Expository Essay: Injustice
PROMPT: How is the theme of injustice
emphasized through the author’s use of
characterization and descriptive details?

Characterization and Details
 *Consider that it is those two aspects that the author utilizes to
demonstrate the particular TYPE of injustice, and that the reader is
connected to the character before something unjust occurs.
 Example:
 Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games…we learn about her family,
the fact that she takes responsibility for her mother and sister,
hunting for them despite the risk involved, and the povertystricken environment in District 12. When she enters the games,
we want her to do well. See? Hooked.
 Now you think about the character/figures in the story of your
choice and what details the author gives you to connect to them.
Word Choice of Injustice
Depending on your historical event and selected
literary piece, you will have to address a specific
aspect of injustice.
Consider that each story has a specific focus:
•“The Lottery” connected with the injustice of
discrimination and the cruelty of the barbaric
ritual.
 Oppression
 Discrimination
 Prejudice
 Racial Profiling
 Racial Stereotyping
 Segregation
•“The Power of Words in Wartime” &
“Just Walk on By” conveyed the injustice of racial
profiling or prejudice.
 Inequality
* “In Response to Executive Order 9066” denoted
the injustice of segregation based on race.
 Alienation/Isolation
 Unfairness
Thesis Statement…The Map To Your Essay
You will build your Thesis Statements like a simple math equation.

Type of Injustice (use specific word choice) in Historical Event +
characterization/details demonstrating injustice in essay/story/poem with Author
name/title=the theme of injustice.

Verb choice suggestions:

Demonstrate

Depict

Portray

Ilustrate

Illuminate
Etc.
Sample Thesis Statements
Samples:
 The oppression suffered by the Jews during the Holocaust, as well as
Shirley Jackson’s depiction of Tessie Hutchinson’s selfishness in “The
Lottery” both emphasize the theme of injustice.
 The segregation of Native Americans in the Trail of Tears, as well as the
depiction of the girls’ friendship, and later discrimination, in Dwight Okita’s
poem, “Executive Order 9066” both depict the theme of injustice.
 The racial profiling of Trayvon Martin, as well as the prejudice and
alienation experienced by Brent Staples in his essay, “Just Walk on By”
illustrate the theme of injustice.
 The dehumanization of Muslims as mindless terrorists after September
11th, 2011, as well as the stereotyping and demeaning terminology used
against of the opposition during wartimes in Lakoff’s “The Power of Words
in Wartime” both illuminate the theme of injustice.
Three Quotes from Your Literary Source

Consider that your source has many small details, but your goal is to locate textual
support that connects to your chosen segment of injustice.

Go through your source now and locate three quotes that would support your
argument. For Example:
In “The Lottery,” look for quotes that demonstrate the townspeople’s acceptance of
the ritual or the cruelty of how they kill Tessie.
In “The Power of Words in Wartime,” consider what those words do for those who
fight against “the enemy,” that it dehumanizes the opposition.
In “Just Walk on By,” evaluate the impact that Brent Staples has on strangers, and what
that means about the stereotyping those people do when they see him. How does
that make him feel? What does he do to adjust his behavior?
In “Executive Order 9066,” consider that this is a poem about Japanese internment.
Why does the reader connect with the narrator through the small details that
make her American, and then see the friend discriminate?
Description of The Historical Event

Avoid saying “The Holocaust is bad; many people died. Hitler hated the Jews, so
that’s why they were in the camps.” Wow. This is nothing new to us. We need to
feel the fear, the hopelessness, the discrimination.

For Example:
“The vacant, hollow eyes of the Jews, who stood caged like malnourished animals
behind the barbed wire of Auschwitz and Dachau, emphasized their hopelessness;
for many prisoners in the internment camps, these months of uncertainty would
end in death. The loss of clothes and hair, the bar-coding tattoos on their
forearms, and the inability to distinguish male from female were all part of the
humiliation enacted by the Nazis” (Cobbleton 14).
“From the spitting, harassing behavior, and dehumanizing comments, to the
constant fear for their own safety, the nine students in Little Rock, Arkansas,
braved the mobs that stood against the idea of integration because they believed
that education should not discriminate against children of a different color. They
deserved the same advantages as the hostile white students that stood against
them at Central High School” (Harrison 332).
Essay Structure
Your essay structure will be:
Introductory paragraph (Begin with a hook that captures the reader’s interest and end with a clear
thesis that connects a real-world example of injustice with your chosen text.)
Body Paragraph #1 - Portray the injustice in its historical or present-day context. Summarize details
from your research on the topic. This should be at least eight well-constructed sentences in
length.
Body Paragraph #2 – Connect the injustice to the chosen text, analyzing at least 3 quotes to
demonstrate how characterization and descriptive details personalize the injustice and make the
reader empathize with those who suffer unjustly. Each quote must be blended and followed with
two to three sentences of commentary.
Concluding Paragraph—if this is your last time to impact the reader, consider that you need to address
the particular type of injustice your historical event and story focus on. Give good word choice
here, and do not introduce new information at the end. Your last line should be impactful.
Works Cited – Using the correct MLA format, document (1) the sources for your summary of the
historical or present-day context and (2) the text analyzed. This will be the last page in your
essay and does not count toward the 2 – 2 ½ page requirement.
**Consider that you must also include internal documentation. Ex: (Lakoff 237).
The Outline and Rough Draft
 Your Outline is the first step in writing, which will include:
*Thesis
*Historical Event Issues
*Literary Source Issues
*Concrete details (quotations)
 Your ROUGH DRAFT is where you flesh out the Outline. You must also
include a Works Cited Page. Make sure you write down your source’s
citation information before you leave today.
 BOTH of these are DUE on MONDAY, NOV 5th. They will be separate
grades.
 Peer Editing will also occur on MONDAY, NOV 5th. This is a QUIZ grade.