The Literary Personal Response to Text ELA 7-9 PLANNING THE ESSAY WRITING A THESIS STATEMENT A Think Aloud Process
Deciding on your thesis statement: The first step to planning your essay Here is what needs to be in place before you begin: know your text inside out develop your own ideas in relation to the text be prepared to come up with an idea or insight on a specific topic
Reflecting on the Topic The topic for your essay will always be an essential question that could suit a story or an essay Here is an essay topic that we could develop for Nancy Farmer s The House of the Scorpion Discuss the importance of honesty in the development of an individual s sense of identity
STEP ONE Interpret the question Underline the key thematic words (honesty / identity) and develop your own ideas: What does it mean to be honest? What are the different ways people are honest or dishonest with others, with themselves? How do we develop a sense of identity? How is honesty important in developing a sense of identity? How are the ideas you developed reflected in the text? How do these ideas relate to your personal experience?
STEP TWO Create the question Change the statement into a question related to the novel or text you are writing about How/Why/When (under what circumstances) is honesty important in the development of Matt s sense of identity in Nancy Farmer s The House of the Scorpion?
STEP THREE Interpret the question in light of your text Take the ideas from our previous brainstorming and come up with as many examples as you can of honest and dishonest acts in the novel. Create a subset of questions that around these examples. For example: 1. What happens when people tell Matt many lies about who he is as an individual? 2. How are Matt s perceptions of himself affected by what people tell him? 3. How does Matt treat other people as a result of their honesty or dishonesty towards him? 4. How does Matt react when people are honest with him? 5. Is Matt always honest with others and with himself? 6. To what extent are Matt s reactions understandable? 7. How does Matt learn about honesty with himself and with others? 8. Which lie most affects Matt? 9. What value does Matt place on what people tell him? 10. How does this tie in with developing a sense of who he is?
STEP FOUR Create your claim & blueprint your supporting arguments Look for a pattern (group your ideas) in your brainstorming that leads to a potential claim Think of an argument/claim (that contains potential for debate) Your claim should be an aha rather than a duh idea Create at least three supporting arguments that support your claim Be specific have specific incidents from the novel to back up your claim
STEP FIVE Write your thesis Your thesis should sound like it answers the question you have already asked (How/Why/When (under what circumstances) is honesty important in the development of Matt s sense of identity in Nancy Farmer s The House of the Scorpion? A good thesis is a debatable claim A good thesis allows the reader to imagine want you are going to write about Your statement should: State the topic State your insight/interpretation/claim Refer to the text if you have not already done so in your introductory paragraph State specific character(s) involved Be expressed in the present tense
STEP SIX Test your thesis against the 5-part MTS (magic thesis statement) formula: 1. Identify what you are looking at (honesty and identity in character/s) 2. identify the situation you can see / are describing 3. State where that leads 4. Point out how this is important or significant 5. Be able to repeat what you mean in other words literally write a sentence following your thesis that begins with in other words
FORMULA SENTENCE (When in doubt, try this) Think about it this way: By looking at, we see that (unique insight) which is significant because Write it this way: In (name of text), the author (name) develops the idea that
Two Examples of Thesis Statements In the novel, House of the Scorpion, author Nancy Farmer reveals that Matt s sense of self is compromised both by the lies told to him by those who hate him as well as those who care for him. In the novel, House of the Scorpion, author Nancy Farmer reveals that facing up to the truth is a challenging but necessary part of developing a sense of identity.
LAST STEP Test your thesis (CSSMI) Clarity: Use straightforward language avoid reference to philosophers/philosophies or anything esoteric Specificity: Is your thesis it too vague? For example, the statement Nancy Farmer s characterization demonstrates his incredible insight as an author" is too vague because your reader can't be sure what you mean by "insight" or how it relates to "characterization" Strength: Make sure you have at least three arguments (in mind) that support your thesis Make sure you have evidence for each argument Each argument should be the material for future body paragraphs Manageability: Can you handle the topic within the time frame/space provided? Interest: Does it state the obvious ( duh )? If it's so obvious that nobody could fail to see it, it's probably not worth writing about
EXAMPLE 1 (LEVEL 4-5) In a world full of lies, how are we supposed to be honest with ourselves? If we aren t honest with ourselves then how do we discover who we are? Honesty is the key to unlocking our identity. In the novel, House of the Scorpion, Nancy Farmer creates a character named Matteo Alacran, who is a clone, fighting to find his sense of self. The author develops the idea that we need to learn to be honest with ourselves, and also be able to accept the truth when trustworthy people are honest with us, in order to become our own person. Making mistakes and wrong decisions is part of being human. Matt is the same as everyone else looking for something within himself that no one else can find. Honesty plays a very important role in his life. Level 4-5: Great opening hook and a clear writer s voice. Strong thesis statement that expresses a mature idea. The three statements following the thesis need to have transition words / phrases in order to clearly connect to the idea expressed. A blueprint needs to be developed.
EXAMPLE 2 (How would you rate this one?) What impact can honesty have on a person s sense of self? For Matteo Alacran, the main character in The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer, honesty shapes how he and others perceive and act towards him. He is severely affected, negatively and positively, when people are honest or dishonest with him. When people lie to him about who and what he is, his perception of himself is false, but he has no way of knowing. Dishonesty also causes him to make unwise choices, because of his desire to be accepted by society. As well, he learns during the novel how to be entirely honest with himself.
EXAMPLE 3 (How would you rate this one?) In Nancy Farmers Book House of the Scorpion honesty affects every thing that the main character Matt does especially his judgement of right and wrong. It also affects what he believes he is and how he will achieve what he is determined to do. In the process of choosing between the right and wrong paths Matt can take along the way this is demonstrated by the way he acts when certain people tell him lies and when they the truth. What he is told and the way he interprets things influence his choices greatly. At times Matt also isn t very honest with himself, believing his own deceptions rather then facing reality which almost leads to his demise but because of the people that come through for him he escapes that fate.
Example 4 How does influence from people you love affect your identity? What are the ways honesty affects how Matt develops his own identity? Honesty affects Matt because he wants approval, and to get approval, he acts like the people who influence him. The people who have great influence in his life aren t always good influences, and Matt doesn t make the right choices. In the novel, The House of the Scorpion, author Nancy Farmer illustrates the importance of honesty in Matt Alacran s life by explaining his struggles. With all the lies told to him, Matt has difficulty deciding who he is and what kind of person he will be.
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