NARRATIVE ESSAY

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NARRATIVEESSAY
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ASSIGNMENT

• To tell the story of a significant moment in
  your life-history thus far.
• To have a clear purpose in telling this
  narrative that is, to elucidate the valuable
  lessons you have taken from this experience.
• To carefully select narrative details to support
  these morals or lessons.
• To arrange these details in an appropriate
  narrative order.

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CHARACTERISTICS

• CHRONOLGY
• time sequence
• story with a beginning, middle, and end
• make a TIMELINE
• MORAL, POINT, LESSONS LEARNED
• stated in the thesis conclusion
• Not I am going to tell a story about
• Rather This experience taught me a valuable
  lesson about friendship.

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CHARACTERISTICS

• RELEVANCE (EXCITEMENT)
• stress relevant (exciting) parts
• shorten irrelevant (dull) parts
• FOCUS on a specific event
• day 3 of vacation
• INTRODUCTION and CONCLUSION
• this IS an essay
• this is NOT necessarily a 5-paragraph essay

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PREWRITING
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PREWRITING

• MAKE 2 LISTS
• (1) a list of the 5 best times in your life
• (2) a list of the 5 worst times in your life
• MAKE a TIMELINE for the EVENTS of the MOST
  SIGNIFICANT EXPERIENCE of YOUR LIFE
• chronology
• have a clear beginning, middle, and end

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INTRODUCTION
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INTRODUCTION

• As if you were on The Late Show promoting a
  movie
• quick set up (Set this clip up for us.)
• then roll tape
• show a clip from the movie of your life

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INTRODUCTIONPICTURE FRAME

• PURPOSE
• Why are you telling this story?

SO WHAT?!

• To satisfy this demand, use the Introduction
• and Conclusion to create a frame which will
• encompass your story.

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INTRODUCTIONPICTURE FRAME

• The Introduction Conclusion are the frame
  around your picture. In them, you will only
  discuss the background and lesson learned. They
  are not to make up the majority of your essay.
• The Body of the essay will be the picture. It
  will tell a story, and it will make up the
  majority of your paper.
• Further, the narrative elements you choose for
  the story will clearly illustrate the lesson/s
  you learned.

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INTRODUCTIONPICTURE FRAME
INTRO.
STORY
CONCLN.
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INTRODUCTION

• GENERALIZE
• Regarding the type of lessons you learned
• Regarding the type of experience you had
• Death is a painfully inevitable part of life,
  so most of us have undoubtedly had to face death
  at some point in our young lives.

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INTRODUCTION

• NARROW TOWARDS YOU
• Some
• Others
• For some, it may have been the death of a close
  friend or classmate.
• For others, it may have concerned the passing
  of a teacher or an adult acquaintance.

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INTRODUCTION

• TO YOU
• Transition to you
• Use transitional expressions
• Perhaps brief background information
• However, my encounter with death involved the
  demise of a close family relative when I was 16.
  In November of 2006, my 22-year-old cousin,
  Jefferson Miles, whom I had idolized all my life,
  died of esophageal cancer.

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INTRODUCTION

• THESIS
• Previous sentence Brief background
• When, where did this event take place?
• Year, age, season
• During the spring semester of 2004 after I
  turned 18.
• Thesis ANSWER 2 QUESTIONS
• 1) What kind of story?
• 2) What kind of lessons learned?

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INTRODUCTION

• THESIS
• This tragic experience from that miserable fall
  taught me valuable lessons concerning my life and
  family in particular, as well as life and death
  in general.
• This frightening experience has taught me
  valuable lessons regarding me, my family, family
  in general, and life.

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BODY
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BODY DETAILS

• DESCRIPTION is necessary vivid detail for
  character development or setting the scene
• concrete specific details
• careful selection of details (STORYLESSON)
• CHRONOLOGICAL organization of details
• no flashbacking, no omniscience
• no Quentin Tarantino
• past tense only

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BODY DETAILS

• TIME
• Year, age, season
• NAMES
• people, places, occupation titles, stadiums,
  hospitals, funeral parlors, high schools
• BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS
• Not a descriptive essay
• Use description to set the scene
• Or highlight your lessons learned
• the blonde male nurse in purple scrubs took my
  blood pressure at St. Marks Hospital.

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BODY STORY

• Extremely FOCUSED
• Just a clip from your life-movie
• Flows LINEARLY
• All verbs should be in the PAST TENSE
• PARAGRAPH STRUCTURE the story should not be
  all one paragraph break the narrative into
  stages (each stage a paragraph)

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BODY BACKGROUND

• In the story through dialogue or thoughts at the
  time
• In the Conclusion when you are explaining a
  particular lesson
• In the Introduction, briefly, as you set up the
  story
• GET TO THE STORY
• The 1st Body paragraph start of the story
• Do not make the reader wait until the 3rd Body
  paragraph for your story to begin.

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CONCLUSION
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CONCLUSION MORAL

• Fully explain the morals/lessons you learned
  from this experience
• While you only hinted at the morals in your
  Introduction, explain them in detail here in your
  Conclusion
• Lessons concerning yourself, family, friendship,
  love, life --
• Induction lessons emanate out from the event

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CONCLUSION POV

• No you
• In the Introduction and Conclusion, do not
  switch to 3rd person POV (you)
• This is YOUR story-
• These are lessons that YOU learned-
• So speak from the I (1st person POV)

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Descriptive Essay VSNarrative Essay
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Descriptive Essay VS Narrative Essay

• SENSE DETAILS
• Dominant Impression
• BODY STRUCTURE
• 3 Body paragraphs
• 3 parts of the room/car
• Each supported by
• sense details ONLY
• metaphors to support DI
• Spatial Arrangement

• NARRATIVE DETAILS
• Morals/Lessons
• BODY STRUCTURE
• 3 Body paragraphs
• start, middle, end
• OR grouped by stages
• Each supported by
• narrative elements
• descriptive details to set scenes, support
  lessons
• Chronological Order

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TOPICS
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TOPICS

• FOCUSED
• FROZEN MOMENT IN TIME
• NOT LIFE STORY
• NOT MULTIPLE DAYS
• 3-4 PAGES IN LENGTH (with sufficient detail)
• PART OF A CHAPTER IN YOUR AUTOBIOGRAPHY
• neither a FULL CHAPTER
• nor an ENTIRE BOOK

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ACHIEVEMENT
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MISTAKE
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SIGNIFICANT EVENTS in an ADULT LIFE Family
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SIGNIFICANT EVENTS in an ADULT LIFE Firsts
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SIGNIFICANT EVENTS in an ADULT LIFE Realizations
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More SIGNIFICANT EVENTS in an ADULT LIFE
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TOPICS

• 1) TELL THE STORY OF A MAJOR CHANGE IN YOUR LIFE,
  AN EVENT THAT CHANGED YOUR LIFE OR YOUR WAY OF
  THINKING ABOUT A PERSON, PLACE, OBJECT
• went to college, inspirational story, went out
  for a sport/club/play
• quit bad habit, split with boy/girlfriend, left
  bad friends
• met someone new
• death in the family
• divorce day

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TOPICS

• CONTINUED
• 9/11 or anthrax scare
• good/bad vacation
• dumb action I did
• suspended from school
• found God, faith was tested, found Alcoholics
  Anonymous
• met a challenge that neither you nor anyone
  thought you could do

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TOPICS

• 2) TELL THE STORY OF A SPECIAL OBJECT (trophy,
  medal, picture, stuffed animal) THAT MEANS SO
  MUCH TO YOU
• this is NOT a descriptive essay on the object
• BODY
• rather, tell the story behind the object
• how/when/why did you get it
• CONCLUSION
• lessons learned from the experience
• why it means so much to you,
• how it gives insight into who you are,
• and how you would use it to introduce yourself to
  someone new whom you wanted to see the real you

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TOPICS

• 3) OTHER TOPICS
• uncles viewing
• family members (sons) deaththe day of
• the day you found Alcoholics Anonymous
• bad vacation (focused)
• day found out about...diabetes, cancer,
  pregnancy
• family tradition
• sweet 16, hunting trip, accident, robbery
• school play or musical (auditions, opening
  night), nationals or states
• responsibility

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An EXAMPLE of a NARRATIVE ESSAY
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EXAMPLEEXAMPLE SKELETON OF A NARRATIVE ESSAY

• INTRODUCTION
• Youve got to learn to laugh at yourself.
• The best advice my grandfather ever gave me was
  Boy, youve got to learn to laugh at yourself.

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EXAMPLE (contd)

• Sane people have learned to laugh at themselves.
  (or well-adjusted people) (generalizing w/o
  you) The best way for people not to take life
  too seriously is to tell stories about unpleasant
  events that happened to them. As a teacher, I
  have had certain encounters that, had I not
  laughed at them, would have driven me crazy and
  forced me to leave the profession. For example,
  during the spring semester of 2004, I took over a
  section of Microcomp for an ailing colleague and
  had one of the most embarrassing experiences of
  my professional career. That day, this teacher
  was taught a few lessons about himself and his
  co-workers.

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EXAMPLE (contd)

• SYNONYMS for EXPERIENCES
• occurrences, incidents, encounters, events,
  episodes

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EXAMPLE (contd)

• BODY
• After a long day of teaching my usual load of
• courses, I .
• skip irrelevant parts
• continue with the rest of the story, with
• concrete/descriptive details and with specific
• narrative details that prove your lesson learned

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EXAMPLE (contd)

• CONCLUSION
• This embarrassing, yet funny experience
• taught me some valuable lessons about
• myself and my colleagues. First, I realized that
• continue with specific, clear lessons learned
• go into specifics regarding these lessons
• more than one lesson learned from the most
  significant experience in your life

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NARRATION in SONGS
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THE GAMBLER KENNY ROGERS

• On a warm summers evenin on a train bound for
  nowhere,
• I met up with the gambler we were both too tired
  to sleep.
• So we took turns a starin out the window at the
  darkness
• til boredom overtook us, and he began to speak.
• He said, son, Ive made a life out of reading
  peoples faces,
• And knowin what their cards were by the way they
  held their eyes.
• So if you dont mind my sayin, I can see youre
  out of aces.
• For a taste of your whiskey Ill give you some
  advice.
• So I handed him my bottle and he drank down my
  last swallow.
• Then he bummed a cigarette and asked me for a
  light.
• And the night got deathly quiet, and his face
  lost all expression.
• Said, if youre gonna play the game, boy, ya
  gotta learn to play it right.

• You got to know when to hold em, know when to
  fold em,
• Know when to walk away and know when to run.
• You never count you r money when youre sittin
  at the table.
• Therell be time enough for countin when the
  dealings done
• Now evry gambler knows that the secret to
  survivin
• Is knowin what to throw away and knowing what to
  keep.
• cause evry hands a winner and evry hands a
  loser,
• And the best that you can hope for is to die in
  your sleep.
• So when hed finished speakin, he turned back
  towards the window,
• Crushed out his cigarette and faded off to sleep.
• And somewhere in the darkness the gambler, he
  broke even.
• But in his final words I found an ace that I
  could keep.
• (repeat chorus X3)

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CHRISTIE LEE BILLY JOEL

• Let me tell you a story
• About a woman and a man
• Maybe you will find familiar
• Maybe you won't understand
• The man's name I don't remember
• He was always Joe to me
• But I can't forget the woman
• She was always Christie Lee
• He was working in a night club
• That's where he played the saxophone
• He used to fake to stock arrangements
• He left the customers alone
• But one night before the last song
• About a quarter after three
• He saw her standing at the coat check
• And made his move on Christie Lee (X4)
• She was a nice piece of music
• She had a rhythm all her own
• He blew a solo like a blind man

• Oh I heard the man knew "the Bird" like the
  bibleYou know the man could blow an educated
  axeHe couldn't see that Christie Lee was a
  womanWho didn't need another loverAll she
  wanted was the saxIt took a while for him to
  noticeIt took a while for him to seeHe was
  never in control hereIt was always Christie
  LeeChristie Lee, Christie Lee (X2)
• Oh the man took a calculated gambleYes the man
  had the power to performBut Christie Lee was
  more than he knew how to handleShe didn't need
  him as a manAll she wanted was the hornThey
  say that Joe became a winoThey say he always
  drinks aloneThey say he stumbles like a blind
  manThey say he sold his saxophoneEven the band
  must face the musicThat's what the moral is to
  meThe only time you hit the high noteIs when
  you play for Christie Lee

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THE BREAK-UP SONG (They Dont Write Em) GREG
KIHN

• We had broken up for good just an hour beforeUh
  uh uh, uh uh uh uh uhNow I'm staring at the
  bodies as there's dancin' 'cross the floorUh uh
  uh, uh uh uh uh uh And then the band slowed the
  tempo and the music gets me downUh uh uh, uh uh
  uh uh uh It was the same old song with the
  melancholy soundUh uh uh, uh uh uh uh uh
• They don't write 'em like that anymoreThey just
  don't write 'em like that anymoreWe'd been
  living together for a million yearsUh uh uh, uh
  uh uh uh uh But now it feel so strange (out in
  the atmospheres?)Uh uh uh, uh uh uh uh uh And
  then the jukebox plays a song I used to know

• Uh uh uh, uh uh uh uh uhNow I'm staring at the
  bodies as they dancin' so slowUh uh uh, uh uh uh
  uh uhThey don't write 'em like that
  anymoreThey just don't write 'em like that
  anymoreNow I wind up staring at an empty
  glassUh uh uh, uh uh uh uh uhCause its so easy
  to say that you'll forget your pastUh uh uh, uh
  uh uh uh uhThey don't write 'em like that
  anymore, no!They just don't write 'em like that
  anymoreThey don't write 'em like that
  anymoreThey just don't write 'em like that
  anymore

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Paradise By the Dashboard Light Meat Loaf (1)

• I. PARADISEBoyI remember every little
  thingAs if it happened only yesterdayParking by
  the lakeAnd there was not another car in
  sightAnd I never had a girlLooking any better
  than you didAnd all the kids at schoolThey were
  wishing they were me that nightAnd now our
  bodies are oh so close and tightIt never felt so
  good, it never felt so rightAnd were glowing
  like the metal on the edge of aKnifeGlowing
  like the metal on the edge of a knifeCmon! hold
  on tight!Cmon! hold on tight!

• Though its cold and lonely in the deep dark
  nightI can see paradise by the dashboard light
• GirlAin't no doubt about itWe were doubly
  blessedCause we were barely seventeenAnd we
  were barely dressedAin't no doubt about itBaby
  got to go and shout itAin't no doubt about itWe
  were doubly blessed

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Paradise By the Dashboard Light Meat Loaf (2)

• BoyCause we were barely seventeenAnd we were
  barely dressedBaby doncha hear my heartYou got
  it drowning out the radioIve been waiting' so
  longFor you to come along and have some funAnd
  I gotta let ya knowNo youre never gonna regret
  itSo open up your eyes I got a big surprise
• Itll feel all right
• Well I wanna make your motor runAnd now our
  bodies are oh so close and tightIt never felt so
  good, it never felt so rightAnd were glowing
  like the metal on the edge of a knife

• Glowing like the metal on the edge of a
  knifeCmon! hold on tight!Cmon! hold on
  tight!Though its cold and lonely in the deep
  dark nightI can see paradise by the dashboard
  lightOh its cold and lonely in the deep dark
  nightParadise by the dashboard lightYou got to
  do what you canAnd let mother nature do the
  restAin't no doubt about itWe were doubly
  blessedCause we were barely seventeenAnd we
  were barely --Were gonna go all the way
  tonightWere gonna go all the way tonight's the
  night
• (repeat X3)

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Paradise By the Dashboard Light Meat Loaf (3)

RADIO BROADCASTOk, here we go, we got a real
pressure cooker going. Here, two down, nobody
on, no score, bottom of the ninth, theres the
wind-up, And there it is, a line shot up the
middle, look at him go. this boy can really Fly!
hes rounding first and really turning it on now,
hes not letting up at all, hes gonna try for
second the ball is bobbled out in center, and
here Comes the throw, and what a throw! hes
gonna slide in head first, here he Comes, hes
out! no, wait, safe - safe at second base, this
kid really makes Things happen out there. batter
steps up to the plate heres the pitch - hes
Going, and what a jump hes got, hes trying for
third, heres the throw, its In the dirt - safe
at third! holy cow, stolen base! hes taking a
pretty big Lead out there, almost daring him to
try and pick him off. the pitcher glances Over,
winds up, and it bunted, bunted down the third
base line, the suicide Squeeze is on! here he
comes, squeeze play, its gonna be close, heres
the Throw, heres th' play at the plate, holy
cow, I think hes gonna make it!
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Paradise By the Dashboard Light Meat Loaf (4)

• II. LET ME SLEEP ON IT
• GirlStop right there!I gotta know right
  now!Before we go any further --!Do you love
  me? Will you love me forever? Do you need me?
  Will you never leave me? Will you make me so
  happy for the rest of my life? Will you take me
  away and will you make me yourWife? Do you love
  me? Will you love me forever? Do you need me?
  Will you never leave me? Will you make me so
  happy for the rest of my life? Will you take me
  away and will you make me yourWife? I gotta
  know right nowBefore we go any furtherDo you
  love me !!!? Will you love me forever !!!?

• BoyLet me sleep on itBaby, baby let me sleep
  on itLet me sleep on itIll give you an answer
  in the morningLet me sleep on itBaby, baby let
  me sleep on itLet me sleep on itIll give you an
  answer in the morningLet me sleep on itBaby,
  baby let me sleep on itLet me sleep on itIll
  give you an answer in the morningGirlI gotta
  know right now!Do you love me? Will you love me
  forever? Do you need me? Will you never leave
  me? Will you make me so happy for the rest of my
  life? Will you take me away and will you make me
  your Wife?

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Paradise By the Dashboard Light Meat Loaf (5)

• I gotta know right now!Before we go any
  furtherDo you love me? Will you love me
  forever?
• Whats it gonna be boy? Come onI can wait all
  nightWhats it gonna be boy yes or no? Whats
  it gonna be boy yes or no? BoyLet me sleep
  on itBaby, baby let me sleep on itLet me sleep
  on itAnd Ill give you an answer in the
  morningGirlI gotta know right now!!!Do you
  love me?
• BoyLet me sleep on it!!

• GirlWill you love me forever?
• BoyBaby, baby let me sleep on itGirlDo
  you need me? Will you never leave me?
  BoyLet me sleep on itGirlWill you make
  me so happy for the rest of my life? BoyLet
  me sleep on it Ill give you an answer in the
  morning!! morning!!!!Ill tell you in the
  morning!!!!!

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Paradise By the Dashboard Light Meat Loaf (6)

• GirlWill you take me away, will you make me
  your wife? GirlI gotta know right nowBefore
  we go any furtherDo you love me? Will you love
  me forever? Boy Let me sleep on itGirl
  Will you love me forever? Boy Let me sleep on
  itGirl Will you love me forever?
• III. PRAYING for the END of TIMEBoyI
  couldnt take it any longerLord I was crazed
• And when the feeling came upon meLike a tidal
  waveI started swearing to my God and on my
  mothers graveThat I would love you to the end
  of timeI swore that I would love you to the end
  of time!

• So now Im praying for the end of timeTo hurry
  up and arriveCause if I gotta spend another
  minute with youI dont think that I can really
  surviveIll never break my promise or forget my
  vowBut God only knows what I can do right
  nowIm praying for the end of timeIts all that
  I can doPraying for the end of time, so I can
  end my timeWith you!!!
• BoyIt was long ago and it was far awayAnd it
  was so much better than it is todayGirlIt
  never felt so goodIt never felt so rightAnd we
  were glowing likeA metal on the edge of a knife

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HIGH TRACE ADKINS

• Ain't no whiskey in this glass Try not to smoke
  too many cigarettes I stay away from Mary Jane
  These are my choices Ain't gonna judge you if
  you do So don't you judge me if I don't I got
  my reasons, my demons and my past But hey the
  truth is Yeah the truth is I get high Drivin'
  down the freeway Just knowin' that it's Saturday
  And I got no place to be I get high Standin'
  in the spotlight No words for what it feels like
  When you sing these songs back to me If you ask
  me now I'll tell you this is how I get high

• Sometimes this world can be too much Somedays I
  feel like bein' out of touch And I see a sunset
  that takes my breath away And I find hope again
  Set there and drink it in
• I get high Drivin' down the freeway Just
  knowin' that it's Saturday And I got no place to
  be I get high Standin' in the spotlight No
  words for what it feels like When you sing these
  songs back to me And if you ask me now I'll
  tell you this is how I get high I get high
  Standin' in the spotlight No words for what it
  feels like When you sing my songs back to me
  And if you ask me now I'll tell you this is how
  I get high Yeah this is how I get high

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MY FRIENDS, MY FRIENDS EDDIE MONEY

• Talkin bout my t-shirtsand how they used to
  fit me when Im laughing with the boys Their
  spirits seemed to lift me we were talking about
  68 69 and all the things we did its not
  that now were all that old, but then we were
  just the kids my friends, my friends never got
  together again butI love my friends, my friends
  
• My memories are happy and my memories are sad
  But I love to take my pictures out and take the
  things  I had

• My songs are not like my life now and its
  always true me and my friends were dreamers
• dreaming all we do
• my friends, my friends never got together again
  boy I love my friends, my friends
• Oh, my friends, my friends we never got together
  again but I love my friends, my friends my
  friends, my friends we never got together again
  but I really do miss my friends, my friends

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IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU EDDIE MONEY

• On an afternoon
• Near the end of June
• We first met and fell in love
• Being both too shy
• Neither questioned why
• It was all we could think of
• So awkward at first
• It was like a curse
• You think youll never lose
• But then you do
• And it could happen to you
• In a borrowed ride
• White with power glide
• We felt passions burning heat
• With the static glow
• Of the radio
• Virgins struggled on the seat
• (uh-huh)

• I was never more alive than within her arms
• Life was as complete as it could be
• But being so much younger than you think you are
• Love can be so cruel in its struggle to be free
• On a vacation down
• From a college town
• I heard whispers in the street
• She was seen about
• Always hanging out
• With some dude
• She called real sweet
• When I asked her why
• She began to cry
• It was all that she could do
• She broke my heart
• And it could happen to you

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CAVEAT
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PERSONAL MATTERS

• WHILE I ENCOURAGE STUDENTS TO WRITE ABOUT
  EXPERIENCES THAT HAD SIGNIFICANTLY AFFECTED THEIR
  LIVESWHICH MAKES FOR BETTER, MORE PASSIONATE
  WRITINGPLEASE BEAR THE FOLLOWING IN MIND
• 1) IF NECESSARY, I WILL BE THE ONLY PERSON TO
  READ THE ESSAY IN ESSENCE, I WILL BE YOUR PEER
  EDITOR
• 2) YOU WILL NOT BE GRADED ON THE SUBJECT
  MATTERONLY THE GRAMMATICAL AND MECHANICAL
  ASPECTS OF THE ESSAYSO DO NOT MISUNDERSTAND THE
  GRADE AS A VALUE JUDGMENT ON YOU