Thesis/Topic Statements Exercise
We spent a lot of time working on Thesis Statements, and most of you did include a decent thesis statement in your essay (I think my individual help paid off:); however, many of you did not build on that thesis with strong topic statements that related to your thesis and introduced an aspect of your story that would help you to analyze that thesis. Please take some time to go through this exercise AND to watch these videos again (in your own time).
1. If your thesis is "Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" serves as a commentary on how tradition prohibits progress that could lead to a brighter future," then what would you expect a topic statement to be? Why?
A. Jackson uses a lot of symbolism to foreshadow what will happen in "The Lottery".
B. Jackson states, "The original black box had been lost and discarded" (101); the people had forgotten and lost many aspects of the lottery.
C. The children in "The Lottery" are affected because they participate in this event each year.
D. The lottery takes place June 27th in a village.
E. The setting of the story represents how tradition has hindered progress in Jackson's imaginary village.
What might be a second topic statement?
A.Character examination further reveals that this town lacks progress.
B. "Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon" (101).
C. The lottery takes place every year in order to insure a good harvest.
2. Which of the following would be a good thesis for "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place?
A. The theme of "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place" is loneliness.
B. The man in "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place" represents loneliness and despair.
C. Hemingway's "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place" reveals a message about the inevitability of loneliness and despair.
What might be a good topic statement?
A. The older waiter works in the bar and is willing to stay late to help out the old man.
B. The old man finds himself less lonely when is at the cafe' sitting "in the shadow of the leaves" (101).
C. Hemingway's plain language and simple description gives the reader a sense of something empty and superficial.
D. While the old man is obviously lonely and in despair, the older waiter is perhaps the ultimate representation of these states of being.
3. If your thesis for "A Hunger Artist" is: "Kafka's "A Hunger Artist" reveals the consequences and futility of longing for societal acceptance," then what might a good topic statement be?
A. Kafka makes it clear, through descriptive imagery, that the hunger artist longs for acceptance.
B. The hunger artist lives in a cage and starves himself for up to forty days, and nobody seems to care.
C. We are told that the hunger artist "purses his lips" (100), as if to reach out for a kiss.
D. The hunger artist's efforts to obtain acceptance lead to both physical and mental consequences.
4. Assuming that D. (above) can be used as a topic statement, what might the follow-up sentence be?
A. The hunger artist is eventually ignored, and the workers even forget to change the sign on his cage.
B. The physical consequences are obvious; after starving himself for forty days, the hunger artist is weak and frail. By the end of the story, "nobody remembered about the hunger artist" (104), and they had to "poke around the straw in the cage" (104) in order to find his wasted body.
C. "Nobody remembered about the hunger artist" (104). He was so thin, that they didn't realize he was still in the cage.
What are key words? Key words are SPECIFIC words in your thesis that you repeat in your topic statements. They are used as the connections between the THEME/THESIS and TOPIC/ANALYSIS.
Did you know that writing an essay is formulaic? That's right... and if you learn the formula, then you improve the chances of composing an effective essay. This formula can be found in various places on this website, and you've actually been learning it since elementary school. I'll try to simplify it the best way I can.
The first part of the formula is how the essay is structured. You generally have an introduction, 3 body (also called "evidence") paragraphs, and a conclusion. Most people understand this.
Each paragraph also contains its own formula!
Introduction: Lead-In, Connection of Lead-In "topic" to your "subject" (this was a story in your theme essay), Synopsis of Subject (a summary if it is a work of literature), THESIS (as seen above, there is also a formula for creating a thesis).
Rather than state the "3-pronged thesis" [ "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place" expresses the theme that loneliness is inevitable; Hemingway accomplishes his expression through his characterization of the old man, the older waiter, and the younger waiter"-- topic 1 would be "old man" and topic would contain key words "loneliness" and "inevitable", topic 2 would be older waiter.... etc.], I am asking you to be less obvious (by the way, NOBODY has written a 3-pronged thesis; if you had, it would be okay-- it is a stylistic issue, not a "right and wrong" issue). Therefore, your thesis would instead say, "Hemingway's "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place" expresses the theme of the inevitability of loneliness." However, your TOPIC STATEMENTS would be exactly the SAME as if you had written the 3-pronged thesis. You always need "3 prongs" to build your paragraphs from in a 5 paragraph essay. Both thesis options would be acceptable in your papers.
Body/Evidence Paragraphs: Topic Statement (contains KEY words from your thesis statement), Evidence x3 (analysis of the subject-- if it is a story, then this means quotes that are introduced, cited, and explained), Summation/Transition (connects the topic point to the thesis (in the theme essay, this sentence would connect all of your analysis and your topic statement to the THEME that you presented for discussion).
Conclusion: Topic statement that restates the subject (in the theme essay, that meant the title and author of the story) along with a clarification of your thesis, commentary that discusses the message of the story and how it applies to society today (this means giving specific examples, not just saying that it does so), and a concluding statement that brings the essay full circle (this may mean a reference to your lead-in or title (which should be creative).
If you follow this formula, then you will at least have an organized essay. Grammar and sentence mechanics are a whole other issue. Always write with clarity! Some writers have a flair, a unique style, but don't force this. If fancy doesn't work for you-- if you get your words tangled and break flow-- then keep it simple! Be precise and concise.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slpWSLz9tj4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSEhvejGl_k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFwQJSZ2wJA&feature=related
1. If your thesis is "Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" serves as a commentary on how tradition prohibits progress that could lead to a brighter future," then what would you expect a topic statement to be? Why?
A. Jackson uses a lot of symbolism to foreshadow what will happen in "The Lottery".
B. Jackson states, "The original black box had been lost and discarded" (101); the people had forgotten and lost many aspects of the lottery.
C. The children in "The Lottery" are affected because they participate in this event each year.
D. The lottery takes place June 27th in a village.
E. The setting of the story represents how tradition has hindered progress in Jackson's imaginary village.
What might be a second topic statement?
A.Character examination further reveals that this town lacks progress.
B. "Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon" (101).
C. The lottery takes place every year in order to insure a good harvest.
2. Which of the following would be a good thesis for "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place?
A. The theme of "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place" is loneliness.
B. The man in "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place" represents loneliness and despair.
C. Hemingway's "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place" reveals a message about the inevitability of loneliness and despair.
What might be a good topic statement?
A. The older waiter works in the bar and is willing to stay late to help out the old man.
B. The old man finds himself less lonely when is at the cafe' sitting "in the shadow of the leaves" (101).
C. Hemingway's plain language and simple description gives the reader a sense of something empty and superficial.
D. While the old man is obviously lonely and in despair, the older waiter is perhaps the ultimate representation of these states of being.
3. If your thesis for "A Hunger Artist" is: "Kafka's "A Hunger Artist" reveals the consequences and futility of longing for societal acceptance," then what might a good topic statement be?
A. Kafka makes it clear, through descriptive imagery, that the hunger artist longs for acceptance.
B. The hunger artist lives in a cage and starves himself for up to forty days, and nobody seems to care.
C. We are told that the hunger artist "purses his lips" (100), as if to reach out for a kiss.
D. The hunger artist's efforts to obtain acceptance lead to both physical and mental consequences.
4. Assuming that D. (above) can be used as a topic statement, what might the follow-up sentence be?
A. The hunger artist is eventually ignored, and the workers even forget to change the sign on his cage.
B. The physical consequences are obvious; after starving himself for forty days, the hunger artist is weak and frail. By the end of the story, "nobody remembered about the hunger artist" (104), and they had to "poke around the straw in the cage" (104) in order to find his wasted body.
C. "Nobody remembered about the hunger artist" (104). He was so thin, that they didn't realize he was still in the cage.
What are key words? Key words are SPECIFIC words in your thesis that you repeat in your topic statements. They are used as the connections between the THEME/THESIS and TOPIC/ANALYSIS.
Did you know that writing an essay is formulaic? That's right... and if you learn the formula, then you improve the chances of composing an effective essay. This formula can be found in various places on this website, and you've actually been learning it since elementary school. I'll try to simplify it the best way I can.
The first part of the formula is how the essay is structured. You generally have an introduction, 3 body (also called "evidence") paragraphs, and a conclusion. Most people understand this.
Each paragraph also contains its own formula!
Introduction: Lead-In, Connection of Lead-In "topic" to your "subject" (this was a story in your theme essay), Synopsis of Subject (a summary if it is a work of literature), THESIS (as seen above, there is also a formula for creating a thesis).
Rather than state the "3-pronged thesis" [ "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place" expresses the theme that loneliness is inevitable; Hemingway accomplishes his expression through his characterization of the old man, the older waiter, and the younger waiter"-- topic 1 would be "old man" and topic would contain key words "loneliness" and "inevitable", topic 2 would be older waiter.... etc.], I am asking you to be less obvious (by the way, NOBODY has written a 3-pronged thesis; if you had, it would be okay-- it is a stylistic issue, not a "right and wrong" issue). Therefore, your thesis would instead say, "Hemingway's "A Clean, Well-Lighted Place" expresses the theme of the inevitability of loneliness." However, your TOPIC STATEMENTS would be exactly the SAME as if you had written the 3-pronged thesis. You always need "3 prongs" to build your paragraphs from in a 5 paragraph essay. Both thesis options would be acceptable in your papers.
Body/Evidence Paragraphs: Topic Statement (contains KEY words from your thesis statement), Evidence x3 (analysis of the subject-- if it is a story, then this means quotes that are introduced, cited, and explained), Summation/Transition (connects the topic point to the thesis (in the theme essay, this sentence would connect all of your analysis and your topic statement to the THEME that you presented for discussion).
Conclusion: Topic statement that restates the subject (in the theme essay, that meant the title and author of the story) along with a clarification of your thesis, commentary that discusses the message of the story and how it applies to society today (this means giving specific examples, not just saying that it does so), and a concluding statement that brings the essay full circle (this may mean a reference to your lead-in or title (which should be creative).
If you follow this formula, then you will at least have an organized essay. Grammar and sentence mechanics are a whole other issue. Always write with clarity! Some writers have a flair, a unique style, but don't force this. If fancy doesn't work for you-- if you get your words tangled and break flow-- then keep it simple! Be precise and concise.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slpWSLz9tj4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSEhvejGl_k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFwQJSZ2wJA&feature=related
Click here for written explanation of thesis and some exercises: http://www.esc.edu/htmlpages/writerold/menud.htm#thesisch