The Death Penalty – Necessary or Inhumane?

Essay shows an awareness of purpose, audience, and rhetorical setting that is clear, consistent, and sensitive.
Thesis is original, clear, focused, consistent, and well stated or strongly implicit.
Abundant, well chosen details and evidence that support and develop the thesis in depth, in logical, interesting and original ways.
Clear and varied sentence structure, interesting language, excellent control of syntax, usage, and mechanics.
Quotation and paraphrase are used effectively; sources are identified and appropriately cited; works cited list is completely consistent with standard format (MLA).

Rewriting lets you perfect your document. After you have completed the draft, put it away for a couple of hours. Clear your thoughts and then read the draft again. Revising is the process of making sure that the document says what you want it to say. The first step in revision involves spending time reading and rereading the document. You should go over the document at least three times once for overall meaning and clarity, once for organization and logical development, and once for grammatical errors, which is also called editing. Here is a checklist that will help to properly revise and edit your document.

1. Introduction

Have I used an appropriate introductory strategy?
Is my purpose clearly stated or implied?
Do I have a sufficiently limited topic?
Is my writing directed to a specific audience?
2. Body

Does each paragraph have a topic sentence or clearly implied main idea?
Do topic sentences relate to the purpose?
Does my document have coherence? Do the ideas flow smoothly?
Do I have appropriate transitions between paragraphs?
Does my document have unity?
3. Conclusion

Have I used an appropriate concluding device?
Does my conclusion end my essay on a note of finality, or does it leave readers hanging?

Editing
Editing, like revising, is part of the rewriting process. Editing is the last stage in the process, something you do after you have already revised your document several times for content, organization, and style. When you edit, you read your document carefully to find and correct any mistakes you have made in grammar, spelling, and punctuation before you write your final draft. You may also find additional changes you want to make in word choice and sentence structure. Proofreading is a final editing check. When you have a final copy that you are ready to hand in, you should proofread it for errors you may have overlooked. Always use the Spell Check tool in your word processing program.

Did I stick to the purpose?
Are the paragraphs well developed and structured?
Is the document coherent in style, language, and diction?
Are all my ideas clearly expressed?
Did I eliminate all surface errors (grammar, spelling, punctuation)?
Are the format, style, and word choice appropriate?