Name:_________________________
Ms. Reid
English 10 H
Maus Mini Essay Writing Assignment: Introductions and Body Paragraph Focus
Directions: Choose one of the following prompts and write an introduction and two body paragraphs in response.
You will be assessed on the how well you formulate your intro and body paragraphs, and there will also be a specific
focus on embedding and analyzing quotations. Remember, text based analysis is important. 1. “Life always takes the side of life, and somehow the victims are blamed. But it wasn't the
BEST people who survived, nor did the best ones die. It was RANDOM.” How is this view
reflected in both the action and themes of Maus?
2. “About Auschwitz, nobody can understand.” Maus is more a story of a son trying to
understand his father, than it is a Holocaust story. Discuss.
3. “Every word is like an unnecessary stain on silence and nothingness.” Examine the difficulties
of memory and the portrayal-of-self for both Artie’s and the reader’s ability to know the truth.
In-Class Essay: Wednesday 4 November— to be submitted to turnitin.com
MLA Checklist:
Type this assignment following the MLA sample including ALL formatting rules:
_____ 12 point font
_____ Times New Roman Font or similar
_____ Double Space (but do not add extra spaces in-between the header, title, and paragraphs)
_____ Proper Header with four parts
_____ A centered title (choose the name of topic above like Bullying, etc.)
_____ Last name and the page # in top right hand “header” of document
_____ 1” margins
Introduction Structure:
Hool: make an interesting statement about the general topic (not specific to the text)
TAG: introduce the title, author, and genre of the text that you will be discussing
Context: set context for the text that is relevant to setting up the thesis
Thesis: a bold argument plus justification about the text
Name:_________________________
Ms. Reid
English 10 H
Body Paragraph Structure:
Topic Sentence: an idea based in the text that proves the thesis
Textual Evidence: textual evidence (quotations (embedded and cited) and specific plot
points that help to prove the point you are making (repeat evidence until point is proven)
Analysis: explain specifically how and why your quotations and plot points help to prove the
point you are making. If you are analyzing a quote, don’t restate what the quote says and
avoid the “in this quote” format— just get into the details of what it says and why it is
important (analyze every piece of textual evidence in your paragraph)
Concluding Sentence: Wrap up your paragraph and how it proved your thesis.
Mini Essay Outline
Directions: Develop your thesis statement and find quotations to use during the in-class essay. You may have this
information with you, but you may not add any supplemental information. You may have more than two quotes per
paragraph, but this outline only provides space for two.
Thesis Statement:
Body Paragraph One:
Quotation 1:
Quotation 2:
Body Paragraph Two:
Quotation 1:
Quotation 2: