english composition 1302 : THE PIANO LESSON
Essay 1
The Piano Lesson
Choose a character; create a theme based on that character; write a literary analysis.
Format:
ï‚· 12pt. Times Roman
ï‚· Double spaced
 1†margins T, B, L, R
ï‚· 2-3 pages (shoot for 2.5 just to be safe with the length requirement)
ï‚· No research allowed
A possible procedure:
1. Read the play more than twice—the whole play.
2. Read it again.
3. Start thinking as you read which character seems most significant to you. Wonder why
with yourself—maybe write down what you think
4. Think about what that character makes you think about—what does he or she (or it)
trigger for you?
5. Read the play again. This time mark some significant places that explain why you think
the way you do about the character.
6. Character analysis—What he or she says; What he or she does; What other characters say
about him or her. Mark significant places in the play that seem to answer these questions.
7. Summarize all you have gathered into one sentence—a working theme.
8. Theme = Topic + the playâ€
s lesson or argument, or stand on the topic through your
chosen character.
9. Think of parts of the theme that your chosen character addresses.
Not alowed to use first or second person pronouns.
1p = I, me, my, mine, we, us, our, ours, myself, ourself, ourselves.
2p = you, your, you’re, yourself, yourselves
No BE verbs
is, am, are, was, were, be, being, been,
other hidden monsters
it’s = it is
there’s = there is
here’s = here is
that’s = that is, etc. Avoid contractions, and these little monsters will not trip you up and steal your extra credit.
You CAN use third person pronouns all you want, as long as they agree with their antecedent:
he, she, it, his, her, hers, its, one, one’s, oneself, himself, herself, they, them, their, themselves
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