Friday

 Today we are going to finish "Notes of a Native Son" and write a precis.

1. Name of author, [optional: a phrase describing author], genre, title of the work, date in parentheses (additional publishing information in parentheses or note); a rhetorically accurate verb (such as “assert,” “argue,” “suggest,” “imply,” “claim,” etc.); and a that clause containing the major assertion (thesis statement) of the work.
   

2. An explanation of how the author develops and/or supports the thesis, usually in chronological order.

3. A statement of the author’s apparent purpose followed by an “in order to” phrase.

4. A description of the intended audience (and/or the relationship the author establishes

   with the audience) and a description of his or her tone.
   

 

Amanda Gorman is the first National Youth Poet Laureate of the United States, an honor given to a young person for exceptional artistic expression, civic engagement, and social impact. In a 2021 interview in Time magazine, when asked how to maintain optimism1 in challenging times, Gorman stated: “Optimism shouldn’t be seen as opposed to pessimism,2 but in conversation with it. Your optimism will never be as powerful as it is in that exact moment when you want to give it up.” 

 

Write an essay that argues your position on the extent to which Gorman’s claim about the relationship between optimism and pessimism is valid. 1: a tendency to view things in a positive light.

Note - before you write anything you should practice outlining the essay.

Ideas for Hook:

Thesis Statement:

Order of Development:

Point or claim # 1:

    a) evidence to back up claim

    b) 2nd piece of evidence to back up claim

Point or claim # 2:

    a) evidence to back up claim

    b) 2nd piece of evidence to back up claim

Point or claim # 3:

    a) evidence to back up claim

    b) 2nd piece of evidence to back up claim

Ideas for Conclusion: