F.A.T.t Thesis Statements

Lesson Objective: To use the F.A.T.t technique to help students more carefully focus their essays

What does “FATt stand for: F=Focus (paraphrase of author’s main idea) A=Author’s Name T=Title t=Text Type (news article, editorial, book, etc)

Example: Offer a compare and contrast essay about the two major male characters in this book, Arthur Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth. Be sure to include analytical description of their looks and physical aspects, their emotional states, their motivations, and their conduct.

First, Write a sentence that answers the question/prompt: In comparing Dimmesdale and Chillingworth are very similar in their physical aspects and in some of their conducts, however, they are in stark contrast to each other when it comes to their motivations and emotional states.

Very Good Thesis but not great If I were to grade thesis: A-/B+ Why is this example not an A or A+

Focus First: Arthur Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth are very similar in their physical aspects and in some of their conducts, however, they are in stark contrast to each other when it comes to the portrayal of their motivations and emotional states in the novel, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Author First: Nathaniel Hawthorne’s characterization of Arthur Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth are very similar in their physical aspects and in some of their conducts, however, they are in stark contrast to each other when it comes to the portrayal of their motivations and emotional states in the novel, The Scarlet Letter.

Title First: The Scarlet Letter, a novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne, characterizes Arthur Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth similarly in their physical aspects and conduct, however, they are in stark contrast to each other when it comes to the portrayal of their motivations and emotional states in the novel,

Text Type First: In his novel, The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, characterizes Arthur Dimmesdale and Roger Chillingworth similarly in their physical aspects and conduct, however, they are in stark contrast to each other when it comes to the portrayal of their motivations and emotional states in the novel,