The Open Response Essay
30-Second Summary: In the open response essay, you will read a prompt and select a novel or play we've read. Your intended audience is someone who is familiar with the novel. You'll be asked to do two things: analyze some element in the work (siblings, home, romance, death, etc.) and explain how that element helps illuminate the "meaning of the work as a whole," which is simply the novel's theme or themes. Don't summarize blindly in this essay; focus on answering the prompt and using roughly three specific examples from the beginning, middle, and end of the piece to show how the chosen element helps us see the theme's development. In the conclusion, you can broaden to explain this work's meaning in our world--what does the text suggest to us about the world? (Some people call this a lesson, and you can think of it that way if it helps, but avoid clichés in your theme section.)
The Formula:
The Formula:
Creating Theme Statements
Model: In (name of literary work), (Author) presents the idea that (topic such as love, family, etc.) (assertion about what the text teaches the reader about this topic).
Example: In Cold Sassy Tree, Olive Ann Burns presents the idea that death is not only an ending but also a chance for a new beginning when those who are still alive take the opportunity to learn from it.
Example: In Cold Sassy Tree, Olive Ann Burns presents the idea that death is not only an ending but also a chance for a new beginning when those who are still alive take the opportunity to learn from it.
creating_theme_statements.pdf |
Connecting Examples to the Theme
One of the hardest parts about this essay is making sure to connect your three(ish) specific examples back to the theme. You can't just say, "This example helps us see that death is not only an ending but also a chance for a new beginning..." You'd simply be repeating yourself throughout the essay, and you also probably didn't SHOW how this example helped you see the theme.
Example: When Walter chooses to invest his sister's school money into the liquor store, he demonstrates his belief that his dreams are more significant or at least more attainable than Beneatha's. This is a man whose views about his dreams in comparison to others' was already apparent as he called himself a "giant" and his family "ants." In light of this superior attitude (though perhaps it was simply the alcohol talking), Walter's investment reveals how his belief in his personal dreams trumps anything his family might believe. His attitude is a clear contrast to the play's ultimate theme about dreams. (See note below.)
(Note: I'm not giving the theme statement here because I don't want to repeat the same theme statement in every paragraph. But in this paragraph I've clearly connected my example [Walter's choice to invest in the liquor store] with the theme topic [dreams], even though this example actually shows how Walter's choice earlier in the play is a direct contrast to the play's ultimate theme.)
Example: When Walter chooses to invest his sister's school money into the liquor store, he demonstrates his belief that his dreams are more significant or at least more attainable than Beneatha's. This is a man whose views about his dreams in comparison to others' was already apparent as he called himself a "giant" and his family "ants." In light of this superior attitude (though perhaps it was simply the alcohol talking), Walter's investment reveals how his belief in his personal dreams trumps anything his family might believe. His attitude is a clear contrast to the play's ultimate theme about dreams. (See note below.)
(Note: I'm not giving the theme statement here because I don't want to repeat the same theme statement in every paragraph. But in this paragraph I've clearly connected my example [Walter's choice to invest in the liquor store] with the theme topic [dreams], even though this example actually shows how Walter's choice earlier in the play is a direct contrast to the play's ultimate theme.)
More Tips:
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Try it Out!
Work your way through pages 93-108 in the 5 Steps to a 5 workbook. Note that their method will be somewhat different from what's posted on this page; there's no one correct method, so do what makes sense for you.
Open Response Timed Writings
Timed Writing #1
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Timed Writing #2
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Timed Writing #3
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Timed Writing #4
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