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MINISTERIAL EXAMINATION OF COLLEGE ENGLISH
LANGUAGE OF INSTRUCTION AND LITERATURE

WRITING GUIDELINES

17 May 2000


Write a 750-word essay which explores a main idea in one of the three readings. Your essay should include an interpretation of the reading and some discussion of the ways in which the author develops his/her ideas.



READING 1

Identify a main idea in Woodcock's essay and structure your essay around a thesis statement which expresses your point of view about Woodcock's approach to his idea. Be sure to make appropriate references to his text and to comment on the techniques and devices* he uses to support his position.

Text :  “The Tyranny of the Clock” by George Woodcock

Reference : 

Woodcock, George. “The Tyranny of the Clock.” In Influential Writing, edited by W. Connor and M. Legris, 258-261. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1995.


READING 2

Identify a main idea in Dillard's essay and structure your essay around a thesis statement which expresses your point of view about Dillard's account of her experience. Be sure to make appropriate references to her text and to comment on the techniques and devices* she uses to support her position.

Text :  “Untying the Knot” by Annie Dillard

Reference : 

Dillard, Annie. “Untying the Knot.” In Contest: Essays by Canadian Students, edited by R. Hookey et al., 135-138. Toronto: Harcourt Brace, 1994.



READING 3

Identify a main idea in Hale's short story and structure your essay around a thesis statement which expresses your point of view about Hale's story. Be sure to make appropriate references to the reading and to comment on her use of techniques and devices.*

Text :  “The Great-Grandmother” by Nancy Hale

Reference : 

Hale, Nancy. “The Great-Grandmother.” In Short Stories from the New Yorker, 402-407. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1940.



* 

Techniques and devices you may wish to consider include the following: narration, description, dialogue, analogy, example, contrast, setting, comparison, persona, character, irony, imagery, simile, metaphor, repetition, and level of language. You are probably familiar with others as well.


© Gouvernement du Québec, 2009