Format your essay according to MLA guidelines –

Format your essay according to MLA guidelines – https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_sample_paper.html

4 page (250 words per page minimum!) poetry explication based on the poem by David Berman, “Self Portrait at 28” (linked). You should read the two Word documents, “Poetry Explication” and “Poetry Explication – Guide to Getting Started – Part II.

You will then write a poetry explication of the poem or poems you have selected, based on the two hand-outs, answering most of the questions within in an ordered fashion for your essay. Feel free to include information you discovered about or by the poet, especially as related to the issues that person is concerned with or focused on in his or her life. If their profession or experiences somehow inform the work, feel free to bring that in as well. Be sure to CITE your sources whenever you quote, paraphrase or summarize from the work or research.

Your explication should be at least 4 pages typed in 12 point font, Times New Roman, double spaced. DO NOT put your font in bold, do not try to make a larger header, do not add space between your paragraphs, etc. In other words, you need to analyze the poem without trying to “take up space” in your essay by using large quotes or adding a lot of white space in. If you follow the two handouts closely, you should have no trouble writing four pages.

You should include a minimum of five quotations or paraphrases / sources. Your “Works Cited” page is a FIFTH page.

THESE MUST BE CORRECTLY FORMATTED ACCORDING TO MLA guidelines.

DO NOT PAD YOUR ESSAY WITH TOO MANY QUOTES. THE MINIMUM IS 4 PAGES. YOU CAN CERTAINLY WRITE MORE.