Analytical Reading
Friendship Illustration Essay
Friendship Illust ration Essay
Goal
To write a 5 paragraph essay illustrating the importance of an essential issue in
friendship. Using scenarios as your specifics, demonstrate that a single specific
issue is essential to understanding friendship. Write to demonstrate that
everyone will agree that if they want to understand friendship, they have to
deal with your issue.
2 Formats
3 Short Scenari os: Each of your body ¶s should begin with a topic
sentence, a clarifier, and then an explanation of a scenario that illustrates the
crucial issue of friendship you are examining. Following the scenario, each
three specifics will illustrate your thesis.
Variations on One Long Scenari o: Your introductory ¶ will be followed
by a long (perhaps even multi-paragraph) scenario that illustrates a crucial
issue in friendship. Following that, each body ¶ will begin with a topic
sentence that makes a point about the issue, and use at least three details
or variations from the scenario to illustrate your thesis.
Thesis
The main idea of your essay will be that if a person wants to understand
friendship they must consider the issue you are examining.
Examples:
Although everyone thinks of trust, honesty, and respect when they think of
friendship, the most significant issue in a friendship is mutual benefit.
The essential difference between friendship and other close personal
relationships is freedom.
The most honest kinds of friendship are among twelve-year-old boys. Anyone
who seriously wants to understand friendship should spend some time with
boys.
Looking at the possibility of friendships between people of different age
groups illustrates the most significant issues of friendship.
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Process:
1. Considering all the issues, opinions, and scenarios we have discussed, select
a topic that you think is fresh, rich, and deep. Make sure you think you can
create scenarios and variations around it.
ex. Friends back each other up.
2. Make a broad generalization about it.
ex. In times of conflict true friends will back each other up no matter what.
3. Plan three scenarios that challenge this generalization. Either create one
basic situation with three significant variations or create three separate
scenarios that relate to the same topic. Make sure each scenario has these
elements:
A crisis that requires change
Two reasonable but conflicting sides
A point of decision
ex.
1. Doug and Don go to 2. Shelly gets caught 3. Phil wants to play his banjo
parties and get in fights. cheating and uses Betty as in the talent show asks Kathy
Doug is tired of it. He says an alibi. Betty wasn’t to sing with him. She thinks
he won’t back Don up cheating, doesn’t think they they’ll get laughed off the
anymore. Don picks a fight can get away with it. Does stage. It’s really important to
anyway. Does Doug stand she back Shelly’s story even Phil to show the school what
and watch? though it might get her into he’s good at.
trouble?
4. Draft a possible thesis.
ex. Although everyone thinks you should always back up a friend, a true friend will consider
the long term consequences and the best interest of the friend before backing them up in a
stupid decision.
5. Create a visual organizer that matches the best structure for your essay.
Use the visual organize handout to create the right outline on 11” x 14”
paper.
6. Write your scenarios or scenario and variations.
7. Fill in the specifics and extenders for each body ¶.
8. Draft body ¶ 1.
9. Draft body ¶ 2.
10. Draft body ¶ 3.
11. Use organizers to construct and draft intro and conclusion ¶s.
12. Combine intro, conclusion and 3 body ¶s into a complete essay.
F RIENDSHI P I LL US TRA TION E SS AY D UE :
F RIENDSHI P I LL US TRA TION R EW RITE D UE :
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