Introduction
In 1651, Thomas Hobbes famously wrote that the natural condition of human life outside the authority of the political state was “solitary, poore, nasty, brutish, and short.” He thought human beings were naturally selfish and that without the power of a supreme authority to enforce laws and keep people under control, they will turn to evil. Opposite to him in his thinking was Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who thought that human beings were naturally good and that the inequalities foisted on them by modern society corrupted them, making them ruthless in their competition for a larger piece of the social pie. William Golding, in Lord of the Flies, gives us perhaps an even darker view of human nature and the human condition than the views of Rousseau and Hobbes, both of which he represents in the characters of Ralph and Jack, respectively. In the characters of Simon and Piggy, he reveals this darker power hidden in our fears, a power that reaches beyond mere selfishness or the corrupting influence of social inequality. Golding suggests that the darkness which exists in the human heart is with us always, whatever our social circumstances.
•Body Paragraph #1
Ralph represents the desire for an equal, democratic society—a return to the adult, civilized world which is fair, reasonable, and equal.
Supporting evidence: ______________________________________
Don’t forget PPD for each of the three pieces of supporting evidence. Ensure that the discussion or explanation of the evidence comes back to the point which supports the topic sentence in some way)
Writing a solid paragraph is one of the most challenging tasks that it will encounter this year, and yet it is surprisingly simple if its keep a few things in mind, primarily this notion:
POINT-PROOF-DISCUSSION (PPD means)
first must have a TOPIC SENTENCE, what the paragraph is about, what it’s are about to convince the reader of. Student’s essays often fall apart at this level. Your topic sentence must be clear, concise, and refer to everything in the paragraph that follows. Spend quite a bit of time at this stage.
A POINT is a statement that supports the topic sentence–nothing too fancy.
The PROOF of the paragraph is EVIDENCE from the text at hand, usually in the form of DIRECT QUOTATIONS.. Find quotations that give examples for the topic sentence–they should be brief and fully support the POINT that is making.
DISCUSSION the opportunity to discuss each quotation’s relevance to the topic sentence.
Discussion may occur after each quotation, or after a group of quotations with a similar idea. Why does this quotation prove what its trying to say in the topic sentence? How is it important to the point is making?
Your task:
Write personal response discussing the idea of peer acceptance and how it informs the choices an individual makes. All point-proof-discussion that follows must be focused on that sentence–do not diverge from the defense of the topic sentence, or it will be off-topic.
Make several points which support this statement, remembering that each point made needs proof. Organize the QUOTATIONS that have found into a format that proves the topic sentence implicitly. Remember that quotations CANNOT stand alone in a sentence–they must be integrated into the writing in a clear and smooth fashion.
3. DISCUSS (on paper) each quotation as it relates to your topic sentence. It may want to discuss each quotation separately, OR it may want to discuss the quotations as a group–either method is fine, so long as the discussion is insightful and interesting.
4. Individually re-write the paragraph until its satisfied with it. Have it “proven” what would be the topic sentence said it would prove?
•Body Paragraph #2
In Jack, Golding gives us the character of an all powerful authority asserting power to control the island’s society of boys and direct the evil impulses among them.
Supporting evidence: ______________________________________
Supporting evidence: ______________________________________
Supporting evidence: ______________________________________
•Body Paragraph #3
In the circumstances surrounding the deaths of Simon and Piggy, Golding elaborates on the darkness within the human soul.
Supporting evidence: ______________________________________
Supporting evidence: ______________________________________
Supporting evidence: ______________________________________
•Conclusion
Remember to write the conclusion after
it have reread the body paragraphs that have written. The conclusion should return to the thesis and highlight how it developed through the body paragragph
