Using Dialogue in Writing

Warm up All of the names of students that were nominated for PLD football homecoming were arranged in alphabetical order. The first McDonald’s restaurant which opened in 1955 charged $.49 for a hamburger. McDonald's training school Hamburger University opened in 1961.

Answers Essential Nonessential

Agenda Warm up Announcements → Last chance!! Advanced summer reading DUE the class after Labor Day or it’s a ZERO. → QUIZ 9/2 A-day and 9/6 B-day Dialogue Discussion White on Black personal narrative Dialogue in your own personal narrative practice W.12.3b I can use dialogue in my personal narrative.

Read the following paragraph: Shameka wanted to attend a concert with her friends. She had never gotten to go to one, and lots of her friends did. She talked to her dad. They discussed ticket price. It started as an argument, but it ended up okay because she ended up getting an allowance. Not as much as she wanted, but at least it was a start.

Now read this one... “Dad, I need to talk to you,” announced Shameka. “Honey, I’m really busy right now. Can it wait?” “Actually, Dad, I’ve already waited for 16 years. I think we are way overdue for this conversation.” “Wait a minute,” responded Dad. “I really don’t like being talked to like that. What’s your problem?” “My problem is that you and Mom treat me like a baby,” Shameka yelled as she walked across the room and prepared to slam the door. “STOP RIGHT THERE, young lady. You will not talk to me that way and you will not walk away.” Dad paused and then calmly asked, “Please, will you tell me what’s bothering you? Obviously, there’s something rather important. What do you mean by the fact that we treat you like a baby?”

“OK, Dad, I’m sorry,” apologized Shameka “OK, Dad, I’m sorry,” apologized Shameka. “It’s just that my friends all get to go to concerts and you and Mom still won’t let me go to one with my friends.” Dad sighed and then he explained, “Shameka, Mom and I would really like to be able to let you go to concerts. We know that your friends’ parents let them go, but we just feel like you’re too young to go without supervision. I will talk to Mom about it, but until I do, how about if we wait until you’re a senior and revisit the topic. You can always have Mom go with you and your friends.” “Great. Taking my mom to a concert will be so fun. Maybe we can get ice cream afterwards,” Shameka barked. “Look, Shameka, Mom and I just don’t think you’re ready for several reasons. But I’ll talk with her about it, and we’ll discuss again this weekend.”

Which of the two selections did you enjoy reading more? Why?

Why is dialogue important in a personal narrative?

Helps move the story forward Dialogue’s main role in a personal narrative is to help the story move forward by re-creating people’s conversations and thoughts. Spoken words are called external dialogue, while thoughts are called internal dialogue. A personal narrative may include one or both types. Dialogue can also be used to speed up the pace of the story, while the narration parts slow it down. It can also serve as a break from long narrative paragraphs.

2. Reveals characters Dialogue also helps the writer reveal character traits. The main character in a personal narrative is the author, but the author's interaction with others is also an important part of the story. The dialogue helps to reveal each person's real personality and voice to give the story realism.

3. Show, not tell (sounds familiar, right?) Dialogue may be used to give the personal narrative authenticity and to make the story realistic by showing what is happening rather than just telling the reader about it. It uses sensory details -- that is, seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling and tasting -- to reveal emotion and information.

Now, we’ll read a story that illustrates how dialogue can be effective in a narrative.

White on Black is the story of one boy's triumph in the face of impossible obstacles. He was born in Moscow with cerebral palsy, which deprived him of the use of his hands and feet. Ruben Gallego was hidden away in Soviet state institutions by his maternal grandfather, the secretary general of the Spanish Communist Party in the 1960s. His boyhood was spent in orphanages, hospitals, and old-age homes. It is the story of a life of emotional deprivation and loss of human dignity.

Gallego's powerful story is one of neglect and mistreatment but also of shared small pleasures, of courage, of the power of the human will, and of a child's growing fascination with books and the worlds he finds in them. Read the following excerpt from the chapter “The Cutlet,” where Gallego discusses how he was treated cruelly by an attendant at one of the orphanages where he lived during his early childhood.

With your table partner... Discuss how dialogue contributes to the retelling of the event.

As a class... Read through the handout on “Rules for Using Dialogue.”

Practice writing dialogue With the sample Common App prompt, write a response to the question using dialogue. Due at the end of class. Sample essay with dialogue located in Google Drive folder. W.12.3b: I can write my personal narrative using dialogue. The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?