Common Thread Analysis comparing perseverance throguh the books Hamlet, 1984, and Ordinary People

Students will write a 1000-1500 word literary analysis comparing three (or more) works we read this year.  

In this comparison, you must find a common symbol, motif, theme, situation, relationship, topic of concern, view of humanity, or some other connection. The goal is to establish the topic in the introduction, present an arguable thesis, and weave that common thread through the body paragraphs as you discuss how each of the authors handles and presents this common thread in each of the works of literature you choose. You may select any two works we have read this year worth evaluating and discussing, including poetry and short stories and your nonfiction book choices

(the works we have covered are linked below). Use an objective, third-person point of view to state your opinion as fact. 

you need to come up with a sophisticated thesis statement that sums up this common thread.  For example, if you think back to the literature you may have read in 9th grade, Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, Red Scarf Girl by Ji-li Jiang, and To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee all reveal the dire consequences of the abuse of power.  

YOU MAY NOT USE THIS THESIS STATEMENT OR ANY THESIS STATEMENT HAVING TO DO WITH THE ABUSE OF POWER.  THIS IS ONLY AN EXAMPLE.  YOU HAVE TO COME UP WITH YOUR OWN.   A thesis statement such as, “Characters in Catcher in the Rye, Hamlet, and Ordinary People all exhibit courage” isn’t good enough.  You have to take your thesis statement one step further.  For example, what does courage do for the characters and what overall result does the trait of courage have on each of the novels? 

After you settle on a solid thesis statement, you need to explain in the body of your paper (using specific examples from the texts) HOW this concept is reflected in each work.  The author and work of literature must be in the topic sentences.  You will need to cite the texts and include third-person objective commentary.

You will write a conclusion with summary statements and a clincher.

Make an accurate Works Cited page

(Guidelines)

• Introduction includes a good attention-getter (not from Brainy Quotes or random quote websites).

• The TITLES OF THE NOVELS (in italics) and THE NAMES OF THE AUTHORS for each of the texts you use. TITLES NEED TO BE IN ITALICS THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE PAPER.

• Introduction contains a clear thesis statement.  Your thesis statement and POC for this assignment will follow the same format as the sentence in this example:

• Death of a Salesman, The Great Gatsby, and The Crucible deal with characters whose desires lead to their eventual destruction. (No need for a separate POC.  This statement basically says it all.)

• Contains persuasive evidence (examples) from three works that illustrate your thesis statement.  Exemplary papers must include at least six examples with citations (two from each work), correctly cited and introduced BEFORE they are used.  Exemplary papers will also use cited paraphrases.  

• TRANSITIONS AND TOPIC SENTENCES are used to go from one topic to the next.

• A = Six (or more) cited pieces of support (a quote and an effective paraphrase in each body paragraph).

• B = Six (or more) cited pieces of support (two quotes in each body paragraph).

• C = Some cited pieces of support (shows the use of quoted material).

• D = Plot summary and no sources.