Outlining

As in English 111, the outline for English 112 papers should be prepared according to standard principles:

• Do not mix topics and sentences. All headings should be either complete sentences or phrases (or clauses) written in parallel form. The headings in the following excerpt from an outline are not parallel (there are other problems with this outline as well):

                II. The business organization of the Mafia as it is today

            A. The inside structure of the family

        1. Chart

            B. The way they are set up as a business corporation makes it possible to evade the law (mobility)

            C. What separates the Mafia from other crime organizations

• The headings in the following excerpt from another outline are written in properly parallel form:

                I. Gymnastics as a sport of Olympic prominence

            A. The influence of widespread television coverage

            B. The influence of the personality of particular gymnasts

• Use Roman numerals for main headings, capital letters for subdivisions of Roman numeral headings, and Arabic numerals for subdivisions of capital letter headings. There is rarely any need to include further levels of subdivision.
• All outlines for English 112 papers should be "two-level" outlines, that is, they should have a set of Roman numeral headings and a set of capital letter headings. What that also means, however, is that each undivided heading should correspond to at least one paragraph in the body of the paper. A contrast paper is a convenient illustration of the principles of the two-level outline, as in this contrast of two hypothetical automobiles:

                 Introduction

       I. Economy

    A. The high maintenance and performance costs of the Tortoise

    B. The efficient and easily maintained Winged Chariot

        II. Safety

    A. The poor safety record of the Tortoise

    B. The well-designed and well-equipped Winged Chariot

        III. Options

    A. The bare basic Tortoise

    B. The fully loaded basic Winged Chariot

                   Conclusion

In this case, one can tell how many paragraphs there would be in the paper (including the introduction and conclusion) by counting the undivided subheadings (there is usually no need to have a separate paragraph for a divided heading):

Introduction: Paragraph 1

I. A.: Paragraph 2

I. B.: Paragraph 3 (Notice that A and B together form I, which thus does not require a separate paragraph.

II. A.: Paragraph 4, and so on: 8 paragraphs altogether

• Include no one-item subheadings. Outlining is a process of division, and, since nothing can be divided into one part, I. without II., A. without B, and so on are logical impossibilities.
• Finally, no one assumes that you will be able to construct an outline out of the blue. You will need to do some careful reading, thinking, and prewriting (brainstorming, for instance) before the outline can start to take shape. Some writers even find that they must first begin drafting the paper before the outline emerges clearly. In any case, at some point, you have the obligation to your readers to ensure that your paper will be clearly and logically constructed.

[ English 112]   [ Primary Source Paper Guidelines]