Response Essay
Thesis
A thesis might be about some
trends in the use of images in the work or about parallels with the author s
own life.
Body
The body of the response essay
is a careful working through of the work in question, examining all relevant
aspects of it. Usually there is too much to work with so you need to focus your
work on a limited number of points.
Some of the ways you read through
a work of literature include
· identify literary devices such as simile, metaphor,
image, alliteration, assonance, onomatopoiea and others and show how they help
to convey the overall meaning of the work.
· find themes which are addressed in various parts of the
work and show how they contribute to the overall meaning.
· find the roots of words such as the Greek or Latin roots
or archaic usage and show how the writer has used these deeper meanings to add
layers of complexity to his work.
· relate aspects of the work to the author s own life or
experience.
Conclusion
All you have to do is state that
the bulk of your evidence supports your thesis. If there are any major
arguments against your thesis, you can take one more shot at them.
What is the
maker looking for?
A new analysis of an old work
might be a good start. Find subtle points, which support your argument, which
you haven t seen, presented in other essays. A creative thesis is a good start,
but beware of trying to make a work of art say something, which the author
couldn t have possibly intended. (There s a whole bunch of critical theory
around this,but unless you are working on a graduate level essay, just stick to
things relevant to the author.)
Here are the examples of the
popular response essay topics:
· The Movie I Can Watch Over and Over
· The Article That Changed My Philosophy
· Responses to Documentaries
· Yellow Press
· The Fashion Tendencies of Fall 2010
· The New Album of My Favorite Band
· New Theories in Business Environments
These essay topics can give you
an idea where to start. Whatever your subject will be you should show your
personal thoughts, personality and attitude.