1. Proving the thesis statement
Elements of the Essay
Proving the thesis statement

2. Focus on the thesis
Each paragraph (topic from the thesis statement) has one proof: quote from the text statistics direct quote from a speech, or different text quote from a study

3. Proof is from a valid source
History readings from class History text Non-fiction essays or excerpts Vetted online sources: Newsbank, SIRs, etc. AVOID Wikis, blogs, encyclopedias, answer.com, askjeeves.com,

4. Finding valid proof Create the thesis statement
Identify the topics (paragraphs)
Search for proof that supports the topic and proves the thesis
Make sure that the proof is in the correct context—you may need to include an explanation of the context

5. Good Writing . . .
Quotes/proof should be in the middle of the paragraph
Opportunity to transition into the proof
Explanation of how you are supporting the thesis
Okay to write, “This quote supports . . .” following the proof.
No proof at the beginning of the paragraph or at the end

6. Does Elie Wiesel support isolationism
Does Elie Wiesel support isolationism? Give several examples that support the reason why he does or does not support isolationism.
Having experienced the death camps while the free world turned its back on the Jews, and surviving the personal tragedy of losing most of his family, Elie Wiesel does not support isolationism which he sees as a form of indifference.

7. Having experienced the death camps while the free world turned its back on the Jews, and surviving the personal tragedy of losing most of his family, Elie Wiesel does not support isolationism which he sees as a form of indifference.
Experienced the death camps while the free world turned its back on the Jews
*establish that indifference=isolationism
Isolationism=don’t get involved=indifference
The Jews were convinced no one else knew
Obsessed with trying to let the world know
The responsibility of the survivor
Horrified to learn after the war that the world chose not to react
The United States’ indifference to the Jews’ aboard the St. Louis
Losing most of his family
Elie loses his mother, youngest sister, grandparents and his father at the concentration camps.
While he is in the camps, he has few, if any, experiences of any compassion
Most of what he sees are examples of cruelty, apathy, and horror
He witnesses hangings, burnings, and torture—all in an atmosphere of indifference
Wiesel sees what happened to his family as a direct result of the world’s indifference to Hitler
Wiesel loses his childhood—“Fifty-four years ago to the day, a young Jewish boy from a small town in the Carpathian Mountains woke up, not far from Goethe's beloved Weimar, in a place of eternal infamy called Buchenwald. He was finally free, but there was no joy in his heart. He thought there never would be again “ (Famous Speeches).

8. Having experienced the death camps while the free world turned its back on the Jews, and surviving the personal tragedy of losing most of his family, Elie Wiesel does not support isolationism which he sees as a form of indifference.
Experienced the death camps while the free world turned its back on the Jews
“A thousand people -- in America, a great country, the greatest democracy, the most generous of all new nations in modern history. What happened? I don't understand. Why the indifference, on the highest level, to the suffering of the victims “(Famous Speeches)? Need context about the St. Louis
Losing most of his family
Elie Wiesel does not support isolationism which he sees as a form of indifference
“Fifty-four years ago to the day, a young Jewish boy from a small town in the Carpathian Mountains woke up, not far from Goethe's beloved Weimar, in a place of eternal infamy called Buchenwald. He was finally free, but there was no joy in his heart. He thought there never would be again “ (Famous Speeches).
“Indifference is not a beginning, it is an end. And, therefore, indifference is always the friend of the enemy, for it benefits the aggressor -- never his victim, whose pain is magnified when he or she feels forgotten “(Famous Speeches).

9. Explain why Hitler thought that he could do whatever he wanted to do in Europe.
Hitler’s confidence was well founded due to the lack of consequences for his writing Mein Kampf, his dismantling of the Weimer Republic and his violating the treaty of Versailles.

10. Hitler’s confidence was well founded due to the lack of consequences for his writing Mein Kampf, his dismantling of the Weimer Republic and his violating the treaty of Versailles.
“Italy wants peace, work, and calm. I will give these things with love if possible, with force if necessary” (Mussolini in 736).
“Calling himself Der Fuher—’the Leader’—he quickly became the party’s leader” (737).
“A year later, he [Hitler] sent troops into the Rineland, a German region bordering France and Belgium that was demilitarized as a result of the Treat of Versailles. The League did nothing to stop Hitler” (738).

11. Explain which elements of Nazi propaganda were most effectively used against the Jews.
The Nazis used pinpointing the enemy, stereotyping and bandwagon to turn most of Germany against the Jews.

12. The Nazis used pinpointing the enemy, stereotyping and bandwagon to turn most of Germany against the Jews.
“To make it easier for the Nazis to identify the Jews, the Jews had to wear a bright yellow Star of David attached to their clothing” (749).
“For decades many Germans looking for a scapegoat had blamed the Jews as the cause of their failures. Hitler found that a majority of Germans were willing to support his belief that Jews were responsible for Germany’s economic problems and defeat in WWI” (749).