DUE MAY 25TH 2023 AT 3:00 PM PACIFIC STANDARD TIME
Write an essay about how it's better to stay grounded in the real world than to escape to a virtual reality world...
Identify 3 literary devices that you feel like the author (Ernest Cline) uses to help bring that theme to life
* You do not want to use characters, setting, or diction. Those are too basic and too big. Think of ones like foreshadowing, symbolism, and things like that
* Step 3: Write your introduction
* Your intro needs a few basic things
* Title and author
* A brief (1 sentence or 2 at most) summary of the book
* Your thesis (the theme)
* The literary devices you are discussing (this is the preview)
* If done right, it will look something like this:
In (name of author with possessive "s" at the end) novel (title of novel) we see the main character, (name of protagonist), (brief, one-sentence summary of what they dealt with or went through). This novel contains many themes with one theme being (your thematic statement). This theme can be seen through the authorÂs use of (lit device #1), (lit device #2), and (lit device #3)
* Step 4: Write your body paragraphs
* 3 body paragraphs, one for each literary element. Each paragraph needs at least 1 quote to show where these literary elements are
* Paragraphs should have the following formula
* Topic Sentence
* Concrete Detail (quote)
* Commentary (summarize the quote)
* "In this quote/Through this evidence the reader can see that . . ."
* Commentary (How does the evidence support your theme)
* "This shows the reader that . . ."
* The above formula is a bare minimum idea. This could (if good) get you to a meeting. It would not get you to exceeding
* To get exceeding you'd want one or more paragraphs to have 2 pieces of evidence that follow this formula, or you'd want even more commentary to help show connection between your evidence and your theme
* Step 5: Format the paper properly in MLA formatting
**Additional Tips
* This functions slightly like an argumentative paper. You are arguing that the elements you have chosen to allow the theme you have written to be evident to the reader
* An equation: Lit Element 1 + Lit Element 2 + Lit Element 3 = theme
* We are talking about the author here, not the plot, not the characters, not the setting!
* It's two parts involving the author: What they are trying to tell us (theme) along with how they are trying to tell us that (literary elements)
* I would create theme first and then find elements that actually showcase that
* Reminder that a theme must be a complete sentence
* Not one or two words
* Not some cliche
* Has to be defensible
