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Lesson 2

We will begin organizing and drafting our character analyses.

Lesson Goals

  • Can I sequence and group sentences and paragraphs and use devices, techniques, descriptions, reasoning, and evidence, to establish coherent, logical, and well-developed character analysis?

  • Can I develop and clearly communicate meaningful and defensible claims about Okonkwo that represent valid, evidence-based analysis?

Texts

Core

  • Tradebook
    • Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe, Penguin Random House, 1994

Materials

Tools

Reference Guides

Editable Google Docs

Activity 1: Write

We will begin drafting outlines for the opening paragraphs of our character analyses.

Create a section at the top of your essay draft for your outline. This outline will help you organize your ideas as you write. Do not elaborate on your outline—include just enough information so you know what to write—but do not be afraid to add or subtract from it as you write. Refer to your completed Internal and External Factors Organizer to help you plan your draft.

Outline your opening paragraph. Your opening paragraph should include the following:

  • Title, Author, and Topic: Introduce your reader to the context of your character analysis. Identify the book, the book’s author, and the topic you will be discussing.

  • Background Info: What does the reader need to know about Okonkwo to understand the thesis?

Write a working thesis. The thesis should be one or two sentences that express your response to the Culminating Task prompt. You will use the rest of the essay to prove that your thesis shows a convincing and perceptive understanding of the character and novel. As a "working" thesis, it might change as you write, analyze, and gain a deeper understanding of the text.

Activity 2: Write

We will form claims for our Culminating Task essays.

Refer to your completed Internal and External Factors Organizer to help you plan your claims on your Forming Evidence-Based Claims Tool, using the following process:

  1. Write down the following guiding question in the space provided at the top of the tool: How do internal and external factors influence Okonkwo’s relationships and contribute to his fate at the end of the novel?

  2. As you review the text and your notes, pay attention to details that relate to the guiding question. Use the Attend to Details row to write down details that strongly relate to the guiding question. This will help you narrow down the most relevant details related to the question. Do not forget to include page numbers. You might have to come back later to get exact quotes or to provide more clarity.

  3. In the Analyze the Details row, write down your thinking. Doing so will help to ensure there is a clear connection among the details you identified, your analysis, and the guiding question.

  4. In the third row, Explain Connections, write down your thinking regarding how the details connect to each other. Do the facts and information, taken together, lead to a conclusion? Do they help you analyze a character? Are they indicators of an author’s perspective that you intend to support or refute?

  5. In the final row, form and express a claim. Look back over the tool and consider the guiding question, the details, and how they connect to each other. The conclusion you have drawn based on your analysis of the details in the previous rows should become your claim. Communicate that claim in a clear and direct sentence.

Activity 3: Write

We will write outlines for our essays’ conclusions.

Refer to your completed Internal and External Factors Organizer and Forming Evidence-Based Claims Tool to help you outline a conclusion for your Culminating Task essay.

Use one or more of the following techniques in your conclusion:

  • Revisit your thesis and come to a final conclusion based on your evidence and analysis.

  • Add a final quote that sums up your ideas.

  • Relate a personal truth that explains what you learned from the text and the character.

  • Discuss the ending of the novel, if you have not before.

  • Discuss how much of Okonkwo’s problems are due to a lack of balance in his life.

Activity 4: Write

We will review our claims for accuracy and precision.

Review and revise each of your claims by rereading them and asking yourself the following questions:

  1. Is the claim clearly stated?

  2. Is the claim precise? Does each word perfectly present your position?

  3. Does the claim communicate your opinion or conclusion about Okonkwo?

  4. Is the claim based on evidence that you gathered from the text?

  5. Is the claim supported by evidence?

If you answered "no" to any of the questions, consider how you might revise your claim and then do so.