Honors Enlightenment and American Literature
Huck Finn Culminating Essay
Consider Hucks final declaration: I reckon I gotta light out for the Territory ahead of the rest, because Aunt Sally shes going to adopt me and sivilize me and I cant stand it. I been there before.
In light of Hucks two alternativesheading out for the territory or living under Aunt Sallywhich choice does Huck opt for in light of his New South values and his bildungsroman growth? Why does he make this choice?
Use textual evidence and thoughtful analysis to answer this question. This essay will be scored using a generic rubric (below). Limit yourself to 50-60 minutes to complete the response at home.
Were shaking off some writing cobwebs!
DUE: 2/5 for block 4 and 2/6 for block 7
Honors Enlightenment & American Lit.
Huck Finn Ending Essay Rubric
Name___________________________________ Score____/30
The SAT contains an essay component, scored out of six points. For our purposes, each score has a corresponding value in parentheses below.
SCORE OF 6 (10/10)
An essay in this category demonstrates clear and consistent mastery, although it may have a few minor errors. A typical essay
- effectively and insightfully employs the new South values and an understanding of bildungsroman, demonstrating outstanding critical thinking, using clearly appropriate quotations, paraphrases, or examples from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
- is well organized and clearly focused, demonstrating clear coherence and smooth progression of ideas
- exhibits skillful use of language, using a varied, accurate, and apt vocabulary
- demonstrates meaningful variety in sentence structure
- is free of most errors in grammar, usage, and mechanics
SCORE OF 5 (9/10)
An essay in this category demonstrates reasonably consistent mastery, although it will have occasional errors or lapses in quality. A typical essay
- effectively employs the new South values and an understanding of bildungsroman; demonstrates strong critical thinking, using clearly appropriate quotations, paraphrases, and examples from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
- is well organized and focused, demonstrating coherence and progression of ideas
- exhibits facility in the use of language, using appropriate vocabulary
- demonstrates variety in sentence structure
- is generally free of most errors in grammar, usage, and mechanics
SCORE OF 4 (8/10)
An essay in this category demonstrates adequate mastery, although it will have lapses in quality. A typical essay
- employs the new South values and an understanding of bildungsroman; demonstrates competent critical thinking, using adequate quotations, paraphrases, and examples from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
- is generally organized and focused, demonstrating some coherence and progression of ideas
- exhibits adequate but inconsistent facility in the use of language, using generally appropriate vocabulary
- demonstrates some variety in sentence structure
- has some errors in grammar, usage, and mechanics
SCORE OF 3 (7/10)
An essay in this category demonstrates developing mastery, and is marked by ONE OR MORE of the following weaknesses:
- employs the new South values and an understanding of bildungsroman, but may do so inconsistently; demonstrates some critical thinking, but may use inadequate quotations, paraphrases, and examples from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
- is limited in its organization or focus, or may demonstrate some lapses in coherence or progression of ideas
- displays developing facility in the use of language, but sometimes uses weak vocabulary or inappropriate word choice
- lacks variety or demonstrates problems in sentence structure
- contains an accumulation of errors in grammar, usage, and mechanics
SCORE OF 2 (6/10)
An essay in this category demonstrates little mastery, and is flawed by ONE OR MORE of the following weaknesses:
- employs the new South values and an understanding of bildungsroman that is vague or seriously limited; demonstrates weak critical thinking, providing inappropriate or insufficient quotations, paraphrases, and examples from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
- is poorly organized and/or focused, or demonstrates serious problems with coherence or progression of ideas
- displays very little facility in the use of language, using very limited vocabulary or incorrect word choice
- demonstrates frequent problems in sentence structure
- contains errors in grammar, usage, and mechanics so serious that meaning is somewhat obscured
SCORE OF 1 (5/10)
An essay in this category demonstrates very little or no mastery, and is severely flawed by ONE OR MORE of the following weaknesses:
- develops no viable point of view on the issue, or provides little or no evidence to support its position
- is disorganized or unfocused, resulting in a disjointed or incoherent essay
- displays fundamental errors in vocabulary
- demonstrates severe flaws in sentence structure
- contains pervasive errors in grammar, usage, or mechanics that persistently interfere with meaning
Essays not written on the essay assignment will receive a score of zero.