Three parts: Attention Grabber, Lead-In, and Thesis Statement Introduction Three parts: Attention Grabber, Lead-In, and Thesis Statement Attention Grabber: Quote or statement that grabs the reader’s attention, which is about the story or story elements. DO NOT USE A QUESTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!! “Her skin-for this was her sixth month with child-had acquired a wonderful translucent quality, the mouth was soft, and the eyes, with their new placid look, seemed larger darker than before.” Lead-In: Connects the attention grabber to the remainder of the introduction while presenting more beginning information. Should be approximately 2-3 sentences. “Her skin-for this was her sixth month with child-had acquired a wonderful translucent quality, the mouth was soft, and the eyes, with their new placid look, seemed larger darker than before.” Mary Maloney sat as she did every night, a dutiful housewife, though she did not realize that soon her life would be much different. The same reality hit Tessie Hutchinson in the same, abrupt manner; although they both, in some ways saw it coming, they never thought it would affect them in the ways it did.

DO NOT SAY: You are about to read, or you will read…or any variation Thesis Statements: One sentence at the end of the paragraph that gives the reader an idea of what it is they will be reading in your essay. DO NOT SAY: You are about to read, or you will read…or any variation “Her skin-for this was her sixth month with child-had acquired a wonderful translucent quality, the mouth was soft, and the eyes, with their new placid look, seemed larger darker than before.” Mary Maloney sat as she did every night, a dutiful housewife, though she did not realize that soon her life would be much different. The same reality hit Tessie Hutchinson in the same, abrupt manner; although they both, in some ways saw it coming, they never thought it would affect them in the ways it did. Both Mary Maloney from Roald Dahl’s “Lamb to the Slaughter” and Tessie Hutchinson from Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” have similarities and differences in their personalities and how they interact with others; as well as, the problems and issues they encounter throughout the entirety of the plot.

Topic Sentences Compare Paragraph #1: (story element: character) At the beginning of each paragraph that tell what the paragraph is going to be about…. DO NOT SAY: “This paragraph is going to be about,” or “You are about to read.” Compare Paragraph #1: (story element: character) Mary Maloney and Tessie Hutchinson’s characters are integral to the plots of their respective stories; they have many similarities that make them alike, but with their own distinct qualities. You need to have a total of FOUR topic sentences, for each of your four body paragraphs. Two COMPARING (two different story elements) and two CONTRASTING (same two story elements)

Rough Draft 1st body paragraph: comparison of story element #1 The short story narrative format is used by both authors. Both have a clear time frame, well developed characters, well defined settings, and are told from the third person omniscient perspective. Chopin writes a brief scene from Mrs. Mallard's life which stuns the reader with the knowledge that Mrs. Mallard is joyful at the news of her husband's death.  Mrs. Mallard specifically states that she is free from her husband, "Free! Body and soul free!" which points directly toward the revelation of Mrs. Mallard being happy her husband is dead. The story covers the period of only one hour, but that hour is filled with revelations about Mrs. Mallard. Thurber also writes about a brief period in Walter Mitty's life, covering a day of shopping with his wife. “Wait here for me. I forgot something. I won’t be a minute.” She was more than a minute," this brief yet important portion of the story shows the brief scenery that Thurbin, like Chopin, used to point to specifics that form twists in the plot. Both of these authors make their points with short stories that simply depict scenes from two "ordinary" people's lives.   INCLUDE: specific examples/quotes from the stories to PROVE the similarities and differences YOUR own voice without saying “I feel” or “I think” each body paragraph should be a minimum of 5 sentences not including topic sentence. Order of body paragraphs: Comparison/Similarities of story element #1 Contrast/Differences of story element #1 Comparison/Similarities of story element #2 Contrast/Differences of story element #2

Example of a conclusion: Do not start conclusion with “In conclusion,” “All in all,” or “As you have just read.” RESTATE your thesis from your introduction. DO NOT just copy it, reword it. Give a 2-3 sentence summary of what you covered in your paper. Your entire conclusion should be about 5 sentences. Example of a conclusion:  "The Lottery" and "Lamb to the Slaughter" provide the ability to identify similarities and differences very easily.  While their characters and plots are very different, the similarities are evident and consistent from each story.  Mary Maloney, a murderer, and Tessie Hutchinson, a victim, provide the readers an ability to become emotionally invested in their life to see how they will react to their given situations.  Shirley Jackson and Roald Dahl are masters in creating confident, yet incredibly diverse characters.   Restated thesis