Character Analysis Essay - Ms. Tanier's English



Character Analysis Essay

Assignment: Your assignment is to write a character analysis of a major character in the novel Scarlet Letter.

DUE DATE: 11/04

Requirements:

• You need a correct MLA heading

• Your thesis statement should be stated directly in your introduction and be proven throughout your body paragraphs.

• You must use at least one quotation from the novel in each of the body paragraphs to support your ideas.

• These quotations must be correctly documented according to MLA guidelines

• Length – The paper should be at least two full pages typed, but no more than four pages.

• The paper must be typed in 12 point font and double-spaced.

• The paper must have a title…do not underline the title of the paper or put it in quotes.

• Deductions will be made for the following errors:

o Contractions (except in direct quotations from the story)

o 1st and 2nd person pronouns

o Unclear pronoun usage

o Slang and non-specific words (thing, guy, a lot, kid, etc.)

o Grammar, spelling, and usage errors

o Typing errors

o Tense shifts…write in all present for literature or all past tense history…be consistent.

o Not underlining or italicizing book titles

Character Choices:

• Hester

• Rev. Dimmesdale

• Roger Chillingworth

• Pearl

Character Analysis Essay Help Sheet

Enders Game

Step One: Brainstorm some ideas about your character (write a quick rough draft)

Step Two: figure out what you want to say about that character

Is he/she noble? deplorable? a good leader? a bad one? Why did/didn't he/she make it to battle school? Why should/shouldn't have he/she made it to Battle School? How has he/she grown/changed? Why could/couldn't he/she have been the One?

Step Three: write a thesis = organize your paper

Option A - organize paper around three central traits or major characteristics

Sample Thesis: Ender is a good leader because he is X, Y, and Z.

Option B - organize you paper around character growth

(It is important to stress the actual changes as they are shown, but at the same time avoid simply summarizing or retelling the story.)

Sample Thesis: Bean changes from a X, to a Y, and finally, to a Z.

Option C - do something more sophisticated, but be sure to check it out with me 1st

Step Four: collect your proof

Collect 3-5 direct quotes with page numbers of words, thoughts, or actions that demonstrate the character trait you claim the character has. After each quote, explain how the quote demonstrates it. Find 3-5 for each character trait.

Step Five: begin writing your paper being sure to use proper MLA citation methods

Reminders about writing BODY PARAGRAPHS:

#1 Topic Sentence - should cover everything that will be discussed in that paragraph AND directly support the thesis

#2 Examples/Details - use specific times in the story when the character trait is shown - choose the best examples from your sheet

Three categories of details:

WORDS - what the character says, or what is said about the character

THOUGHTS - what the character thinks

ACTIONS - what the character actually does

Quote examples of the words, thoughts or actions in the paragraphs you write as proof of the trait.

Two categories of quotes:

DIRECT QUOTE - copy word for word what is in the book

• put what you copy in quotes ( "xxxx" )

• put the page number you copied the quote from

"Julie forgot the combination after Christmas break" (43).

INDIRECT QUOTE

• use your words to describe a specific event

• use page numbers even though it is not word for word

After Christmas break, Julie couldn't remember her locker combo (43).

#3 Explanations - be sure to explain what the quote/detail demonstrates or shows.

Make the point you want to make. Lead the reader to the conclusion you want him/her to reach: don't expect your reader to just "get it."

Quotations

Quotations - Copying any section of the text verbatim (word for word).

Example #1 Basic Quotation

A change in Jem’s attitude toward the Radleys is shown when Scout reports, “Less than two weeks later we found a whole package of chewing gum, which we enjoyed, the fact that everything on the Radley Place was poison having slipped Jem’s memory” (Lee 60).

Example #2 Quotation which already has quotation marks in the text.

Jem’s frustration with the injustices of the world is shown in the courtroom. “’Doesn’t make it right,’ said Jem stolidly. He beat his fist softly on his knee. ‘You just can’t convict a man on evidence like that – you can’t’” (Lee 220).

Example #3 Changing a word or two in a quotation to clarify its meaning.

Harper Lee helps her readers understand why this neighbor is so mysterious to the children of the neighborhood when she states that “Mr. Radley kept [Boo] chained to the bed most of the time” (Lee 16).

Character Analysis Prewriting

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Put author’s last name and page number…followed by a period.

Create an intro to your quotation that helps the reader understand its meaning.

Double quotation marks around the entire quote; single quotation marks to show where the quotations exist already in the text.

Put author’s last name and page number, followed by period.

Any changes to the text must be made in brackets.

THESIS STATEMENT:

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