write one argument paper this semester based on your own thoughts about Homer's Odyssey. The purpose of this paper is to show me (1) you are thinking critically about the material we have presented during the class and (2) you are able to present an idea coherently and argue it effectively. Notice that this document is entitled Paper Requirements; not Paper Suggestions.

write one argument paper this semester based on your own thoughts about Homer's Odyssey. The purpose of this paper is to show me (1) you are thinking critically about the material we have presented during the class and (2) you are able to present an idea coherently and argue it effectively. Notice that this document is entitled Paper Requirements; not Paper Suggestions. Layout Requirements Word doc format or inserted in "TEXT" portion of assignment

Submitted to Blackboard before due time

3 Full Pages at minimum, (Cover Page does not count) Double-Spaced

Times New Roman, 12 pt Font, 1 inch Margins

Cover Page (made to MY specifications)

Bibliography in MLA format

Grading Guidelines

Paper Layout & Grammar 10 pts
Quotes from the text 5 pts
Cohesive Argument 10 pts
Total 25 pts


There are 3 important parts of your paper which I will discuss at length below. I have asked you to do some things which are not standard in other classes (i.e. the layout of your Cover Page) and some that are standard in all college courses (i.e. the Bibliography). Please read these requirements in their entirety to make sure you are following all of my instructions correctly. I will not accept papers which are e-mailed or dropped off at my office without a documented excuse.



1) Cover Page

The purpose of the Cover Page is to give a road map for the paper as a whole. By completing this correctly you will help me have a clear picture of how you are making your argument. I also strongly suggest that you use this Cover Page as an outline to keep yourself on-topic throughout. Please see the Example Cover Page at the end of this paper for an explanation of the layout.



I think that Statement

As an argument paper, your entire assignment is based on your I think that statement! This is the point you are going to argue throughout the paper.

Make sure your I think that sentence is focused enough to be covered in three pages. You CAN NOT talk about how the Greek people felt about women in three pages. You can talk about how Hesiod represents women in the Theogony and what that says about his views in three pages.

Do not make over-arching statements like in ancient Greek culture they thought you are grouping together a massive amount of peoples, places, and times which RARELY agreed on any one thing for very long. Make sure you are specific about the time and authors you are working with (i.e. based on Homers Odyssey).



I think Sentence Example

I think that Homer portrays the gods as very human-like in the Odyssey because his culture did not look to the gods for their morality.



NOT: I think that...

Homer portrays the gods as very human-like in the Odyssey. (This is an observation, not an opinion)

the ancient Greeks saw the gods as human-like. (This is too vague.)

the ancient Greek gods were human-like. (We can only comment on how authors represent the gods.)



I will look at Statements (3)

Along with your I think that statement I want you to tell me three places within the text where your point is made. Your I will look at statements will be the three pieces of the actual text that you will use to support your argument. Think of this as the three quotes you will use within your paper to make your point. These sections should be specific scenes, with line numbers from the text.


Example Cover Page



Student Name

CLAS 1222, SP 16

Web







I think that Homer uses Xenia in his Odyssey to show the audience which characters to trust and which not to trust.







I am going to look at the scene in which Telemachos welcomes Athena into his home (I.123-147)



I am going to look at the scene in which Nestor invites Telemachos to partake of his sacrifice (III.214-304)



I am going to look at the scene in which the suitors abuse the reputation of their hosts (II.516-709)





2) Body of the Paper

This is the real focus of your paper. The purpose of this paper is to show me (1) you are thinking critically about the material we have presented during the class and (2) you are able to present an idea coherently and argue it effectively in writing.



How to write your Paper

I suggest using the three pieces of evidence you have given on the Cover Page (your I will look at statements) as the outline for the body of your paper. Write an introduction which restates your I think that statement and the evidence you will be looking at. You can give some recap of the story itself after this introduction, but remember that I have read these stories many times and do not need a lot of this.

Spend the bulk of your paper discussing your three pieces of evidenced from the text. I suggest using one quote for each section (try not to use quotes for recap make them important in such a short paper!). Citing of quotes is mandatory; missing or incomplete citations are technically plagiarism and will result in a 0 for the assignment. Citing ancient works is a bit unusual; use this template:

Quote. (Homer's Odyssey, Book #.Lines #-#)

"Godlike Odysseus" (Homer's Odyssey, Book 1.55-56)

Don't assume I will understand how the quotes you give support your thesis always explain their importance.

You should always include a conclusion in your paper. I suggest restating the evidence you looked at and try to pushing your thoughts even further here by explaining why we care! What does this tell us about the author, his culture, or how does it connect to our own culture?



3) Bibliography - I will not accept a paper that does not have a bibliography. Using a text without proper documentation to the source is plagiarism.

You should always have a bibliography in your college level papers (unless, of course, it is completely your own work). I want to see here MLA format (if you are unsure of how to do this, use the Internet!). -Make sure you are using the format for translated works (Lattimore is not the author of the Odyssey).



This paper is an argument paper, not a research paper. Because of this, the only book that should appear in your bibliography is the version of the text you used for class.



Possible Topics for Paper 1

I encourage you to write about whatever topic interests you, but I realize that coming up with an idea appropriate for this paper is difficult and have given you some questions to consider if you are having problems on your own. These questions are not I think that statements; I give them in the hopes that by answering the question you have found your thesis statement. Another good place to start when trying to find a topic is the Discussion Questions assignments; any topic I bring up in these would be appropriate for a paper.

-Why does Homer include the Telemachy at the beginning of his poem? Choose one reason to focus on.

-How does Homer portray Penelope? How does she compare to modern female protagonists?

-Is Odysseus a hero in the sense we think of heroes? Choose one attribute to analyze here.