Writing About Literature A Writing Lesson by Mr

Writing About Literature A Writing Lesson by Mr. Cannici

What is an essay? �Essays are shorter pieces of writing that often require the student to hone a number of skills such as close reading, analysis, comparison and contrast, persuasion, conciseness, clarity, and exposition. �Types of Essays: 1. Expository (explanatory essay) 2. Comparison essay 3. Persuasive essay 4. Narrative essay

Common Essay Errors �Avoid the following common essay errors: �Using 1 st person, unless when expressly stated. �Referring to a quote you use as “quote”. �Weak verb alert: GOT �DO NOT REPEAT YOUR INTRODUCTION IN YOUR CONCLUSION: EXTEND SIGNIFICANCE �Creating long lists of examples rather than analyzing several good ones. �Repeating similar ideas in separate body paragraphs. �Simple sentences.

The Persuasive Essay �A persuasive essay makes a claim about a topic and justifies this claim with specific evidence. The claim could be an opinion, a policy proposal, an evaluation, a cause-and-effect statement, or an interpretation. The goal of the persuasive paper is to convince the audience that the claim is true based on the evidence provided (Purdue OWL).

Summary-Analysis Iceberg • Your evidence MUST serve the purpose of supporting your claim or analysis • An essay is not your chance to show much you remember about a text; it is your chance to show well you understand the text in order to create an argument. • Your summary should take up less space than your analysis.

Paragraph Structure �Focus Statement: Make the purpose of the paragraph clear. �Context �Quote �Connection �Transition: This might be a lead into your next paragraph or part of your connection back to thesis. The best essays are able to connect their points together.

Practice �From Gary Soto’s, “Seventh Grade” �“The rose-bushes of shame on his face became bouquets of love” �Respond to the following question: �How does the extension of Soto’s metaphor show Victor’s mood has changed due to the events of French class? �Remember, earlier Soto referred to, “Great rosebushes of red bloomed on Victor’s cheeks. ” �Use what you know about metaphors, the story and paragraphing to create a good sample.

Sample Paragraph �Gary Soto’s extension of his rosebush metaphor accurately shows Victor’s shifting emotions. When Teresa approaches Victor after his embarrassing moment in French class, Soto writes, “The rose-bushes of shame on his face bloomed into bouquets of love. ” In the first instance of the metaphor Soto is describing Victor’s insecurity. Now, Soto prolongs the metaphor by using the same image, this time to show Victor is optimistic about his love interest. It is effective because it follows Victor’s transformation into a more confident individual.

Find the dramatic element! In groups of 2 -3, find two examples of each element on the assigned pages. One MUST be the bolded Danforth speech. Explain how each qualifies as either logical fallacy or irony (25 points). �Logical Fallacy �Irony �Hale or Giles, page �Cheever, page 1306 1304 �Danforth, page 1317 �Danforth, page 1318 �Danforth, page 1322 �Hathorne and Danforth, page 1323 �Danforth, page 1325 �Danforth, page 1317 �Danforth, page 1318 �Proctor, page 1319 �Danforth, 1320 �Danforth or Parris, 1321 �Proctor or Danforth, 1322