GOOD STUFF TO KNOW!!

HINT:  topics for the final exam will come from the study guide

You may use your book for the final exam, which means you will need a works cited page (yes, even for ONE book), and internal citations when/if appropriate.

SAMPLE TOPIC FOR THE FINAL ESSAY—which means: this one will NOT be one of the topics, but if you know how to analyze this topic and prepare for this essay, you should be able to do a similar job on the final.

In his novel of the Vietnam War, The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien creates characters who, together, comprise Alpha Company. The reader is drawn to these men for different reasons, not the least of which is their innocence. However, a soldier named Azar is not one of those to whom this novel is dedicated, nor does it seem any of the men have any fondness for Azar.  Through several examples from the novel, explain why Azar is actually reviled by his peers.

1Determine what the topic is really asking you to write about; read carefully and do not expect the topic to be the first sentence. In this example, it is the last sentence:

Through several examples from the novel, explain why Azar is actually reviled by his peers.

SSo if that’s what the topic actually is, WHY have preliminary sentences?

Remember this HINT for the final and for 1102: Many times the introductory information for essay topics will provide some assistance in your paper. For example, you know that you need to introduce the book and author and set up your thesis, but that takes time, which you do NOT have when you’re asked to write in-class essays. What to do? Take a look at the topic and see if any of the information can be used as part of your introductory paragraph, like this:

In his novel of the Vietnam War, The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien creates characters who, together, comprise Alpha Company. The reader is drawn to these men for different reasons, not the least of which is their innocence.  The exception is Azar, whose actions reveal him to be cruel and sadistic.

Don’t be afraid to keep the ideas and improve on the writing, like this:

Tim O’Brien creates characters who comprise Alpha Company and become the focus of his novel, The Things They Carried. Through their episodes in the Vietnamese jungle, these men—Kiowa, Henry Dobbins, Rat Kiley, Norman Bowker, and others-- form bonds of friendship and loyalty. The exception is Azar, whose actions reveal him to be cruel and sadistic.

There are countless ways of opening an essay, but use your head AND any information that is given to help you get started.

Great! You have  your  introduction, your thesis statement . . . now what? Do not summarize or tell the story. This is an analysis, NOT the book report you wrote in middle school!! Spend some time collecting your thoughts and examples; it helps most people to jot down their ideas or examples, but just briefly, with the time factor always in mind. Example:

Azar—blows up Lavender’s puppy—makes fun of girl grieving family—only one willing to help O’Brien scare the new medic

NOTE for final and 1102:  This is why you MUST read the book, make notes, be familiar with characters and episodes. YOU must be able to put the pieces together, to pick and choose what will work and what won’t. Neither Cliff Notes nor Spark Notes will do that for you, that requires critical thinking.

Now . . . the job is to take each example, connect it to the previous paragraph, and fully explain what it reveals about Azar. The second paragraph might be something like this:

       Unlike his friends of Alpha Company, the author does not include Azar in the dedication of the novel nor introduce Azar in the first story. The reader does not meet Azar except in short glimpses, beginning with the story, “Spin.” When a crippled boy on a plastic leg hobbles over to Azar, the soldier gives him a chocolate bar and “sadly” shakes his head, not because the boy is crippled, but because the shooter “ran out of ammo” (31). In the another vignette from the same story, the reader learns Azar strapped a mine to a puppy that had been Ted Lavender’s pet for a short time, and blows the puppy up. These episodes show Azar to be unfeeling in the first instance, and sadistic in the second. Azar is shown in clear contrast to Lavender, who was caring for the pup. Azar does not seem affected by the pain he may have caused a fellow soldier of Alpha Company.

Please be aware that in the above paragraph adequate explanation and detail has been given, focusing on specific episodes, details of that episode AND that it has been connected to the thesis statement.

Put the two paragraphs together and here is what you have (216 words, in only two paragraphs! Writing 2.5-3 pages is not unreasonable):

Tim O’Brien creates characters who comprise Alpha Company and become the focus of his novel, The Things They Carried. Through their episodes in the Vietnamese jungle, these men—Kiowa, Henry Dobbins, Rat Kiley, Norman Bowker, and others-- form bonds of friendship and loyalty. The exception is Azar, whose actions reveal him to be cruel and sadistic.

Unlike his friends of Alpha Company, the author does not include Azar in the dedication of the novel nor introduce Azar in the first story. The reader does not meet Azar except in short glimpses, beginning with the story, “Spin.” When a crippled boy on a plastic leg hobbles over to Azar, the soldier gives him a chocolate bar and “sadly” shakes his head, not because the boy is crippled, but because the shooter “ran out of ammo” (O'Brien 31). In the another vignette from the same story, the reader learns Azar strapped a mine to a puppy that had been Ted Lavender’s pet for a short time, and blows the puppy up. These episodes show Azar to be unfeeling in the first instance, and sadistic in the second. Azar is shown in clear contrast to Lavender, who was caring for the pup. Azar does not seem affected by the pain he may have caused a fellow soldier of Alpha Company.

Explanation of colors:

Yellow: thesis statement

Green: accurate detail & evidence from the text/novel

Pink: citation

Blue: explanation of how it relates to the thesis