Personal Essays and Transactive Writing: This I Believe

We continued our look at personal writing today, clarifying the difference between the personal essay and transactive writing (primarily persuasive writing). We also began looking at examples of personal writing, specifically the essay "Always go to the Funeral" from NPR's This I Believe Series. We listened to the essay and responded to the following questions:

1) What is the essay’s thesis (main point)?

• Quote it.
• Paraphrase it in your own words.

2) How does the writer support his/her thesis? Think DRAPES (notes in class). Give at least three pieces of supporting evidence the author uses to explain why s/he believes what s/he does.