Name: ________________________
English 12/McMane
Literary Argument: Into the Wild Response Paper
Now that you have moved past the Regents Exam, you must also learn to formulate your own paper topics and
thesis statements. Rarely will you be assigned a topic to write about in a college English course; moreover, you
will be asked to write a “response paper” in which you develop your own conclusions about a given work of
literature.
While the assignment may be framed as a “response” to a literary work, the essay should still be a focused
commentary on a particular issue or theme – it should not be a book report. For this reason, it is important that
you choose a topic of interest to you and write a focused thesis statement that is both debatable and
expandable.
You will also use outside sources to make your arguments more credible. You may use sources selected for you
available at http://mcmane.info or you can find your own research.
Your response paper should:








Include a debatable and expandable thesis statement which guides the paper
Be organized with a minimum of three body paragraphs that support your thesis
Include a minimum of 4 relevant quotes from the text(s) about which you are writing
Include information from a source outside of the book itself (see articles on http://mcmane.info)
Include proper citations of texts in MLA format
Be typed, double-spaced
Be between 2 - 3 pages in length
Be titled appropriately
Sample topics:










Throwing out the map: why McCandless is a noble figure
One bag of rice: why McCandless is an arrogant lunatic
McCandless’ literary influences
Compare and contrast – McCandless and Krakauer
McCandless’ parents: to blame or not to blame?
Ronald Franz: how McCandless changed him for better and worse
McCandless’ journey: spiritual quest or death wish?
A criticism of Krakauer’s decision to include himself in the book
A response to McCandless’ Alaskan critics
A critique of Sean Penn’s adaptation of the book
Name: __________________________
OUTLINE:
Your topic: _____________________________________________________________________________
Pre-writing: _____________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Open-ended question: _____________________________________________________________________
Your thesis (answer to the question):__________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Your body paragraphs:
1. _____________________________________________________________
2. _____________________________________________________________
3. _____________________________________________________
4. (optional) _____________________________________________
Quotes: (You must have at least 4 quotes, including at least 1 from an outside source)
1. ________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
2. ________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
3. ________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
4. ________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________