Sophomore English 263
The Catcher in the Rye, Macbeth and You
Final Exam Essay
Name:___________________
This following topic can lead to a deep, thoughtful essay or a shallow, simple essay; it will be obvious which is yours. So spend the time to think about the topic, write a L.A.M.E. thesis statement and develop supporting reasons. Remember that the thesis should answer the question and the bridge should list parallel reasons why the thesis is true, and also establish the assertions of your body paragraphs.
Part of reading literature is connecting the events and characters we read about to our own lives and ourselves. Your topic (and you have no choice but to accept it
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) is as follows: pick THE character that most interests you out of all of the ones we read about this past semester in either The Catcher in the Rye or Macbeth. Are you, personally, similar or different from this character? Write an essay detailing the similarities OR differences between you and your chosen character.
Final Exam Writing Skills
Introduction: Relevant attention-getter; link with brief background info about yourself and the title of the work that you are writing about along with your chosen character; L.A.M.E. thesis; two-part, parallel bridge at the end of the paragraph.
2 Body Paragraphs: Each must have an assertion that indicates how the paragraph relates to the thesis; one rich quote with set-up, speaker tag, full elaboration, and citation; one brief story from your own life illustrating the comparison between you and the character with a full elaboration; concluding analysis with transition to the next topic.
Conclusion: Restates the argument of the paper clearly & creatively; “SoWhat??” Discussion [why is it important for readers and students to consider this topic?], powerful last sentence that brings the essay full circle.
Other: formal vocabulary, transition phrases, first and third person ( no ‘you’ ), correct citations, mostly correct grammar.
Citation Example-Macbeth: “Had I but died an hour before this chance,/I had lived a blessed time; for from this instant/There’s nothing serious in mortality” (2.3.107-109).
Citation Example-Catcher: “All morons hate it when you call them a moron” (44).
Procedure: We will meet in the Writing Lab to write this in-class essay on Wednesday, January 14,
2009 . You will a total of 50 minutes to write this. You cannot have more time. Everyone must turn in an essay on that day, so make sure you spend some time preparing your examples the night before. If you have an excused absence on the day of the writing final, you must make arrangements with me for supervised typing time. You may not type this at home.
Guidelines for notes:
You will bring a handwritten front & back 4 x 6 index card that has the following:
a thesis statement
quotes with ideas about how to blend
- a bridge statement
- formulas for body paragraphs
words and phrases - personal examples
You will not be allowed to use your books on typing day. Because this is a final, I will not be able to answer questions on the day of the final; however, I will answer questions via email up until Tuesday night at 9 p.m., or you can come see me sometime on Tuesday to ask questions. As a reminder, my email address is askaouris@glenbrook.k12.il.us.