come off as too dismissive or else too eager to offer blind praise?  Does the essay feel jumpy and scattered or systematic?  Does it progress fully through its arguments and analysis or does it feel repetitive? Are there sections or paragraphs that might best be reordered? Does it give due thought to topic sentences and transitions?
• Closing—is the closing paragraph more than just a rephrasing of the opening?  Does the conclusion attempt wider claims?  Does the reader feel like they have arrived at a new place and understanding by the end or do they feel like they’ve returned right where they started?