30 POINTS PROJECT: PREPARING THE CRITICAL ESSAY IMPORTANT NOTE
All written projects in this course are to be written using either Times New Roman 12 point or Arial 12 point black font. Paragraphs must be properly indented or double-spaced between paragraphs as directed by your teacher. After reading all the directions below, complete your project as directed below (or as instructed by your teacher):
In preparing to write a critical essay on Hamlet, (at least 700 words), you will need to follow the same series of steps that you would follow in writing any other exposition. You will complete the task of writing a critical essay in two parts. In this project, you will do the first part.

Here are your goals for this assignment:

Select and develop a thesis statement for a critical essay.
Construct an outline for a critical essay.

The purpose of this project is to effectively lay the foundation for writing a critical essay on an aspect of your choice from William Shakespeare's play Hamlet. This project is the first of two required to develop and write an essay.

In this project, you will:

choose a topic
limit that topic
develop a thesis statement
develop an outline for your paper
Now that you have completed the reading of the play Hamlet, you will have some reactions to the ideas and characters within the play. You may want to review the play again or choose to view the play on video as an aid in selecting a topic.

Note: The classic black-and-white 1948 film of Hamlet, starring Sir Laurence Olivier, is an excellent representation of the play. Not only is it consistent with Shakespeare's original play, the film won many awards, including Academy Awards for Best Picture and for Olivier's brilliant performance as Prince Hamlet. The film can be found at most video rental outlets, and is the only Shakespearean film to date to have won the Best Picture Oscar. There have been a number of more recent film versions of Hamlet, as well.

Reflect on an aspect of the play or a character within the play that you would like to discuss. (Examples: Hamlet's madness, Ophelia's plight, the destructive nature of revenge).

Limit your topic to one that can be thoroughly discussed and defended in at least 700 words. Write a thesis statement that reflects the issue you plan to discuss and prove.

You will have to be familiar with the text of the play and cite references within the play to support and/or prove your points.

Develop an outline that shows the way in which you plan to develop and present your topic. Be sure to properly format the outline.

Submit the topic, thesis statement, and outline to your teacher for revision suggestions and approval.

Your essay will be graded based on the following:

your attention to the instructions given above
appropriateness of your essay topic
the specific nature of the thesis statement, as related to the topic
properly formatted outline that contains all points to be covered to support the thesis
use of proper punctuation, spelling, grammar, and sentence construction (commonly called conventions"), and appropriate length
NOTE: Check with your teacher to determine whether there may be other special requirements.
30 POINTS