English 11: Compare and contrast essays due Wed. June 12 Citing Shakespeare . . .

If you are quoting more than three lines, you will need to indent your quotation. The lines should be arranged as they appear in the text if you are quoting verse and arranged as a paragraph if you are quoting prose.

Example: Richard ultimately recognizes--and in eloquent terms--how he has destroyed his own position:

. . . . How sour sweet music is

When time is broke, and no proportion kept.

So is it in the music of men's lives:

Here have I the daintiness of ear

To check time broke in a disordered string,

But for the concord of my state and time,

Had not the ear to hear my true name broke.

I wasted time, and now doth time waste me. (5.5.41-49)

Notice that when you cite more than three lines, the period goes in front of the bracket

and not after. 

When you are citing fewer than three lines, please include a / to indicate a line break. 

Cite the same way that you did with poetry. 

Today we finished discussing Act 5 and began our compare and contrast essays. You will be required to write a compare / contrast essay on your final exam so this essay is a great time to review the components and to refine your skills. 

In this essay, aim for  5 to 6 clear paragraphs, including a strong introduction and a conclusion. As usual, the key criteria are

• Is your thesis provocative? Is it based on a careful analysis of the question?
• Does your style offer varied sentence structure, accurate diction, creative punctuation, integrated quotations that are cited properly, clear development and transitional phrases? 
• Does your analysis of the characters' speeches add insight? 

Question: 

In a formal, literary composition of 900 to 1500 words, compare and contrast the characters of Iago and Othello. Find similarities and differences which add insight to our understanding of their motives and connections to overall themes in the play. 

Possible areas of focus

• How they view love
• Passion / Reason balance
• How they respond to threat
• How they respond to vengeance
• How well they know themselves
• What filters tend to dominate their perceptions of the world
• How others view them
• Flaws in their characters
• Diction and changes in diction
• Bestial imagery / elevated diction    
• Relationships to women 
• Relationships to power
• Manipulation of reality 
• Vulnerabilities 
• chaos / order theme 
• products of war 

Each body paragraph should discuss both characters. Choose three of the above areas on which to focus. Find quotations with which to explore your topic. Create a what / so what chart for each quotation. THE WORK THAT YOU DO TO EXPLORE YOUR TOPIC CREATES THE BEST IDEAS. WORK HARD AT THIS STAGE. USE YOUR NOTEBOOK. RECALL CLASS DISCUSSIONS. IF YOU HAVE BEEN ABSENT, BORROW THE NOTES FROM A FRIEND.