With any essay - it is always best to start with a prompt
question. This means turn your big idea (idea for your thesis statement) into an
open-ended question. Then, brainstorm as many examples of answers
as you can. I'll help you get started:
In To
Kill a Mockingbird, how does racism get in the way of
justice?
- Tom Robinson is
convicted despite obvious evidence that he is
innocent.
Right here I tend to stop and ask,
"As far as justice goes (which automatically makes me think of
something legal), are there any other major examples of injustice as a result of
racism?"
Maybe...
- First
Purchase church is used as a gambling hall on the weekdays - is it "just" that African
Americans don't get their own building used for the sole purpose of
worship? - The majority of Calpurnia's church cannot read.
Is that just? - Dolphus Raymond lives like an outsider
because of his choice to love and have children with a black woman. Is that
just?
Due to the connotation of "law" in
respect to "justice" - I think with this topic idea you are going to have to do some
explaning of your definition of the word "justice."
If you
want to broaden the scope for examples in this essay - you might want to broaden your
thesis by tweaking it a little.
In To Kill a
Mockingbird, how does racism affect different characters, and ultimately get
in the way of justice?
Now you can focus on three main
characters - how they are affected by racism (I might go with Atticus and family, Tom
Robinson, Dolphus Raymond - not necessarily in that order), and ultimately how do they
deal with some sort of injustice?
I realize this is a lot
to digest - but I wanted to show you a glimpse of the thought-process behind
effective planning when it comes to essays. If the essay seems
really easy to write - from the beginning on - you might not be doing the assignment
justice. (Oh, there it is again. Sorry.)
No comments:
Post a Comment