Top Old Man and the Sea Essay Errors

 

Introductions Many students began introductions by jumping right in. Read over the summer reading essay errors and the sample essay you received for help in this area. The author and title must be introduced before the topic can be discussed.

 

Pronouns in Topic Sentences and the Thesis Like your thesis, the topic sentence of each support paragraph should stand alone. Therefore, you must identify characters by name in the thesis and the first time they are mentioned in each paragraph. After the first sentence, you may alternate between the pronoun and the name.

 

Thesis The cheese thesis stands alone, the thesis stands alone, high ho the dairy-o . . .

 

I should be able to take a pair of scissors, cut the thesis out of your paper, and know what your paper is about. In other words, the thesis must spell everything out. Dont refer to anything youve explained in your previous sentences.

No: Because of this he is triumphant. (Because of what? Who?)

Yes: Because he endures physical suffering, catches the fish, and earns the respect of

the fishermen and the boy, Santiago is triumphant.

 

The reason [ . . . ] was Avoid constructing sentences that involve the reason for such and such was . . .

No: The reason Santiago was victorious was because he caught the fish.

Yes: Santiago is victorious because he catches the fish.

 

Also avoid saying in this quote or anything of the sort.

 

Fragments and Run-ons Enough said. J

 

Quotations Quotations should be used to add more depth to the argument or provide new insight. They should not be used to establish what happened in the plot. They should NOT be used as topic sentences, but should appear within the support paragraphs.

 

Literary Present Tense You were given a chance to revise your paper with present tense verbs in mind, but the majority of you had past tense verbs in your paper. Mastering this skill will take practice and careful revision.

 

Every day vs. Everyday Everyday is an adjective that means used each day (Example: I decided to wear my everyday jacket instead of my nice one.) Every day is an adverb that describe how often an action is performed. Every day is used more frequently than everyday.