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The Three-Point Thesis

The Three-Point Thesis. Mrs. Sikora American Literature 2014. Brainstorm. What is your favorite movie of all time? List three reasons why this movie is great. 1. 2. 3. Now, think of your chosen film for the paper.

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The Three-Point Thesis

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  1. The Three-Point Thesis Mrs. Sikora American Literature 2014

  2. Brainstorm • What is your favorite movie of all time? • List three reasons why this movie is great. • 1. • 2. • 3. • Now, think of your chosen film for the paper. • What makes this movie great? List at least three thingsbased on the research you have conducted. • 1. • 2. • 3.

  3. What is a thesis statement? • Your thesis statement presents your argument to the reader. It is your key, your roadmap, your guide. • It shows the significance of the information you have found. • For this research paper, it will prove why your chosen movie belongs on the AFI list. • It passes the “So, what?” test. • It is arguable. • It is not a question. • It does not use the personal pronoun I.

  4. So, what’s a three-point thesis? • In your three-point thesis, you preview the three specific points you will elaborate on in your body paragraphs. • In other words, you will identify three reasons your movie deserves its spot on the AFI list. • Your thesis will be only one sentence long. • In sum, it is… • An arguable point • That outlines the three main ideas you will cover in your paper • One side note: Titles of films are italicized in papers! • Reminder: Don’t use I in your thesis statement!

  5. Bad Thesis • Intangible qualities (e.g. “The film is uplifting.” Or “Watching The Wizard of Oz makes people happy.”These words talk about the emotions of the audience, which is an aspect of the film difficult to know or to explore) • Focuses on popularity • Uses circular reasoning • Titanic deserves its rank on the American Film Institute’s Top 100 list because of the emotional music, its ability to move audiences to tears, and its heart-felt impact. • This doesn’t say much! • It also is not concrete. It is too focused on intangible ideas. • Good Thesis • Tangible, concrete aspects of the film (e.g. acting, cinematography) • Qualities of the film that can be analyzed • Focuses on technique and achievement • The movie Platoon deserves its position among the list of the Top 100 list of American Films because of its realistic portrayal of the Vietnam War, superb directing by Vietnam War veteran Oliver Stone, and unusual documentary-like style that makes use of disorienting scenes.

  6. Good vs. Bad • Good Thesis • The film Vertigo is truly deserving of its position on the AFI Top 100 List because of its exploration of the universal theme of desire, its unique use of colors and lighting to symbolize love and lust, and its interesting camera angles that evoke a sense of dreams and dizziness. • Not-as-strong Thesis • The film Vertigo is truly deserving of its position on the AFI Top 100 List because of its themes, its lighting, and its camera angles. • This is not as specific and concrete as the previous example. • You need to evaluate what your research says about the three topics you are going to focus on.

  7. Upcoming events • For tomorrow, you will need to complete the Thesis Organizer sheet with a good thesis statement(to turn in). • For Monday, March 17, you will bring a typed and printed copy of your entire introductory paragraph to class to peer edit. We will discuss the requirements for this tomorrow. • On Tuesday, March 18, you will turn your revised introductory paragraph in to Mrs. Sikora for a grade. • On Monday, March 31 (after Spring Break), you will turn in a detailed outline for your research paper. (We will discuss the format of this next week).

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