In accord with the wish of the ALSCW to foster and recognize
excellence in the critically important area of student writing of
analytical essays at the secondary school level, the ALSCW invites
submissions of analytical essays by students in grades 9 through 12
dealing with works of recognized literary merit. Papers may examine
style, characterization, rhetorical technique, structure, and so on,
and may be about individual poems, short stories, novels, plays, or
essays. Papers may also compare two carefully selected works.
The judges value lucid and lively expression, conceptual maturity, and
argumentation that is developed from compelling and careful attention
to specific passages. They do not seek term/research papers, but hope
to receive carefully crafted interpretive and analytical essays of
1500 to 2500 words. Essays written in fulfillment of school
assignments are welcome.
The winning essay will be published in Literary Matters, the online
quarterly publication of the Association of Literary Scholars,
Critics, and Writers, and the winning contestant will receive an award
of $1,500.
To be eligible for the prize, students must be a member of the
ALSCW or be sponsored by a teacher or high school that is an ALSCW member. For information about joining the ALSCW, go to www.alscw.org.
Entries must be postmarked no later than June 1, 2015. Three copies of each entry (only one with the student’s name on it) must be sent WITH THE DOWNLOADABLE ENTRY FORM (see below) to:
ALSCW High School Writing Award
650 Beacon St., Suite 510
Boston, MA 02215
The printable entry form may be found at http://alscw.org/SecondarySchoolForm.pdf
Comments are closed.