Both “Hills Like White Elephants” (122-126) and “Good People” (157-162) are about couples considering abortions. Both stories describe moments of decision making. In the description of these moments, readers learn about the characters, their relationships, and the ways big decisions are made.
Also, the stories are interesting in their formal structure: one is almost complete dialogue; the other has no dialogue. They are both third-person narrations, but one is what our book calls a “limited narrator” and the other and “objective narrator.”
You have five choices for the essay. Choose only one. Here is our prompt choices:
In 4-5 pages, compare ONE of the following: (A) The men in the stories. (B) The women in the stories. (C) The relationships in the stories. (D) The decision-making process in the stories. (E) How the formal structures affect our reading of the story.
Now, this is a comparison essay, so you’re dealing with two objects (either the men, the women, the relationships, the decision-making process, or the formal structures). When you write comparison essays, there are two ways to do this: the right way and the wrong way. DO NOT organize your essay around the objects (wrong way). Organize your essay around THE POINTS OF COMPARISON (right way). Let’s look at both.
The Wrong Way
Let’s say you’re writing an essay about apples and oranges, and the points of comparison are shape, color, and taste. THE WRONG WAY to write this essay would be to have this thesis: Apples have certain shapes, colors, and tastes, and oranges have certain shapes, colors, and tastes.
Then you write the first half of the body paragraphs on apples and the second half on oranges. This is WRONG because the essay is organized around the objects.
The Right Way
Let’s say you’re writing the apples and oranges essay, and the points of comparison are shape, color, and taste. Here’s a good thesis:
While apples and oranges have similar shapes, they differ in their colors and tastes.
This is good because it organizes the essay around the points of comparison. It also groups similarities and differences. In this example, the first body paragraph is about the shape of apples. The second body paragraph is about the shape of oranges. The third body paragraph is about the color of apples. The fourth body paragraph about the color of oranges. The next body paragraph is about the taste of apples. The last body paragraph is about the taste of oranges.
Now, it’s possible that for your essay each point of comparison might be more than one paragraph, but you get the idea. The idea is that you alternate your discussion between the two objects, following the organization of the points of comparison.
NO OUTSIDE RESEARCH
You should NOT use any outside resources. Do NOT go online to see what others have said. This will lead to plagiarism. Just use your own understanding of the stories to respond to the prompt.
THIS IS NOT AN ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAY ABOUT ABORTION
Do not provide your personal feelings about abortion. This essay is not about your personal feelings at all. Go back and read the prompt. This essay is an analysis of the stories. Of course, you’re going to discuss the idea of abortion, but only as it exists in the stories, not how it exists in your mind/imagination/morality.
Your essay should be 4-5 pages and structured like this:
- Begin with an introductory paragraph. This should provide a brief general summary of the stories and the context. The introduction should include the title of the stories, formatted correctly, and the authors full names. Your introduction should end with a thesis statement. The thesis is the last sentence of the introduction, and it should be one sentence only. It should state the points of comparison that your essay explores.
- Next, your essay should have body paragraphs. The body paragraphs should begin with topic sentences, provide textual evidence, and then provide explanations for how the evidence supports the topic sentences. When you quote the stories, do not forget the page numbers in parentheses, not the word “page,” not the author’s name, just the number.
- Your essay should end with a concluding paragraph that summarizes your position. It should be a detailed summary, no fewer than seven sentences.
Keep in mind that you need direct evidence from the story to support your claim, and you need to explain specifically how your evidence supports your claim. Your grade is largely determined by how well you explain your ideas. Remember that you need your own title, one that reflects your thesis. The essay needs to be formatted according to MLA standards (double-spaced, one-inch margins, Times New Roman font, 12-point type). The first line of the paragraph should be indented. Don’t have added space between the paragraphs. Check your essay for capitalization, fragments, run-on sentences, comma splices.
THE WRITING PROCESS (eight steps)
Finally, keep this in mind. You should begin the writing process by reading the stories. Together, they are less than ten pages total. You should read them each three times, at least. You should take notes while you’re reading them. You have the prompt. You know what you’re looking for. Read the stories and take notes.
The second step is to make lists of points of comparison.
The third step is to choose two-to-four points of comparison from the list you’ve made.
The fourth step is to write a working thesis that uses the two-to-four points of comparison.
The fifth step is to write the body paragraphs.
The sixth step is to compare the finished body paragraphs with the working thesis. If you want to make changes to the thesis, do so.
The seventh step is to write the introductory paragraph and the concluding paragraph.
The eighth step is to proofread the essay for capitalization, fragments, run-ons, comma splices, quotation formatting, titles, etc.