From Outline to Essay

Introduction:
• Begin with a subject statement to introduce the idea to your
reader.
• Your introduction should help the reader anticipate the points
you are going to discuss in your essay.
• Work from a more general statement to something more specific.
• State your thesis at the END of your first paragraph

Body Paragraphs:
• Begin with a topic sentence that includes a clear transition. Eg/
o You may simply repeat a word from the sentence that
ended the previous paragraph
o You may bring down a thought generally developed or left
slightly hanging in the air: “Smith’s idea is different” might
be a topic sentence with an automatic transition.
o You may get from one paragraph to the next by using
transitional words like but, however (within the sentence),
nevertheless, therefore, indeed, of course.
• Use details to support your topic sentence, and include
references from the text where appropriate. Remember to cite
them (Fitzgerald 4).
• Explain the details that you have used. How do they support your
topic sentence? (And remember that your topic statement
supports your thesis!)
• Don’t just explain—elaborate.

Conclusion:
• The conclusion is the opposite of your introduction so the format
will be opposite too. Begin with the specific and move to the
general.
• Restate your thesis in a fresh way. Don’t just rewrite it.
• Remind your reader about your key points.
• End with a more general subject statement.

Verb tense:

When writing about literature, write in the present tense to describe a

literary work and be consistent. A work of literature still exists even if it
was written in the past. If you are speaking about the historical context
of the novel or about the author, then it’s fine to switch momentarily to
the past tense (actually it would sound pretty weird if you didn’t).
How to incorporate quotations:

Quotations should be used to support your key ideas. If the language

itself is not particularly essential and you can paraphrase it, then do
so, but still include a citation.

When you use a quotation, it should flow with your writing. It shouldn’t
feel like something you just sloppily glued on to the page.

Here’s a bad example of incorporating a quotation:

Daisy is very disillusioned. “All right...I'm glad it's a girl. And I hope
she'll be a fool -- that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a
beautiful little fool” (21).

Here’s a good example:

Over the course of Daisy’s marriage to Tom, she has become very
disillusioned. When talking to Nick about the birth of her daughter,
Daisy tells him that she first cried and then resolved, "All right...I'm
glad it's a girl. And I hope she'll be a fool -- that's the best thing a girl
can be in this world, a beautiful little fool" (21). One can infer that
Daisy hopes her daughter will be a fool because a foolish person will
not know that she is being betrayed in the way that Tom has betrayed
Daisy. Daisy clearly thinks that women are destined to be unhappy
unless they are “beautiful little fool[s].”

Format of the Essay:

Currently, English departments use MLA formatting. Check the blog for
a link to a sample essay in MLA format.

I would like you to include a Works Cited page for this essay even
though you are only consulting The Great Gatsby. When citing the
novel in your essay, you do not need to include the author’s last name
if this is the only book you are referencing.