The “Scarlet Ibis” Essay
Essay Overview

Write a five-paragraph essay about how James Hurst uses birds in the story “The Scarlet Ibis” as
symbols. Tie these symbols to a central theme(s) or truth(s) in the story.

The introduction needs and compelling attention grabber, context builders, and at thesis.

Each body paragraph needs to open with a clear topic sentence. Each body paragraph needs to have at
least one quotation from the book. Use the ICE process (install, cite, explain.)

The conclusion should pull together the big ideas in the essay and emphasize the main theme that ties
together each of the symbolic elements you have discussed in your essay.
*********************************************************************************
Answer the following questions to review key concepts:
1.What is a thesis statement?
2. What is a topic sentence?
3.What is the ICE process? Specifically, what does the “E” in ICE represent? How does this relate to the topic
sentence?
************************************************************************
Introduction
 Attention grabber
 Context / Lead into the main themes of your essay.
 Thesis
Write an introduction for the following thesis statement using an introductory method that is NOT a rhetorical
question. Write your introduction on a separate lined piece of paper.
Thesis Sample: In the story “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, birds are used to represent both strength and
frailty and the power of pride to destroy the balance between these two forces.
************************************************************************
What can the writer of the following paragraph do to improve this paragraph? Write down at least five ways that
this paragraph could improve. BE SPECIFIC. (This paragraph is not complete.)
In the story “The Scarlet Ibis” the scarlet ibis represents strength. The bird represents strength by
traveling a far distance. The scarlet ibis relates to doodle. Doodle was unable to walk, swim, and ride a bike or
anything, until his brother spent many old hard hours all summer helping him regain his strength so he could
accomplish all of those tasks in the future. In the end, Doodle was much stronger just like the bird had strength
to travel a long ways from its home to their backyard.
“The Scarlet Ibis” Analysis
6= Wow!
5= Excellent
4=Solid
3=Needs Work
1= Not Present
“Excellent” score of 5 x 3= 15. A score of 6 is a bonus on this 5 point scale.
________Essay Format & Presentation (5)
 Is the essay double-spaced?
 Is the essay typed in 12-point font?
 Are there one-inch margins?
 Does the writer have an engaging title that is NOT underlined but is centered at the top of the page?
 Is the paper headed with the student’s name, the date, and the student’s class period.
________Introduction (5)
 Is there an attention grabber that is not a rhetorical question?
 Are there appropriate context builders in the introduction?
 Is there a clear thesis? Are you clear about what the essay will prove?
 Does the thesis pull together all of the writer’s key ideas?
 Is the thesis interesting and does it go beyond basic facts to tell us something about the main themes of
the story?
________Ideas and Content (15) (This score is multiplied by three.)
 Is there at least one quote in each section of the body?
 Is each quote explained directly?
 Are the ideas in each paragraph well developed and explained? Are connections explored? Does it go
beyond a basic understanding of the plot of the story to show us insights?
_______Body Paragraph Organization (5)
 Are the topic sentences clear and focused?
 Does each paragraph focus on proving the topic sentence?
 Are the ideas in the body logically sequenced?
_______Word Choice (5)
 Is the word choice precise (specific) and varied?
 Are words used accurately? Did you avoid common word choice errors?
_______Sentence Fluency (5)
 Are all of the sentences complete sentences?
 Are the sentences clear and do they flow from one to the next?
 Has the writer combined short choppy sentences?
________ICE Format (5)
 Are each of the cited quotations properly introduced with context information?
 Are the quotes cited with the author’s last name?
________Conventions/ Grammar (10)
 Is the essay free of errors in spelling, punctuation, and grammar?
 Is the title of the story correctly punctuated?
 Is the essay free of fragments and run-ons?
________Conclusion (5)
 Does the writer take time to sum up the key ideas in an engaging manner?
 Is there a strong finale line or “zinger” at the end?
Total Score ______/60