Directing your writing for the final essay

What I will be looking for in the final essay: a introductory paragraph that includes author, title of the novel (underlined, if hand-written; italicized, if typed) with a thesis statement; the body of the paper should consist of specific examples from the novel that are explained and related to the thesis statement. Consider this example:

Thesis [that would follow near the end of the introductory paragraph]:  Tim O’Brien’s novel, The Things They Carried, presents characters who are admirable, even noble at times; these include Norman Bowker, Henry Dobbins, Rat Kiley and Kiowa. These men are juxtaposed with soldiers like the sadistic Azar, the fearful, the drug-using Ted Lavendar, and Curt Lemon, whose bravado does not mitigate his fear of the dentist. The reader can better appreciate the men to whom the book is dedicated because of the actions of these characters.

Body Paragraph One: The reader is first introduced to Azar in the short chapter titled, “Spin,” when the narrator relates the episode of Azar blowing up Ted Lavendar puppy. When he is chastised by the other men, his response is that he is “just a boy.” He, like the other soldiers is roughly nineteen, and might truly be considered “boys,” but he is not only young; he is immature. Like the other soldiers, he witnesses war for the first time; his means of coping with war seems striking in contrast to soldiers like Henry Dobbins, however.  When Alpha Company comes across a young Vietnamese girl doing what seems to be a ritual dance after her parents have been killed, Azar mocks  and ridicules her mercilessly; he stops, though, when the Henry Dobbins picks him up and threatens to drop Azar into the well. The reader is keenly aware that Azar has no real mechanism for dealing with this kind of death or grief. His cruelty is evident, too, when he chooses to help Tim O’Brien play a mean prank on Bobby Jorgensen, the new medic who replaced Rat Kiley. Mitchell Sanders had declined to help O’Brien because the joke was too malicious and undeserved. Azar, however, is without scruples and finds it humorous. It is not until Azar is sent with Norman Bowker and Mitchell Sanders to retrieve Kiowa’s body from sewage that the reader sees Azar with his defenses down and even apologetic. This speaks volumes about Kiowa as well as Azar.

NOTES: This is not a plot summary. This is an analysis that provides evidence which supports the thesis.

THESIS:  The reader can better appreciate the men to whom the book is dedicated [Henry Dobbins, Norman Bowker, Rat Kiley, Kiowa, et.al.] because of the actions of these characters [Azar, Ted Lavendar, Rat Kiley]

Evidence in Paragraph One: focus is on Azar—cruelty in blowing up puppy; compared to Henry Dobbins re. the dancing girl; compared to Mitch Sanders—each episode is from the novel and briefly explained, but related to the thesis; it uses a combination of writing methods: comparing Azar to another soldier and giving a specific example. Each example is directly related to the thesis of the paper.