In Class Essay Prep

Create an outline for the in class essay you will write on Monday. You may choose any of the three prompts, but you may not write on the one you chose last time. Your outline should include:
- Thesis
- Topic Sentence for Body Paragraph I
- (at least) 2 quotes
- Topic Sentence for Body Paragraph II
- (at least) 2 quotes

Below are two examples of good body paragraphs. You should use these as a model, but YOU MAY NOT COPY THEM!

Thesis: Johannes is a survivor because of his willpower during arduous situations and his clever nature.

Johannes portrays his willpower by putting aside his pride and doing all that he can to avoid danger. Due to their lack of money to buy food, Johannes’ mother catches bugs to cook and Johannes says, “At first, I adamantly refused to eat the locusts, calling them filth… soon hunger would convince me that one can acquire a taste for something one doesn’t like and I would munch, in the middle of the night, while everyone slept, on the pap and locusts she had left in the bowl” (Mathabane 63). Johannes put aside his pride to survive because, although he felt the locusts were filth, he still ate them to subdue his hunger. At this moment, Johannes focuses on satisfying his hunger by being willing to eat what he classifies as “filth,” proving that surviving is more important to him than pride. Later on, Johannes is lead by a group of boys to a place where they prostitute themselves for money and food. Appalled, Johannes runs away and states, “I never looked back as I tore down the street, dodging cars, leaping over dongas and fences and puddles; entering yards I did not know to leap fences again. Somehow, I managed to reach home, panting and breathless”(Mathabane 73), thus portraying Johannes’ willpower through his desperation and get away from a dangerous situation. The way Johannes runs in critical need to get to a safe place shows how important surviving is to him. Therefore, by putting away his pride and doing all that he can to be safe, Johannes is truly a survivor.

Thesis: From his mother, Johannes learns integrity and responsibility, which allows him to live life on his own at a young age.

Mark’s mother is the biggest contributor to his development because his father remains aloof throughout most of his life. Despite the fact that his mother is swamped with errangds and chores, “She still finds time to tell him stories…which serve as a golden fountain of knowledge” (Mathabane 78-79). Because of her stories, Johannes pieces together right and wrong, which he uses to understand his surroundings. Without these stories, he might have stayed naïve to the injustice and may have become a part of it, which could have caused him to lose his life. As early as five years old, Johannes is forced to learn responsibility when his mother says “Take good care of your brother and sister while I’m gone, you hear?” (9). Through taking care of his siblings, Johannes learns the art of self-preservation faster because he learns to care for others. His sense of responsibility might have developed slower if he was an only child or if he mom did not instill these values in him. … All of these factors allow Mark to brave the storms of apartheid.