PAPER++NUMBER+2


 * COMPANION PIECE 2

Short Story Literary Analysis Essay for “Paul’s Case,” “Sonny’s Blues,” “A&P,” and “What You Pawn I Will Redeem”** Write a multi-paragraph, thesis-driven essay that analyzes a point a similarity in **three** of the four short stories we’ve read recently. The paper should be approximately three to four pages in length. **Due Tuesday, December 1, 2009.** Reminder: A thesis is a clear, concise, and arguable statement that limits and gives direction to a literary analysis essay. It should present a unique, interesting and original point of view towards the material. *Note: It does not have to be a complex sentence for this essay, but it certainly can be one.
 * American Classics, Mullen**
 * __Topic__**
 * __The Thesis Statement__**

· Precise, unambiguous language · The active voice · An original argument · A road map indicating the organizational pattern of the essay
 * An effective thesis includes the following features:**

· The authors of these stories create “outsider” protagonists to highlight the wrongs in society. · Despite their bad decisions and mistaken ways, the protagonists gain our sympathy. · The protagonists’ search for the unattainable dream reveals their naiveté. · The main characters in these stories each set out on a mission that distinguishes them as determined to improve their lives in substantial ways. · These stories show the clash of cultures to emphasize the hopeless predicament of the outsider.
 * Sample Thesis Statements**


 * Organizational Plan**


 * __Introduction__**

__Begin with a general statement about your topic (alienation, culture clash, search for identity, unattainable dream, self discovery, etc.) to introduce it.__ As we grow up, all of us are taught the value of dreams, of how important it is to reach beyond the comfort of our daily life. __Develop the topic idea__. Most of us, however, realize sooner or later what dreams make sense, what is possible to achieve in the realm of our own existence. __Start to frame your particular point of view__. This sentence is a good place to list your texts. “A&P,” “Sonny’s Blues,” and “Paul’s Case” are stories that elaborate on the disappointing yet inevitable truth that most dreams can never be realized. __Write your thesis.__ While Sammy, Sonny, and Paul all sought something bigger and better in life, their inherent naiveté made it impossible for them to attain their dreams.
 * Sentence 1:**
 * Sentence 2 and 3:**
 * Sentence 4:**
 * Sentence 5:**


 * __Topic Sentences for your Body Paragraphs__**

These sentences must directly link to your thesis, even using words from the thesis. Notice how the key point **of a foolish quest for a dream** is included in every topic sentence. All body paragraphs should be based on the Twelve Sentence Model.

· In “A&P,” Sammy’s decision to quit his job is evidence of his lack of understanding about his prospects for the future. · Sonny’s unrealistic dream to become a jazz musician is developed in contrast to his brother’s stable position as a high school math teacher. · Dazzled by the glamorous life of the actors he meets, Paul foolishly believes he can live his dream in New York City.

__Restate your thesis.__ The protagonists in these stories all search for a goal well beyond their reach, showing their lack of understanding of how the world works. __Show how the idea applies to each text.__ In “A&P,” Sammy walks out the door into the bright sunlight only to discover the girls are long gone, and so is his promise of a future. In “Sonny’s Blues,” Sonny refuses to give up his dream and, haunted by drugs and by his brother’s goals for him, continues to try to make a life as a piano player. In “Paul’s Case,” Paul’s wrong-headed search for an impossibly rich existence leads him to his grave disillusionment and, eventually, to death. __Draw a conclusion.__ According to these stories, only a realistic and educated person can hope to achieve success; those who seek short cuts or who fail to face the challenges imposed by a dream are doomed to disappointment.
 * __Your Conclusion__**
 * Sentence 1:**
 * Sentence 2, 3, 4:**
 * Sentence 5:**

· Short story titles are in quotation marks. · Commas and periods are inside quotation marks. · Citation format: · __First citation: Include author’s name and page number__. We first hear about Sonny’s predicament from his brother who tells us, “It was not to be believed and I kept telling myself that, as I walked from the subway station to the sidewalk” (Baldwin 29). · __Second citation: Just include the page number in parentheses__. But the narrator never feels comfortable; even at the bar where Sonny plays he worries, “And I was yet aware that this was only a moment, that the world waited outside as hungry as a tiger” (61).
 * __Format Topics__**