English 99

The Summary-and-Response Essay Assignment

The Summary-and-Response essay assignment teaches us how to incorporate another writer’s words with our own. The process begins by carefully reading another writer’s essay. We then begin our essay with an opening paragraph that identifies the writer, the name of the essay we read, and briefly summarizes its content. The rest of our essay is made of our words and ideas with selected words from the other essay occasionally blended in for added effect and impact.

The best way to get a sense for the structure of a summary-and-response essay is to study the example that follows. First, follow the ProQuest Steps (<online only) or view the Information Literacy video Using the ProQuest Database to find and read Cliff Schneider’s article “Still Learning from My Mother,” the article that the student example below summarizes and responds to. Once you have found the essay and read it carefully, please return to this assignment.

Now that you have Schneider’s essay “Still Learning from My Mother” in mind, please read the student summary-and-response example (<online only).

As you begin reading this essay, please notice how it opens with a paragraph that identifies the author and the professional essay, provides a brief summary of the professional essay’s main point, and then transitions into the thesis. Here are the five requirements of the first paragraph in list form:

1. name the author

2. name the work

3. add a brief summary

4. build a bridge to your thesis (a transition)

5. state your thesis at the end of the paragraph

Second, notice how the rest of the essay is the student’s words and ideas with occasional words from the professional essay blended in for impact and effect.

Finally, notice how the student credits the use of the other writer’s words.

The Assignment (100 points possible)

Select any one of the four essays in the Tan Packet and write a summary-and-response essay to it. Please be sure to follow the instructions and advice carefully.

Due: Thursday, February 16 at the beginning of class

Peer Editing Day: Thursday, February 9

Computer Lab Help Days: February 3, February 6, February 10, and February 13

Note: Bonus points will be awarded to those who successfully write a summary-and-response essay to the fourth essay in the Tan Packet, “Propaganda Techniques in Today’s Advertising” (pp. 9-13).