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Creating
your Own Thesis Statements
Using the novel
Always Running
by Luis J. Rodriguez as an
example
Brainstorm on issues in Always
Running:
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Kids having
kids................................................Drug
use
Role of community
centers.................................Police
brutality
The realities of urban
living.................................Roles
and duties of the police
Sexism...............................................................Political
activism of the 60's and 70's
Discrimination and
racism...................................Blame
and responsibility
Treatment of
women...........................................The
family
The different aspects of gangs and gang
life.........The
government
The two-tiered school system: unfair education
...Gang
loyalty vs. betrayal
Growing self-awareness: maturing, gaining
skills...Gangs:
legitimate and the not legitimate
Cycles of
violence...............................................Role
models
Loss of friends, family, close
ties.........................Fighting
within communities
The draw of "La Vida
Loca"...............................Hate
Crimes
Gov. & society vs.
individual
responsibilities.......Cultural
collisions
The life and treatment of Latinos in the
U.S..........The
economics of poverty and racism
The significance of art in Luis's
life......................Positive
and negative influence of schools
Luis's inspirations and
motivations.......................Environmental/neighborhood
influence
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Creating a
thesis:
Remember: every thesis and topic sentence must contain not
only a topic but also a controlling idea which tells us the
attitude of the writer toward the
topic.
(1)
Form questions
using words from the brainstorm
.....................(use
the journalists' questions:
.................who,
what, how, why, where, when)
(2)
Create a thesis; answer the questions
......................(seek
opinions that need to be proven
......................................not
unarguable facts)
(3)
Deepen the thesis by asking "so what?"
....................Why
should we be concerned?
....................How
is this important in the novel? In life?
....................What
can be learned
Click here for
a
Demonstration
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