Sharpening Your Paper Topic

The best way to sharpen your own topic is to help your classmates sharpen theirs. For this in-class workshop, I would like you to read the topic of one other student, writing comments in the margin according to the guidelines for paper topics. Be sure that each person in your group has a student reviewer.

Comment on your classmate's document with elaborate and detailed suggestions. Avoid commenting about style or grammar; focus only on the FIVE criteria below. After you have evaluated the topic of another student, please look at your own topic again and revise it by applying what you have learned.

Your own topic and the topics you look at should have these five components, in this order, in one paragraph:

1. Describe the main part(s) of the comic that engage you.
2. Identify the idea(s) coming across in certain panels you want discuss.
3. Describe some techniques the author uses to get that idea across.
4. Explain how you'd like to connect the author's ideas and techniques.
5. Suggest a possible thesis statement for the paper you plan to write.