“Lamb to the Slaughter” “Masque of the Red Death”

Following the Prompt Write an essay in which you analyze how the author uses literary elements to reveal the theme of one of the short stories we studied in class.

Following the Prompt Write an essay in which you analyze how the author uses literary elements to reveal the theme of one of the short stories we studied in class.

Theme Dahl uses setting, irony, and contrast to show that evil emerges inevitably when faced with threat. Through this story, Dahl shows that people cannot help but turn evil when faced with threat.

Theme listing thesis Dahl uses setting, irony, and contrast to show that evil emerges inevitably when faced with threat. Through this story, Dahl shows that people cannot help but turn evil when faced with threat.

Introductory Paragraph Exposition Author, title, genre BRIEF short summary Theme WHAT will you prove?

You must include transitions between chunks!! Body Paragraphs Literary Device Topic Sentence (TS) Topic (establish WHAT you will write about) Opinion (HOW your literary device will prove your theme) Concrete Detail (CD) Commentary (CM) Analysis of how details prove the TS Usually 2-3 sentences Closing Sentence Wrap up ideas from this paragraph Circle back to the TS opinion *REMEMBER! ALWAYS KEEP YOUR THEME IN MIND!* Chunk #1 You must include transitions between chunks!!

Introducing Quotes (p.16 in WP) You must always provide context for a quotation! Who said it? To whom? Where? When? Circumstances? Example: In front of the jail, a man from the lynch mob growls, “’You know what we want. Get aside from the door, Mr. Finch’” (Lee 153).

What worked? What didn’t? The setting of this story helps reveal that an average person can have a hidden dark side. Mary lives in an average, almost stereotypical American home. She is living the life of almost all other women at the time. The story opens with Mary sitting in a chair glancing at the clock in anticipation for her husband’s arrival. “There was a slow, smiling air about her, and everything she did,” (Dahl 317).

What worked? What didn’t? The setting of this story helps reveal that an average person can have a hidden dark side. Mary lives in an average, almost stereotypical American home. She is living the life of almost all other women at the time. The story opens with Mary sitting in a chair glancing at the clock in anticipation for her husband’s arrival. “There was a slow, smiling air about her, and everything she did,” (Dahl 317).  

What worked? What didn’t? …She is seen to be manipulating the grocer into thinking that she is innocent and has nothing to do with the murder, further proving that she is acting unexpectedly by deceiving and manipulating others. “Briefly, she told her story about going out to the grocer and coming back to find him on the floor,” (Dahl 321). Mary is using the grocer as a witness to back her story…

What worked? What didn’t? …She is seen to be manipulating the grocer into thinking that she is innocent and has nothing to do with the murder, further proving that she is acting unexpectedly by deceiving and manipulating others. “Briefly, she told her story about going out to the grocer and coming back to find him on the floor,” (Dahl 321). Mary is using the grocer as a witness to back her story… 

What worked? What didn’t? One literary device Dahl uses to set the stage for Mary’s metamorphosis, setting, shows how Mary is the model housewife. In the beginning of the story, she dutifully waits for her husband to come home, looking at the clock every once in a while “without anxiety, merely to please herself with the thought that each minute gone by made it nearer the time when he would come,” (Dahl 317). This description conjures up the image of a domestic, middle class setting, suggesting that Mary’s identity is that of a loving housewife.

What worked? What didn’t? One literary device Dahl uses to set the stage for Mary’s metamorphosis, setting, shows how Mary is the model housewife. In the beginning of the story, she dutifully waits for her husband to come home, looking at the clock every once in a while “without anxiety, merely to please herself with the thought that each minute gone by made it nearer the time when he would come,” (Dahl 317). This description conjures up the image of a domestic, middle class setting, suggesting that Mary’s identity is that of a loving housewife.   

INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH Checklist INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH Do I…? Follow and address the prompt? Identify the author, title, and genre? Have a clear theme? BODY PARAGRAPH Have a topic sentence that aligns with the theme? Have an opinion in the TS? Have a CD and 2-3 CM sentences? Have at least 2 chunks? Have a CS that circles back to the TS? Have transitions between sections?

Assignment