Review Essays
The review paper will summarize the author’s main argument and explain some of the evidence the author uses to support that argument. Not only are you expected to show that you understand the author’s main points, but you are also expected to analyze those points and the evidence used to make them.
Reviews are difficult, in part, because they are short but need to provide a great deal of information. use the guide below to organize your review:
First, you want to begin with a brief explanation of the topic the author is writing about: what is the historical event, time period, people or group of people that the author is writing about?
Next, you want to present the author’s argument. What is the author trying to prove in the article or chapter? How does the author want to portray the event they are writing about? Why or how does this event occur? Also, what is significant about their argument? For example, is the author countering someone else’s point? Or adding a new perspective we haven’t heard?
Then, what evidence does the author use to support their argument: For example, what types of documents? Or interviews? or physical evidence? Whose points of view do these documents reveal? Explain the author’s best example(s)?
Finally, include an analysis of your own. What new perspective does the argument provide you?
Requirements:
Length: About 2 pages, or 500 words
Format: Times New Roman/12pt font; double spaced; 1-inch margins; page numbers
Authors and page numbers must be cited when writing about their ideas or using their words. see the MLA style guide for in-text citations. Also list the source at the end of your review in a Work Cited page using the above guide.
