Outline for Summary/Critique Essay
The following outline shows the needed structure for the summary/critique essay. Use this as a reference when constructing the essay.
1.
Introduction (Minimum 1 paragraph, 100-150 words)
a. State the name of the essay
you are critiquing and the authors name. State the main
point of the essay you are critiquing.
b. Thesis: _____________s essay shows (strong/weak) writing skill and the authors
points are (agreeable/disagreeable) on the whole.
c. Present background material on the essay you are critiquing. For example, you may discuss why the author wrote the piece, why the topic is relevant to many, and/or outline the authors credentials.
2.
Summary of the essay you are critiquing (Minimum 1 paragraph, 100-150 words)
a. State the authors thesis and main ideas. Do not use any quotes from the work; simply state the ideas in your own words. The tone of this section should be objective with no opinions of the content.
3.
Evaluate the quality of the writing (Minimum 2 paragraphs, 200-300 words)
a. Discuss three to four facets of the authors writing and evaluate the success of those facets. Act as though you are grading the author. You may evaluate any of the following, and be specific in your evaluation:
Accuracy of information
Significance of information
Clarity of purpose and thesis
Clarity of definitions
Fair use of information
Logic of organization
Success of introduction and/or conclusion
Stylistic fluency of sentences
4.
Discuss which views of the author you agree and disagree with (Minimum 2 paragraphs, 200-300 words)
a.
Be specific in outlining what
exact ideas you agree and disagree with, presenting
specific quotes. Explain why you agree or disagree.
5.
Conclusion (Minimum 1 paragraph, 100-150 words)
a.
Summarize your overall views of the authors essay, including the essays main strengths and weaknesses.
Annotations
Author: Behrens, L., and Rosen, L.J. (2016). Writing and reading across the curriculum. 13th New York: Longman.
Compose a summary/critique essay with a minimum of two body pages on Peter Capellis essay Why Focusing Too Narrowly in College Could Backfire on p. 435.
Include the required sections of the essay in this order:
1. Introduction (Include a thesis at the end that states your view on how successful Capellis piece was overall.),
2. summary of Capellis piece,
3. your assessment of Capellis writing skill,
4. your assessment of the authors values,
5. And a conclusion that sums up the strengths and weaknesses of Capellis piece.
See the chart on p. 68 for more description of each section.
This is two body pages APA format with the cover page, abstract, Citations and References page. Total papers will be 5 pages. Due on Wednesday at 1:00 pm noon
