Those Enigmatic TPS Essays

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Those Enigmatic TPS Essays

• And how to do them . . .
• Prepared by Pamela Hanford

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Omigawd, Im already lost!

• What the heck is TPS (some of you are asking)?
• Dont panic.
• Thats just our acronym for The Perfect Storm.

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Omigawd, whats acronym?

• Ok, I can anticipate these tangential (look it
  up) worries,
• But I cant answer every possible question. Some
  things you will have to just look up quickly.
  Remember, I do have links to great online
  dictionaries on my menu-bar.

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The point of this presentation

• Is to give you real, live tips on how to write
  this essay every two weeks.
• This is important, because many students try to
  avoid them (if I do everything else and not the
  TPS essay, how much will it hurt my grade?)

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But your goal in taking 1A

• Is to gain the skill of
• Making a clear and concise point
• Using evidence from a text
• Using that evidence eloquently and LEGALLY,
• All while writing introductions, conclusions, and
  transitions.

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These are skills you gain

• in doing this assignment.
• But, there is also a double benefit.

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You polish these writing skills

• WHILE ALSO LEARNING the various techniques for
  which we are seeking examples.
• In watching for these writing techniques and
  strategies, and in finding Jungers examples, you
  are reinforcing for yourself how these techniques
  are used.

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But I cant find an example!!!

• I cant find (description, spatial order,
  analogy, metaphor) in the book!
• What do I do?
• Well, give it your best shot! There are examples
  all through the text, and as you continue
  looking, it definitely gets easier.

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You may also ask your group

• For some help, or even go out onto the main
  board.
• If youve exhausted all avenues, dont just leave
  that section out of your paper. As we just
  suggested, give it your best shot.

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I will often give credit

• For a really good TRY, even if you dont quite
  hit the mark.
• But I cant give you credit for the effort you
  dont make.

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So, how do I DO this?

• The first part of any essay is an introduction.
  Students write many different kinds of
  introductions.
• Here is one example. . .

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Sample Introduction

• In order to create a believable story, an
  author may need to provide details that support
  his position. The reader may not understand a
  thesis without some degree of supporting
  evidence. This supporting evidence may come in
  various forms, but its effectiveness will depend
  on how well it relates to the authors overall
  claim. Throughout The Perfect Storm, Sebastian
  Junger makes such claims within his evaluations
  which benefit from supporting evidence.

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That example

• Is from a later assignment that is looking for
  different examples from the text.
• In your first TPS assignment, you are looking for
  examples of . . .

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Jungers

• Use of sensory details (taste, touch, smell,
  sight, or sound - find examples of at least three
  different senses).
• Use of comparisons and images to help readers see
  through the eyes of the writer.
• Description of what is not there as well as what
  is there.
• Indication of changes in the subject.

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Your job

• You should write at least one paragraph on each
  of the examples you find for me.
• The paragraph should include your introduction to
  the example (dont assume your reader knows what
  youre going to be writing about).

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Sample introduction to an example

• from the text
• One of the problems that Junger faces, is how to
  explain the severity of the Andrea Gails
  situation. Since there is limited evidence of the
  actual events that took place aboard the Andrea
  Gail, Junger must draw conclusions from other
  occurrences. Consequently, his speculations are
  only believable if he can show a strong
  relationship between the Andrea Gail and the
  similar subject. He is basically using the
  technique of comparing and contrasting.

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The writer has just cued the reader

• That he has found an example of compare and
  contrast, and is about to provide that example
  in a quote

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The quoted material

• One example of this takes place in the chapter
  The Barrel of the Gun. Here Junger states his
  overall claim about the gravity of the Andrea
  Gails predicament. The degree of danger Billys
  in can be gauged from the beating endured by the
  Contship Holland, two hundred or so miles to the
  east (143).

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But dont stop with the quote

• The writer hasnt finished his job if he just
  gives us the example.
• He also needs to explain why and how this example
  fits the writing technique.
• This works as a conclusion for the paragraph

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Wrapping up the paragraph

• Jungers subject remains Billy and the Andrea
  Gail, and his claim relates to their predicament,
  but he is now using another ship to explain the
  situation.
• (see the entire paper)

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The student writer then goes on

• To write a similar paragraph structure for each
  example he has found.
• At the end of his paper, he writes a conclusion

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Sample conclusion

• Essentially, Junger uses the problems of the
  larger Contship Holland as a positive judgement
  to state the nature of severity on board the
  Andrea Gail. He then counters this with the
  success of the smaller Fair Wind to indicate that
  the Andrea Gail was probably still afloat. By
  balancing his evaluation of how bad the storm
  was, Junger serves to add validity to his story.

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BUT I CANT WRITE LIKE THAT!

• Dont panic.
• I did give you an example of some complex
  writing.
• But Im not asking you for this stuff right now.
  I am just asking you observe the STRUCTURE of his
  paper and work TOWARD that kind of structure
  yourself.

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The first thing to do

• Is take the list of examples youre looking for
• Use of sensory details (taste, touch, smell,
  sight, or sound - find examples of at least three
  different senses).
• Use of comparisons and images to help readers see
  through the eyes of the writer.
• Description of what is not there as well as what
  is there.
• Indication of changes in the subject.

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Then browse your book

• Look for sentences and paragraphs that seem to
  fit the examples youre seeking.
• Then write a trial paragraph about that example.
• Remember to introduce the technique or writing
  strategy youre showing an example of.

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• Then write a bit of an introduction which leads
  us into the actual quote from the text.
• Remember to use quotation marks and a page number
  in parenthesis which lets us know where this
  quotation came from.
• Then conclude that paragraph, and gently segue
  into your next example.

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When youve done a paragraph

• For each example,
• Write a conclusion for your essay which sums up
  what you and your reader may learn from these
  examples.
• Make certain to proof-read your paper, and
  perhaps to even read it out loud to yourself.

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When youre certain your work

• Is done,
• Send your TPS assignment to me as an attachment.
  Remember that these are also always printed and
  mailed in for grading.
• Then, be patient! These assignments take longer
  for me to grade than the others. Ill do them as
  fast as I can!

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Thank you

• For taking the time to review this presentation.
• If you have any problems or questions, please be
  sure to email me about them.
• Now, have fun with this!