Page 128 - Aldi Lukman Nurhakim_How to Write Critical Esays: A Guide for Students of Literature

Presentation 127
Troubling to produce a fair copy also shows your sense of
fair play. You are asking someone to help you. You want your
criticism to be carefully studied. You want detailed advice on
how it can be improved. So there is simple justice in being
courteously considerate and providing an easily accessible route
into your work.
In circumstances where there cannot be time for both a full
rough draft and a fair copy—examinations, for instance,—at
least ensure that every word of the essay is legible.

Preliminaries on the first page

Write out your reader’s name at the top of the page: perhaps on
the left-hand side. Write out your name: top right is a widely
accepted format. Also identify some grouping to which you
belong: the title of the particular course which you are
following or the number of the year which you have reached in
it. Finally, write out in full the set title or question exactly as it
was given to you. Then leave a space of at least one line
between this and your first sentence. Number this sheet ‘1’ and
all others in sequence.

Leave space for comments

Conventions of precisely how much space you should offer, and
where, do vary. Find out what practice your tutor prefers. In all
cases, there must be ample room for your reader to offer two
different kinds of advice.
You should welcome specific comments about the more
localized means and effects of your essay. So provide an extra
margin throughout. If the paper which you are using has a
printed margin, you could double it so that there is twice as
much space on the left-hand side. Alternatively you could offer
an extra margin on the right by stopping early on each line.
Also, leave a space equivalent to two, or even three, lines at the
foot of every page. This can then be used for lengthier
comments on the material above.
At the end of the entire essay leave room for response to the
work as a whole. Be optimistic. Allow one-third or even half of