(Wow, it's been a while since I have posted a topic on the General Writing forum; lol) Hi guys, it's been a while since I've been here on WF. Anyway, I've been busy with college classes lately and it's kind of hard to make it online. So, in my English class, we were given an assignment to write an Evaluation Essay on a movie of our choice and a specific "element" within that movie. I chose to do my favorite movie and it's plot (The Crow). I've been outlining what I will be covering in the essay, but here is my concern: I am not familiar with writing essays at all! They even have so many names! (Diagnostic, Evaluation, etc But my main concern is how to go about writing this essay without "freezing up" and not knowing where to start. Now, I'm not asking you to do my work for me. What I am asking though, is if you would be kind to provide me with some helpful tips to follow when writing an essay. I do, however, have needed information in my college text book, but I'm the kind of person who learns more from others' prospectives. Any thoughts? Suggestions? Thanks. ; )
Write a brief, solid thesis statement in the beginning. I had a similar assignment for a college class, but it was the movie "Blackboard Jungle," that was made in the 1950s and deals with themes including racism and sexism. I still have my old papers, and I dug this one out...here's the thesis paragraph: The movie “Blackboard Jungle” dealt with a variety of themes related to adolescence, schools, marital and professional relationships, and discrimination. This paper focuses on two types of discrimination—racism and sexism—and how each type was portrayed in the movie. I'm NOT advocating that you use this but substitute your movie/themes. I'm not in favor of plagarism - just giving an example of how it can be done. Once you make the thesis statement, go straight into the analysis. Don't have lots of extraneous fluff. Be sure to include specific references, like scenes and quotes, and tie them in naturally to back up the points you're making. Hope this helps!
Don't worry, I'm not in favor of plagerism either, Mallory. : ) Thank you for providing your example, I'm sure it will help me spark some inspiration on how to create my ownthesis statement. And I will also look into including specific references as you've mentioned. Thanks again!
the example is ok except for tense... film evaluations [= "reviews'] are written in present tense, not past...
