Pre-AP English II: Intro to the IWA

Beginning with this six-weeks, students will complete an Individual Writing Assignment every six-weeks. The first one we'll write together.

The IWA begins with a prompt:

In many novels character names do double duty. Not only do they suit and identify the character, but they may also act symbolically and deepen the meaning of the story. In a well-developed essay, explore how Ray Bradbury’s choice of names in Fahrenheit 451 enhances the reader’s appreciation of the work.

The prompt not only tells you what to do (write about how an author's choice of character names enhances the reader's experience), but also offers a suggestion as to how you should prove your thesis (symbol).

At the end of the Afterword printed in many editions, Bradbury writes

Only recently, glancing at the novel, I realized that Montag is named after a paper manufacturing company. And Faber, of course, is a maker of pencils!

Therefore we can see that symbolically the relationship between Faber and Montag is similar to the relationship between Pencil and Paper. This helps greatly in deciding the direction of our essay.

We'll start out writing two-sentence thesis paragraphs. (Once this is mastered, you may get "fancy" if you choose.) The first sentence is the thesis (what you're going to prove); the second sentence is your method (how you're going to prove it).

As the IWA is a work in progress (You write a draft, I annotate corrections on your draft essay, you revise, the cycle continues until your essay is satisfactory), we won't come up with a perfect thesis to start with, but let's try:

In Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradbury chooses names that enhance the reader’s appreciation of the novel. As he says in the “Afterword,” Montag is symbolic of a paper company, and Faber is symbolic of a pencil manufacturer – mirroring their relationship in the story.

Next up: Body Paragraphs!