Poets
This poet uses conversational diction, repetition, and a voice that feels direct and communal.
Who is Langston Hughes?
This is the author’s word choice.
What is diction?
This is when you explain what a source says.
What is summary?
A basic MLA in-text citation usually includes these two things.
What are the author’s last name and page number?
Strong answers usually connect a technique to this.
What is its effect?
This poet is known for dashes, compressed lines, and unusual capitalization.
Who is Emily Dickinson?
This is the arrangement or structure of words and sentences.
What is syntax?
This is when you explain what the evidence means.
What is analysis?
If there is no author, MLA uses this instead in quotation marks.
What is a shortened title?
After effect, students should explain this next.
What is meaning?
This poet uses vivid imagery, harsh verbs, and symbolic domestic objects.
Who is Sylvia Plath?
This is descriptive language that helps build mood and reveal meaning.
What is imagery?
This is when you connect multiple sources and show how they relate.
What is synthesis?
If a source has no page numbers, you should do this.
What is not invent page numbers?
This 3-step pattern is recommended in the study guide for strong analysis.
What is Technique → Effect → Meaning?
This poet blends personal anecdote with public facts and social commentary.
Who is Claudia Rankine?
This is the speaker’s attitude in a poem.
What is tone?
This is copying a source’s sentence structure and changing only a few words.
What is patchwriting?
This comes at the end of the paper and lists all sources in MLA format.
What is the Works Cited page?
A tone that feels mixed or hard to pin down is called this.
What is ambiguous tone?
This poet is known for long flowing lines, open syntax, and an expansive voice.
Who is Walt Whitman?
This is the personality or presence of the speaker in a poem.
What is voice?
A strong version of this uses new wording, new sentence structure, same meaning, and a citation.
What is a paraphrase?
After introducing a quote smoothly and punctuating it correctly, you should do this next.
What is explain it with analysis?
What do you need to make a strong paraphrasing statement (4)?