Three Day Road – Essay Assignment
Choose ONE of the following prompts and complete a formal literary essay on Three Day Road.
1. Writers are often critical of elements of human nature and/or of their particular society but imply
reasons for hope as well. To what extent does this criticism and/or hope develop a theme in
Three Day Road?
2. Conflict arises when a character’s (or characters’) beliefs or desires are incompatible with the
reality he/she faces. To what extent is a central theme developed in Three Day Road in response
to such a conflict?
3. With reference to Joseph Boyden’s Three Day Road, analyse how three different literary
techniques (eg imagery, symbolism, parallelism, irony, contrast, or point of view) contribute to
the development of a central theme in the novel.
** Circle the prompt you’ve chosen!!
Pointers:
 Make sure you use proper formal essay structure and style;
 You need at least two examples for each of your three main points; at least three of your six
examples need to be quotations (the other three may be paraphrases);
 Your essay should be 700-800 words in length;
 You will need to complete and hand in an outline, rough draft and good copy (in proper MLA
format with a works cited);
 This assignment is to be completed in class only.
Organizational Chart for a formal Essay
(Use point form notes to help you organize your ideas.)
• Introductory statement:
• Thesis statement:
• 3 key points:
First supporting idea:
Second supporting idea:
Third supporting idea:
Example 1A:
Example 2A:
Example 3A:
Explanation (Connect to thesis):
Explanation (Connect to thesis):
Explanation (Connect to thesis):
Example 1B:
Example 2B:
Example 3B:
Explanation (Connect to thesis):
Explanation (Connect to thesis):
Explanation (Connect to thesis):
Conclusion: (summarize thesis statement)
Refer to supporting idea(s):
Final statements: