Theme #1
Draft due: September 7
Paper Due: September 19
Length: 1 1/2 - 2 pages

SUMMARY OF
SAMUEL SCUDDER, "TAKE THIS FISH AND LOOK AT IT,"  Involved pp. 197 - 201.

Assignment: Summarize Scudder's essay.

Strategy:

Read the passage carefully. Determine its structure. Identify the author's purpose in writing. (This will help you to distinguish between more important and less important information.)

Reread. This time divide the passage into sections or stages of thought. The author's use of paragraphing will often be a useful guide. Label, on the passage itself, each section or stage of thought. Underline key ideas and terms.

Write one-sentence summaries, on a separate sheet of paper, of each stage of thought.

Write a thesis: a one-sentence summary of the entire passage. The thesis should express the central idea of the passage, as you have determined it from the preceding steps. You may find it useful to keep in mind the information contained in the lead sentence of paragraph of most newspaper stories-- the what, who, why, where, when, and how of the matter. For persuasive passages, summarize in a sentence the author's conclusion. For descriptive passages, indicate the subject of the description and its key feature(s). Note: In some cases, a suitable thesis may already be in the original passage. If so, you may want to quote it directly in your summary.

Write the first draft of your summary by (1) combining the thesis with your list of one-sentence summaries or (2) combining the thesis with one-sentence summaries plus significant details from the passage. In either case, eliminate repetition. Eliminate less important information. Disregard minor details or generalize them (e.g., Reagan and Bush might be generalized as "recent presidents").

Check your summary against the original passage and make whatever adjustments are necessary for accuracy and completeness.

Revise your summary, inserting transitional words and phrases where necessary to ensure coherence. Check for style. Avoid a series of short, choppy sentences. Combine sentences for a smooth, logical flow of ideas. Check for grammatical correctness, punctuation, and spelling.

Standards:

Identification:

• The author and title should be clearly identified at the beginning of the summary
• Periodically during the summary, the author should be mentioned in the context of the ideas. ("Curry points out. . .")

• The summary should be true to the original
• It should contain no mistakes. It should not misstate what the article says.
• It should communicate the same tone as the origina.

• The summary should include all important points made by the original.
• It should not omit anything essential to understanding the main concern of the original.

• The summary should not exceed the assigned length.
• Only the most important details should be included.
• Use generalization to group together crucial supporting details.
• Avoid repetition.
• Style should be concise.

• In order to be both thorough and brief, a summary must be selective.
• Be sure you understand the piece to be summarized, so you know just what to include and what to leave out.
• Important and crucial details must be included; minor details, illustrations, and repetitions must be omitted.

• The point of view and tone of the summary must be that of the author of the original article, not that of the writer of the summary.
• Do not comment on the article, evaluate it, or argue with it in any way in the summary.

• The language of the summary must be that of that author of the summary. Do not use the author's words unless you are quoting him.
• Any quotations should be brief-no more than a sentence, preferably no more than a phrase.

• The summary should follow the Requirements for Formal Themes handout.