Pre-AP: IWA #3

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Money often costs too much.” Both The Pearl and A Christmas Carol explore the paradox that wealth can carry a great cost to an individual, a family, and/or a community. In a well-developed essay explore the literary strategies Steinbeck or Dickens uses throughout his novella to communicate this idea to the reader.

This is the final IWA where a REWRITE (70 point) grade will be awarded. Please submit a draft early in the six weeks’ grading period so you can rewrite/revise and understand what is expected of you during the 4th Six Weeks.


Tips to success:

Do not simply recount the tragedies the characters encounter. Extensive plot summary will result in a REDO grade (no points), not a REWRITE (70 points). Look at diction, metaphor, imagery, etc., and how the author’s use of these techniques changes over the course of the story to help you explore the subject of the cost of wealth/money.

Focus on only one of the novellas. If you want to use A Christmas Carol, you must complete reading it in time to proceed through the IWA process.

All essays must be typed and adhere to the MLA formatting requirements (see below). All essays must be submitted with the draft in the LEFT pocket (inside front cover) of a 2-pocket portfolio folder. Failure to meet these minimum requirements will result in the draft being returned to the student unevaluated and with no score recorded.

• Type your paper on a computer and print it out on standard, white 8.5 x 11-inch paper.


• Double-space the text of your paper (paragraph settings). Use Times New Roman (Garamond if you're “fancy”); the font size should be 12 pt. (font settings).


• Leave only one space after periods or other punctuation marks.


• Set the margins of your document to 1" on all sides.


• Indent the first line of paragraphs one half-inch from the left margin. MLA recommends that you use the Tab key as opposed to pushing the Space Bar five times, or set your paragraphs to indent the first line 0.5". Do not skip a line (i.e., leave a blank line) between paragraphs.

Drop-Dead Deadline: Friday, January 7, 2011.