English 99
J. Roth
Follow these steps for a successful essay:
First, attend class Thursday, March 1, to learn about comparison/contrast essay structure.
Second, make a list of local places you are aware of but have never visited. Examples might include a particular church, a particular bar, a cemetery, a museum, the bus station, a video arcade, a nursing home. Use your imagination. The more unusual the place is for you, the better.
Pick the place you plan to
visit.
Before your visit, ask yourself what you think the place will be like--what sights, sounds, smells, tastes, feelings do you think you'll experience. Make a list of these.
Actually visit that place. Spend some time there taking in the sights, sounds, smells, and other sensations. Look for experiences and impressions that capture your attention, are unique, or differ markedly from what you had expected to experience. Make a list of these.
Compare your lists. Choose three similarities OR two differences OR a mix to create your outline.
Create a physical outline using the comparison-contrast organizational logic that fits the similarities, differences, or the mix of these you chose in the preceding step. Follow the rest of the Six Building-An-Essay Steps.
Your thesis paragraph should name the place you visited and perhaps explain why you never would have thought to visit the location were it not for this assignment.
Your conclusion might contain your changed opinion of the place and/or what you've discovered about pre-conceived notions.
BUILDING-AN-ESSAY STEPS
1. Create a physical outline.
2. Write your thesis
sentence.
3. Write your body
paragraphs.
4. Write your introductory
paragraph. (End this paragraph with a copy of your thesis sentence.)
5. Write your conclusion.
6. Edit your draft.