2. AGENDA
Exam 2: Terms
Presentation: Introduction
to Essay #3
How to write a response to
literature
Discussion: Stone Butch
Blues
In-class writing: Thesis,
outline, topic sentences, and
body paragraphs
4. Essay #3
Stone Butch Blues offers many
ways to read the challenges of
growing to adulthood. Each of
the conflicts Jess and her
friends face speaks to readers
differently, and for this reason, I
offer you several choices. In a
thesis driven essay of 4-6
pages, respond to one of the
following prompts. You need
only the primary text for this
essay, but you may use others
if you want to incorporate
additional support. Remember,
you can also draw on your own
experiences and knowledge to
discuss, explain, and analyze
your topic.
5. Topic: Choose One
Explore Jess’s coming of age
through moments of both
intentional and unintentional
passing in Stone Butch Blues.
Show how these passing
moments shape her into the
person ze ultimately becomes.
Consider both hir experiences and
those of people ze encounters.
Think about not only who
passes, but for whom they
are passing.
Use textual evidence to show
the moments of passing;
analyze those moments to
prove how they shape,
influence, or change hir.
All people are subject to society’s
demand for conformity. This, as we
discussed in class, has both positive
and negative outcomes. For this
essay, trace that demand for
conformity by identifying the social
pressures that influence Jess; explain
how the social pressure to conform
contributes to hir growth,
development, and ultimate identity.
Consider multiple settings
and social groups, for
example, home, school, work,
bars, and hospitals.
Think about who has power
and how and why that power
is wielded.
Use textual evidence to show
the moments of social
pressure; analyze those
moments to prove how they
shape, influence, or change
hir.
6. Or one of these
For this essay, explore instances and
methods of resistance to oppressions
based on gender identity development,
socioeconomic structures, race, and sex
(or combinations of these markers) in
Stone Butch Blues. Discuss how
moments of resistance contribute to
Jess’s identity development. Consider
Jess’s masculinity, her working-class
status, her Jewish heritage, her female
body and expected social role, and her
lesbianism (or combinations of these
identity markers) and the moments of
prejudice, discrimination, violence, or
inhumane treatment based on them.
Think about how Jess resists
these oppressions.
Use textual evidence to show
the moments of oppression;
analyze those moments to
show resistance.
Jess interacts with medical personnel in
various ways throughout the novel. For this
essay, explore Jess’s experience with
doctors, nurses, clinics, hospitals, and
psychiatric institutions. Show how her
gender identity influences the treatment
she receives (or doesn’t receive); analyze
and explain the effects of her experiences
on her social, psychological, and physical
development. Consider multiple
encounters with health professionals or
visits to healthcare facilities. Think both
about her primary care but also how she
sees others treated.
Think about the authority of
medical professionals and how
that authority influences social
values.
Use textual evidence to show the
encounters with medical
professionals; analyze those
moments to show how Jess
internalizes the experiences.
Document her responses and
explain her behavior.
7. HOW TO WRITE A
RESPONSE TO LITERATURE
Adapted from a handout from The Writing
Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill
8. Interpretations of fiction are
generally opinions, but not all
opinions are equal.
A good, valid, and interesting interpretation will do
the following:
Avoid the obvious (in other words, it won’t argue a
conclusion that most readers could reach on their
own from a general knowledge of the story)
Support your assertion with strong evidence from the
story
Use careful reasoning to explain how that evidence
relates to the main points of the interpretation.
9. Be Familiar with the Text
A good paper begins with the writer having a
solid understanding of the work that he or she
interprets. Being able to have the whole text in
your head when you begin thinking through
ideas will actually allow you to write the paper
more quickly in the long run.
Spend some time just thinking about the story.
Flip back through the book and consider what
interests you about this book—what seemed
strange, new, or important?
10. Explore Potential
Interpretations
Even though you have a list of topics from
which to choose, you must develop your
own interpretation.
Consider how you might approach each
topic.
What will your answer to each question
show about the text?
So what? Why will anyone care?
Try this phrase for each prompt: “This
book shows ________________. This is
important because
______________________.
1. Conformity
2. Passing
3. Resistance
4. Interaction with
medical
professionals
11. Select a Topic with Plenty
of Evidence
Narrow down your list of
possible topics by
identifying how much
evidence or how many
details you could use to
investigate each potential
issue.
Keep in mind that
persuasive papers rely on
ample evidence and that
having a lot of details to
choose from can make your
paper easier to write.
Jot down all the events or
elements of the story that
have some bearing on the
two topics that seem most
promising.
Don’t launch into a topic
without considering all the
options first because you
may end up with a topic that
seemed promising initially
but that only leads to a dead
end.
12. Jot down all the events or elements of
the story that have some bearing on the
two topics that seem most promising.
Topic Four: explore Jess’s
experience with doctors,
nurses, clinics, hospitals, and
psychiatric institutions. Show
how her gender identity
influences the treatment she
receives (or doesn’t receive)
Topic Two: Trace the demand
for conformity by identifying
the social pressures that
influence Jess; explain how
the social pressure to conform
contributes to hir growth,
development, and ultimate
identity.
Topic Three: Discuss how
moments of resistance
contribute to Jess’s identity
development.
Topic One: Explore Jess’s
coming of age through
moments of both intentional
and unintentional passing
13. Mental institution when
Jess was young
Mastectomy
Women’s clinic
Milli to the veterinarian for
broken arm
Resisted Annie Oakley
outfit.
Fought with police in
Alley
Resisted wearing a
dress to Ro’s funeral
Topic Three: Discuss
how moments of
resistance contribute
to Jess’s identity
development
Topic Four: explore Jess’s
experience with doctors,
nurses, clinics, hospitals,
and psychiatric
institutions. Show how her
gender identity influences
the treatment she receives
(or doesn’t receive)
14. Developing a Working Thesis
Based on the evidence that relates to your topic—and
what you anticipate you might say about those pieces
of evidence—compose a working thesis. Think about
what you want to show the reader.
This book shows______________
This is important because__________________
1. Passing
2. Conformity
3. Resistance
4. Interaction with medical professionals
15. Thesis Possibility: Resistance
This book shows that Jess’s resistance to
oppression, based on gender identity
development, socioeconomic structures, race,
and sex, contributes to Jess’s growth and
development because it makes hir strong. This
is important because it shows that resistance is
not futile, that resisting oppression liberates
people from it.
16. Write Out a Working Thesis
Try this phrase again:
This book (or Feinberg) shows
________________.
This is important because
_____________________.
Remember, this will
probably evolve as your
insights develop into a
more complex idea.
1. Passing
2. Conformity
3. Resistance
4. Interaction with
medical
professionals
17. Make an extended list of
evidence
Skim back over the story and make
a more comprehensive list of the
details that relate to your point.
As you make your notes keep track
of page numbers so you can
quickly find the passages in your
book again when you need them.
18. Select your evidence
Once you’ve made your expanded list of evidence,
decide which supporting details are the strongest. First,
select the facts which bear the closest relation to your
thesis statement. Second, choose the pieces of
evidence you’ll be able to say the most about. Readers
tend to be more dazzled with your interpretations of
evidence than with a lot of quotes from the book.
Select the details that will allow you to show off your
own reasoning skills and allow you to help the reader
see the story in a way he or she may not have seen it
before.
19. Refine your thesis
Now, go back to your working thesis and refine it
so that it reflects your new understanding of your
topic. This step and the previous step (selecting
evidence) are actually best done at the same
time, since selecting your evidence and defining
the focus of your paper depend upon each other.
Don't forget to consider the scope of your project:
how long is the paper supposed to be, and what
can you reasonably cover in a paper of that
length?
20. Refined Thesis: Resistance
This book shows that social pressure,
oppression, and violence act not only as
forces of conformity, but also as powerful
sources of agency; resistance to these forces
can inspire people to challenge injustice in
pursuit of liberty.
21. Organize your evidence
Once you have a clear thesis you can go back to your
list of selected evidence and group all the similar details
together. The ideas that tie these clusters of evidence
together can then become the claims that you’ll make in
your paper. As you begin thinking about what claims you
can make (i.e. what kinds of conclusion you can come
to) keep in mind that they should not only relate to all the
evidence but also clearly support your thesis. Once
you’re satisfied with the way you’ve grouped your
evidence and with the way that your claims relate to your
thesis, you can begin to consider the most logical way to
organize each of those claims.
22. Interpret your evidence
Avoid the temptation to load your paper with evidence from your
story. Each time you use a specific reference to your story, be
sure to explain the significance of that evidence in your own
words. To get your readers’ interest, you need to draw their
attention to elements of the story that they wouldn’t necessarily
notice or understand on their own. If you are quoting passages
without interpreting them, you’re not demonstrating your
reasoning skills or helping the reader. In most cases, interpreting
your evidence merely involves putting into your paper what is
already in your head. Remember that we, as readers, are lazy—
all of us. We don’t want to have to figure out a writer’s reasoning
for ourselves; we want all the thinking to be done for us in the
paper.
23. Introduction: Directed Summary (We will discuss this next time we meet)
Transition to Thesis Statement (We will discuss this next time we meet)
Thesis Statement
Section A
Body Paragraph 1
Body Paragraph 2
Section B
Body Paragraph 3
Body Paragraph 4
Section C
Body Paragraph 5
Body Paragraph 6
Counterargument (We will discuss this next time we meet)
Conclusion (We will discuss this next time we meet)
24. Section A: Social Pressure is a powerful source of agency that works to inspire
Jess to challenge injustice.
Par 1: Social pressure from the larger social construct that inspires Jess to challenge
injustice.
Par 2: Social pressure from inside of the lesbian community that inspires Jess to
challenge injustice.
Section B: Oppression is a powerful source of agency that works to inspire Jess
to challenge injustice.
Par 3: Gender expression oppression inspires Jess to challenge injustice.
Par 4: Discrimination/oppression at work/hospital/school inspires Jess to challenge
injustice.
Section C: Violence is a powerful source of agency that works to inspire Jess to
challenge injustice.
Par 5: Emotional/Mental Abuse (violence) inspires Jess to challenge injustice
Par 6: Physical Abuse (violence) inspires Jess to challenge injustice.
Thesis: This book shows that social pressure, oppression, and
violence act not only as forces of conformity, but also as powerful
sources of agency; resistance to these forces can inspire people to
challenge injustice in pursuit of liberty.
25. HOMEWORK
• Post # 17: Finish
and post in-class
writing: tentative
thesis, body
paragraphs (topic
sentences and
evidence;
quotations with
explanations).
