***You will also include a Works Cited Page with proper ...



***You will also include a Works Cited Page with proper MLA citations. NOTE: YOU WILL NOT UNDERLINE ANYTHING IN YOUR PAPER, NOR WILL YOU HAVE LABELS FOR THESIS, TS, CD, CM, ETC. THESE ARE ALL SIMPLY GUIDES TO HELP YOU IN COMPOSING YOUR DRAFT.

Here are a few things to remember as you are putting together your essay.

1. Always think about your THESIS – you must always keep your thesis in mind as you are writing.

a. Thesis is only 1 sentence and there should contain no “be” verbs,

• includes everything you’re going to prove – your assertions should be found within your body paragraphs

2. Does your topic sentence refer to a part of your thesis statement?

3. Do your quotes support the ideas in your thesis?

• Do your quotes relate to your thesis or do they seem unconnected?

a. Have you explained how your quotes prove your thesis with your commentary?

b. Do you have at least THREE quotes from “The Pardoner’s Tale?”

c. Do your have quotes properly cited with line numbers?

4. Is your commentary longer than one sentence? It should be a minimum of two!

This shaping sheet does NOT include adequate room for a proper introductory paragraph or concluding paragraph. These must be done on your own, and they must be original and thoughtful. A 3 sentence introduction or concluding paragraph is not sufficient.

I look forward to reading your essays!

Thesis Statements

Why does a paper need a strong thesis statement? A paper needs a strong thesis statement so that it can make a strong argument. Weak thesis statements can result in papers with no clear direction or in papers that rely on plot summary to fill their pages. A good thesis statement predicts limits and organizes the content of the essay. In other words, it notifies your reader about the scope of the paper, telling him or her exactly what your paper will cover and in what order.

1. Your thesis statement should be specific—it should cover only what you will discuss in your paper and should be supported with specific evidence.

2. The thesis statement usually appears at the end of the first paragraph of a paper.

3. Your topic may change as you write, so you may need to revise your thesis statement to reflect exactly what you have discussed in the paper.

Thesis Statements for Literary Analysis

 

What is a thesis statement? A thesis statement is the controlling idea of a paper. It expresses succinctly the idea that the body of the paper will prove. Other names for the thesis statement are "main idea," "controlling idea," and "thesis." If the paper is a literary analysis, as all of the papers you will write for your English IV course will be, your thesis statement will make a debatable claim about one or more works of literature. Usually, thesis statements appear in the first paragraph of the paper.

Can any statement be a thesis statement? No. A thesis statement should be a fresh idea or opinion that is supportable based on facts or evidence taken from the story, poem or play discussed in the literary analysis. That is, a paper's thesis cannot be a restatement of fact or an unsupportable opinion. A thesis statement should also be interesting and not immediately obvious. It must elaborate an idea that most readers would find new and refreshing, rather than familiar or self-evident. A thesis statement often suggests a particular way of reading or understanding a story, an interpretation that the average reader wouldn't see right away. The best thesis statements are specific rather than general.

A thesis that only says a work uses certain literary devices or reflects specific cultural values isn't a good thesis because all it is doing is stating the obvious, leading the reader to say, "so what?" A good thesis gets beyond merely saying that satire is used or greed is a major theme. It makes a claim as to how and why satire is used or greed is a major theme.

Quote Embedding

Embed: To fix into a surrounding mass. To envelop or enclose. To incorporate or contain as an essential part. To insert into a larger construction.

Student examples from Act I Writing Activity: Introduce quote, provide plot summary to give context, use the quote to support your argument.

Macbeth is contemplative about what action to take when he says, “If good, why do I yield to that suggestion.”

Macbeth feels that his fate “cannot be ill, cannot be good” after the witches prophesize that he will become king.

Macbeth reveals his inner turmoil when he says, “this supernatural soliciting cannot be ill, cannot be good.”

Macbeth realizes that his fate “cannot be ill, cannot be good” if he is having thoughts about killing the king.

Macbeth’s turmoil revolves around whether or not he should kill Duncan based on the witches’ prophesy. This is evident when he states that, “this supernatural soliciting cannot be ill, cannot be good.”

Macbeth is going through mental turmoil as he states, “my heart knocks at my ribs.” Macbeth is fighting with himself because he doesn’t know how to gain the throne.

The witches’ prediction is given merit because it is “commenced in truth, Macbeth is the Thane of Cawdor.” Macbeth does not wish to cause his cousin’s death, but he is shaken by the truth of the witches’ prediction.

His inner thoughts that “present fears are less than horrible imaginings” depict the conflict going on in his mind.

Macbeth proves to be struggling with his decision when he states that, “My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical, shakes so my single state of mind.”

His “present fears” and “less than horrible imaginings” reflect the “supernatural solicitation” he received from the witches.

Macbeth thinks that if the prophecy is evil, “why hath is given me earnest of success, commencing in truth?”

His fear and confusion is most evident when he says, “This supernatural soliciting cannot be ill, cannot be good.”

Quote Embedding Practice

The following quotations are from Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Complete the sentences by seamlessly embedding the provided quotations into your own prose.

Helpful Hint: Provide the context of the quote by answering who, what, where, when, or why (condensed plot summary is used to set up your analysis).

“But since it was not for the sash itself or for lust/ But because you loved your life, I blame you less” (345 – 346).

The Green Knight…..__________________

(cannot insert “says”)

“Here I stand, faulty and false, much as I’ve feared them/ Both of them, untruth and treachery” (360 – 361).

After the Green Knight rebukes Gawain, ______________________

“‘I hold it amended/ Since now you’re confessed so clean, acknowledging sins’” (367 – 368).

(create your own sentence!)

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